Bigs and Littles

I'm not completely certain if all sororities and fraternities and Bigs and Littles, but I know that the greek organizations in Ottawa have them! Again, I'm going to explain what a Big and a Little are using a sorority view, even though it works pretty much the same way for a fraternity.

A Big (or Big Sister), is already a member of the sorority. She decides that she wants to help a pledge, or hopefully future sister, through the processes of the pledging period and initiation.

A Little (or Little Sister), is a girl who has been chosen to go through peldging, and has accepted. She chooses a sister to help her through her journey.

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{ first photo of my Big, Lydia, and I }

Within my sorority, the pledges vote from a list of potential Bigs, and are then paired up as Big and Little. This bond tends to be one of the strongest formed within the sorority. The Big helps the Little with anything she needs, whether it be sorority related or just a friend to talk with about life. The Little helps bring out the love in her Big and is a proud representation of them.

My Big is an amazing girl who helped me through so much personal distress and made me realize that I was good enough to be a sister. To add even more to the bond we had, my Big chose my sister name (as do all the Bigs in my sorority), which is Sister Little Jay. It seems self explanatory, but there is a back story that is just something between the two of us.

A Big is one of the greatest parts of being within the sorority. I love my Big to death as she is one of my best friends and will always be close to me and have a place in my heart. I cannot wait until I have a chance to be someone's Big.

xo.Jay

Meet My Sorority

Since all of the information I've been giving has been based off the sororities that I know of, which are the ones located in Ottawa, I thought it would make sense to give a mini introduction to my sorority, Xi Delta Theta.

Xi Delta Theta has a long history in the Ottawa-Carleton Greek Community. Founded by our seven founding mothers in 1993 at Carleton University, we are also active at both the University of Ottawa and Algonquin College.

Members of Xi Delta Theta pride themselves on being women who strive for excellence in everything they do, who are determined to be the best they can be and are respectful and loyal to the trust of their sisters and the sisterhood.

Sisterhood is the most important aspect of our organization. Once you become a Xi Delt, you are a member for life. Being a part of Xi Delta Theta means you always have someone to lean on and turn to when you need a helping hand, encouragement or a friend. When you become a part of our sisterhood you become a part of a legacy which continues to help in developing well-rounded women in our community.

Members of Xi Delta Theta are committed to giving back to the Ottawa community through our philanthropic and volunteer efforts. These organizations include but are not limited to: Big Sisters of Ottawa, The Canadian Cancer Foundation, The Ottawa Mission, Christie Lake Camp, The Humane Society and Interval House. Our main charity is the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, for which we throw an annual pub night to raise money for cystic fibrosis research in honour and memory of Amelia Lee L'Homme, a sister who passed away during her active membership due to the disease.

This sorority has become the biggest part of my life and has impacted it in such amazing ways. I have personally been able to give back a lot more than I used to, to socialize with a vast amount of different people that I probably would have never had the pleasure of knowing, and to make strong friendships that will last me a lifetime. Although a sorority isn't for everyone, it is a great way to break out of your comfort zone or explore a new realm of college life.

So that's a short and brief history and look into the sorority which I call my family, Xi Delta Theta. Not all sororities value the same aspects to the same degree, but no matter which organization one chooses to become a part of, the unity between sisters and the commitment to the community shouldn't change.

xo.Jay