Sunday, March 18, 2012

In Progress - #38: Plan 10 parties in a year

Last weekend, it was my pleasure to plan a Founders Day Luncheon for the Northern Virginia Alumnae Chapter of Kappa Alpha Theta. Every year, Founders Day is a chance for Thetas from across the region to re-connect and celebrate our rich sisterhood. For the past year, I've been working with a number of women to organize the 2012 luncheon, and I think it was a smashing success!


We started this year's program with a candle lighting ceremony to honor our Founders, the annual chapter roll call (always one of my favorite parts!) and recognition of our 50- and 75-year Thetas in attendance. It was so exciting to see how many collegiate chapters and how many decades were represented by the women in the room. (In a group of 100 women, we represented more than 50 different chapters - wow!)


We were also honored to have The Honorable Barbara Franklin in attendance as this year's guest speaker. A former Secretary of Commerce, Ms. Franklin spoke to us about her time in the Nixon White House where she worked on the President's initiative to increase the number of women in federal positions. Her trailblazing career, both in the White House and in the entrepreneurial arena, is the subject of her new book - A Matter of Simple Justice: The Untold Story of Barbara Hackman Franklin and a Few Good Women. Ms. Franklin was kind enough to sign copies through the luncheon, and one lucky Theta took home a free copy!


After our formal program came the delicious food. Hosted at Jaleo in Crystal City, our lunch was a series of tapas dishes served family-style. From the endive & goat cheese salad, to the very last bite of flan, each dish we tried was more fantastic than the last. In taking a peek at the post-event surveys that are coming my way, I can tell you - Jaleo's food did not disappoint!


In all, the lunch was a great success and a wonderful opportunity to give back to the fraternity that has given me so much. I'm already looking forward to next year's, though I certainly won't be planning it!

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