coming from as far west as California, Washington and Oregon and from as far east as New York, New Hampshire and New Jersey. “We spanned the breadth of the [United States], and we spanned across eight decades from the 1950s through to the 2020s,” Lorie explained. The committee sponsored a weekend that included four events to offer options for reconnecting. Most sisters attended more than one event, and many attended all four. The Friday Welcome Back Event kicked off the weekend with a lot of energy. Beta Betas and their guests enjoyed cocktails and appetizers at the Graduate Hotel. From the moment the event began, the buzz of conversation and laughter indicated that the event was off to a great start. “We enjoyed the kick-off event, toasting our chapter's past, present and future,” Lorie remembered. On Saturday morning, sisters flocked back to our house at 616 M.A.C. for the Coffee, Tours & Sisterhood Event. “We gathered to rekindle special memories of our time at this very special chapter house,” Lorie continued. “We sang, enjoyed brunch, laughed and toured the house. For many, it was their first time seeing the significant renovations completed over the past 10 years.” On Saturday afternoon, attendees gathered again for a pregame tailgate event in the shadow of Spartan Stadium. It was said to be a beautiful afternoon for a tailgate of sandwiches and beverages where everyone sang more songs, including the MSU Fight Song, and got in the spirit for the football game. On Sunday morning, the Beta Beta sisters gathered for the capstone Centennial Celebration event at the Marriott Hotel. “We recognized the several thousand women who came before us and the strong shoulders we now stand on to guide our chapter into the next century,” Lorie explained. “Seventeen trailblazing women founded the Feronian Literary Society in 1891 when women comprised less than 1 percent of the student body of 1500 students. It was a challenge for the women to be taken seriously. It was the first all-women’s society. In fact, they did not have an official meeting room until 1900. [However,] persevere they did as 31 years later, they formed one of the first sororities on campus when 78 women were initiated into the Beta Beta chapter of Alpha Phi.”
Beta Beta-Michigan State Reminiscing on Beta Beta’s Centennial Celebration Beta Beta-Michigan State recently celebrated a major milestone – its centennial. “More than that, it was a gathering to celebrate the trailblazers who formed the first women’s group at Michigan Agricultural College starting in 1891,” recalled Lorie Fiesselmann Dietz, class of 1978. “We gathered to honor the acts of leadership, sisterhood, and philanthropy the Feronian and Alpha Phi women have exhibited for over 131 years.” The goal? To gather many and connect with even more. To make this happen, the Beta Beta Centennial Celebration Committee hosted a series of events that would enable and encourage a large group of women from many generations to come back to celebrate Beta Beta’s 100-year milestone, rekindle its special Beta Beta bond and launch the next century of the Beta Beta chapter.
Now 100 years later, this chapter is the oldest operating sorority at Michigan State University.
“To document our past and introduce the next century, we created a banquet program booklet that traces the history of
Two hundred and fifty women returned to East Lansing,
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