By Sally Cutler (Alpha Chi, Butler University), Historian and Archivist
Alpha Chi Omegas have always been champions of change through gifts of their time, talent and treasure, meeting the emerging needs of their communities. You may not know, however, that the Fraternity’s altruistic endeavors date back to specific world events.
During World War I, for example, alumnae and collegiate chapters adopted approximately 100 French children who had lost their fathers as a result of the war, sending funds collected through a nationwide appeal to the Committee of the Fatherless Children of France. From 1916 to 1921, Alpha Chis raised funds for the children, often sending along extra gifts of clothes, toys and other supplies.
After World War I ended, Alpha Chi Omega’s leaders searched for a new philanthropic project, hoping to find an outlet for longer-term altruistic work that would be applicable both to undergraduate members and alumnae. They established a program to fund scholarships for children, providing financial support to families so their children could remain in high school or pursue vocational training. At the time, parents could not always afford to send their children to school after they reached the legal working age.
The number of children benefiting grew steadily, even during the Great Depression, but as financial strains on individual members and the Fraternity grew, it became difficult to continue this level of support, and the program was discontinued in 1941. Alpha Chi Omega’s national scholarship committee chairman, Mary S. Mutschler (Alpha, DePauw University), aptly described the program’s impact and intent, saying, “Alpha Chi Omega alumnae are noted for their loyalty and generous helpfulness to each other so that we can proudly say of our Fraternity, ‘She is as kind as she is fair.’”
During World War II, Alpha Chi Omega supported nursery schools created by the government to serve families with parents serving in the war or working on the home front, particularly mothers employed in defense factories. Sisters raised funds, made items for the schools and volunteered onsite at nursery schools in Detroit and Milwaukee until government funding for the program ended and the schools closed in 1946.
These early examples of the giving spirit of Alpha Chi Omegas laid the groundwork for the Fraternity’s philanthropic initiatives that have followed — allowing sisters to touch the lives of many, many individuals.
Learn more about Alpha Chi Omega’s support of our current national altruism, domestic violence awareness.