Dear Sisters,
Today marks my first Founders’ Day as your Fraternity President. As I reflect on this milestone, I am deeply grateful to Elizabeth Howard DiMartino, Boston, Immediate Past President, and our Executive Board. I am humbled to follow in the footsteps of leaders who have guided Tri Delta through more than a century of growth, sisterhood, and, most importantly, friendship — a core value crucial to creating bonds that last a lifetime.
On Thanksgiving Eve 137 years ago, Sarah Ida Shaw and our founding sisters gathered to create something extraordinary: a home away from home for women seeking sisterhood, purpose and belonging. How fitting that Tri Delta was born on the eve of a holiday centered on gratitude and gathering, for these values remain at the very heart of who we are. Sarah Ida Shaw often shared the quote, “The glory of life is to give, not be given; to love, not be loved; to serve, not be served.” These words capture the essence of what she and our other Founders envisioned—a society built on the foundation of friendship, service and selfless love for one another.
What amazes me is how swiftly our vision took root across the continent. Just 12 years after our founding in Boston, women attending the University of California, Berkeley created their own chapter, Pi, our first on the West Coast. As a Pi Chapter member myself, I find it remarkable to imagine that in an era without automobiles or telephones, when communication relied on handwritten letters and transportation meant long train journeys, these women found a way to carry Tri Delta’s mission across an entire continent. Through correspondence, determination, and an unshakeable belief in our sisterhood, they proved that connection transcends distance.
What strikes me most about our Founders is their audacity to dream big when the world expected women to dream small. They understood that true influence comes not from platform or position, but from the courage to stand for something meaningful and the persistence to see it through. Tri Delta has always led boldly, championing important issues and lifelong learning. That same spirit lives in us and inspires all we do today.
We may have different tools, including technology that spans continents in seconds rather than months, but our mission remains unchanged: to create spaces where women are empowered to lead, supported to grow and inspired to lift others as they climb. A place allowing you to be yourself and belong to something bigger—something distinctive, something dynamic and something that is worthy of the best in you.
As we celebrate this Founders’ Day, I invite you to carry forward the legacy with which Sarah Ida Shaw and our earliest sisters entrusted us. Let us continue to be women of substance and influence, not because of what we say, but because of what we do. Let us remain committed to the work of building each other up, creating opportunities
for those who follow and ensuring that Tri Delta remains a true home: a place of belonging, growth and unwavering support for every sister who walks through our doors.
From Boston to Berkeley and every chapter in between, we are connected by bonds that transcend geography and time, bonds first forged through determination and correspondence, now strengthened by shared purpose and enduring friendship. Today, we honor those who came before us, celebrate the sisterhood we share now and commit ourselves to the sisters yet to come.
Happy Founders’ Day, Tri Delta.
Loyally,
Libby Leffler Hoaglin, California/Berkeley