Delta Tau, Temple University

Last year, Delta Tau Chapter’s spring philanthropy event, Paint-A-Turtle, was a huge success as the Temple University community came out to help to support the chapter's efforts to raise money for the Starkey Hearing Foundation.

This year, Delta Tau hosted an event that every member and the Temple University community could participate in simultaneously.

On April 25, 2017, Delta Tau held a bingo night fundraiser for Starkey in Temple’s student center. This event was incredibly successful, with approximately 100 students in attendance. Delta Tau Chapter raised a total of $4,075.

"With the help of members on the Bingo Night Committee, our Vice President of Philanthropy collected over a dozen donated gift cards and prizes from local stores and organizations within the Philadelphia area," said member Mary Strehl. "Many sisters also donated raffle baskets through their friends, family and employers."

One of the chapter's newest members, Emma Casella, who served on the Bingo Committee, said, “The Bingo Committee put a lot of thought into the event, seeing to every detail. It was amazing to see everything come together and watch everyone enjoy themselves at the event, and it was extremely rewarding to have such a wonderful outcome of people who together raised a great amount of money for the Starkey Hearing Foundation!”

A few members volunteered at Delta Tau's local philanthropy, The Pennsylvania School for the Deaf (PSD), located in Philadelphia. They assisted in organizing and facilitating the school’s open house for prospective students. The PSD’s Director, Karen Leslie-Henry, taught members how to sign a few words and phrases to communicate with the children exploring the school.

The Delta Tau members who attended said that it was a very humbling experience and they were so happy to have a positive impact on the local deaf community. Karen also visited a chapter meeting later in the semester to teach the entire chapter the American Sign Language alphabet and explain in further detail how the PSD functions day to day.

This summer, seven Delta Tau members will be participating in The Painted Turtle camp volunteer opportunity. "The Delta Tau Chapter had sisters who participated last summer," said Mary Strehl, "and when they related what a heartwarming experience they had had last summer, we had plenty of eager volunteers lined up to attend this summer."

Sienna McGinnis volunteered last summer and said, “I had an unforgettable experience working personally with the organization we work with on a large scale through Delta Zeta. It was great to experience something so close to our organization first-hand.”

The Delta Tau Chapter is excited to hear about the amazing time the next group of women experienced at The Painted Turtle when the chapter returns for the 2017-2018 school year.

Members of the Delta Tau Chapter (Temple University) had the opportunity to volunteer at the Broad Street Ministry, a broad-minded Christian community that works through civic engagement.

Marissa Chirico, who participated, said, "Getting to experience firsthand the incredible work these people do every day opened my eyes to the underlying stream of compassion present in Philadelphia that often gets overlooked. I watched people give kindness, empathy and understanding to others who accepted their gifts with nothing but grace and appreciation."

"We are thankful to be able to participate with this organization, as well as countless others in Philadelphia!" said Laine Confer, Member Development Junior Peer Facilitator.

"As university students, young adults and Delta Zetas, we believe the Presidential election of 2016 is one of great importance not only for our future, but for generations to come. It is our duty as American citizens to ensure that all of those eligible to do so exercise their right to vote,' said Laine Confer, LAMP Editor and Historian for the Delta Tau Chapter at Temple University.

"As active students on Temple University’s campus, we set out to ensure students on campus were registered and ready to vote in the November election. Once a week for two weeks, before Pennsylvania voting registration closed, Delta Tau set up voter registration tables to register students who may not have registered yet or just recently turned 18. We are excited to make a difference in our community and stress that each citizen’s vote matters," Laine concluded.

Julia Wilkins, President of the Delta Tau Chapter at Temple University, affirms that her Delta Zeta experience has truly changed her life.

"Throughout my life I have been extremely close with my family, as well as having a very close group of friends in high school," said Julia. "When I decided to attend Temple University, I knew going in that a lot of my friends were going to be at different schools in different parts of the country and that I would be going in with a blank slate. I did not know what to expect, and I was definitely scared.

"I decided to try formal recruitment, without a real knowledge of what sororities did or how much of an impact they make on women's lives. I never had a sister; I have one brother, and all of my cousins who are close in age to me are boys. I was always the only girl; the idea of having 180 sisters was unfathomable to me. I went in with an open mind and told myself, 'If it's not what you want, you don't have to do it. However, I fell in love with Delta Zeta, its philanthropy and service project, the women I met there, and the values that Delta Zeta holds. I accepted my bid as a fall semester freshman and have not looked back.

"I found more than just my best friends in Delta Zeta; I found the sisters I never had. My little sister and I have traveled to basically every corner of the country together. Delta Zeta has given me roommates, mentors, friends that make me laugh, and friends that always encourage me to be the best person I can be.

"My favorite thing about my chapter is that we are so diverse. Each very different woman who joins Delta Zeta finds an aspect of it that makes her better and improves her college experience. I have gained immense friendships and leadership experience. I know that Delta Zeta has made a forever impact on my life. The friends I have made and the experiences and memories I have gained will stay with me and continue to influence my future for many years to come.

"Throughout my childhood, my parents always instilled in my brother and me that giving to others is a necessary part of our lives. My mom has been involved with the Salvation Army as long as I can remember, and my dad has been a township volunteer on our planning commission for many, many years. In addition, we have always made time to be involved with a variety of causes: American Diabetes Association, The Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure and Children's Miracle Network I was a Miss Pennsylvania contestant), to name a few.

"As a high school student, I worked with a local organization as a reading tutor in a local school over the summer and throughout the school year, which is where I began to work with children in my volunteer life. When I came to Temple University, I knew I wanted to continue to volunteer in any way possible, and I loved working with kids. When I went through formal recruitment, I paid special attention to the philanthropies of each sorority, and the answer was clear to me. The hard work which Delta Zeta gave to the Starkey Hearing Foundation and The Painted Turtle camp was inspiring to me. After working very closely with our philanthropies as Vice President of Philanthropy, I decided to apply to volunteer at The Painted Turtle camp. I was the first member of my chapter to attend camp last summer as a volunteer, which was an amazing, life-changing experience and such a proud moment for me. Even more inspiring to me was that this year, four of my sisters from Temple University joined me at The Painted Turtle camp as volunteers.

"My experience both with The Painted Turtle and Delta Zeta has been life changing and amazing. I would not trade my experience and memories for the world, and I look forward to seeing how Delta Zeta continues to impact my life as a graduate!"

During the last calendar year, the Delta Tau Chapter at Temple University has worked diligently to raise money for Delta Zeta's national philanthropy, the Starkey Hearing Foundation.

For the 2015-2016 school year, the chapter raised more than $20,000 dollars for philanthropies like Starkey Hearing and other charities, as well as volunteering for a combined total of over 4,500 service hours.

The chapter and its members are doing the same during the summer months. Julia Wilkins, Delta Tau's current President, volunteered at The Painted Turtle camp during the summer of 2015. She had a life-changing experience at the camp, and returned to The Painted Turtle  during the summer of 2016 with four Delta Tau sisters are  joining her: Madeline Parisi, Katelyn Hulbert, Sienna McGinnis and Tori Ketcham.

"We are so proud of our sisters for volunteering at such an inspiring camp," said Laine Confer, LAMP Editor. "Our sisters are very excited to give back to this community through their service."

April 1, 2016



The Delta Tau Chapter (Temples University) volunteers for is Don’t Stall, Just Call, an organization focused on combating the negative effects of alcohol consumption and poisoning. Founder Mary Ciametti’s goal is to educate college students about the warning signs of alcohol poisoning and the benefits of medical amnesty.

The Delta Tau Chapter partnered with this organization to spread awareness during i Have A Choice Week and at other events to spread the word about alcohol and its effect on the body. Specific events include an information session open to Temple University about their program, distributing magnets that have Temple University Police information on them, and holding an event catered to the specific physiology about how alcohol affects the human body. The chapter served mocktails (cocktails made without alcohol at the end of the event.)

Tori Tone, Risk Management Chairman, coordinates many of the chapter's events with Don’t Stall, Just Call. She explained how much she learned about not only how dangerous alcohol can be, but how important it is to look after your sisters. Tori said, “Assisting Don’t Stall, Just Call to spread their message was not only rewarding, but so beneficial to our chapter. Every event we have done for Don’t Stall made me feel as though I was making a true impact on our university’s campus. Death due to alcohol poisoning is an ongoing tragedy on college campuses, and I was so proud to say I assisted Delta Zeta in what could be the difference between someone’s life and death.”

Delta Tau Chapter members have benefited from gaining more knowledge about alcohol awareness and sharing the information on a university campus that educates nearly 40,000 undergraduate students.