coming to love gamma phi as a freshman

College seemed insurmountable to me at first. I was an out-of-state freshman coming to Clemson with no close friends from my high school. Even though I was in the same shoes as so many other people, I somehow seemed to convince myself I was the only one experiencing this struggle. After moving in, I was thrown into recruitment with zero expectations or previous knowledge about Clemson sorority life, and I had no idea that I was about to make one of the best decisions of my life in a couple days. 

Over the next week, I had really loud conversations with what seemed like 100 different girls, and I’ll be honest, trying to figure out where I fit in (if I actually did fit in to one of these sororities) was exhausting and difficult. However, Gamma Phi was the one sorority that I always came back to, and I always felt loved and cherished by the girls I met in that room. During preference round, I took a moment to look around the Gamma Phi room and I told myself, “These are the girls I could see being my best friends.” 

That statement could not have been truer. As a new member of Gamma Phi, I have met some of the most genuine, caring, hilarious girls who will have each others’ backs no matter what. In addition to forming these friendships, I’ve had the best time taking on a leadership position in 2020 as Recording Secretary. Giving back to Gamma Phi as an officer is one of the reasons why I love this sorority so much. We serve each other as well as the community around us, and I couldn’t be prouder to be a part of that. 

Although freshman year comes with its own set of new experiences and change, Gamma Phi has been nothing short of true and constant for me, and for that I’m so incredibly grateful. I can’t believe how much I’ve come to love this sorority given the fact that I’ve only been a Gamma Phi for less than a year, but that just goes to show how at home I feel with these girls. Very soon I’ll be living on the hall with one of my good friends, Katherine (!!), and I couldn’t be more excited.

Bring it on, sophomore year.

-Emma