Written by: Jordan Kahn

Freshman year was one of the most difficult years of my life. I arrived at Clemson as an out of state student without friends from high school, experiencing every new beginning without a comforting shoulder to lean on. I was eager to make the friends that everyone says will be your friends forever, your bridesmaids in your future wedding, traveling buddies—people that would make college the best four years of my life. I have always been an outgoing person but something about entering school alone made me shy. I held back from my true personality, afraid of not making friends like I had back at home. My grandpa had undergone heart surgery and soon after he passed away. I was clueless about my major, battling personal struggles and I was quickly feeling vulnerable and lonely. Part of me even started questioning if it was the right time for me to go through recruitment.

Despite my worries, I decided to move on with the process in hopes that the sorority I joined would give me the support and love I desperately needed. In fact, going through recruitment managed to make me forget about those things for the moment. Every sorority was welcoming, full of amazing women ready to lift each other up and prosper together through our journey at Clemson and onward. Something about each Greek woman I met during recruitment slowly chipped away my anxiety and nerves that held back who I truly was. I started to become excited rather than nervous to enter each room, becoming more talkative and making friends with other girls in my line. One girl in particular who I had always ended up in front of slowly became my recruitment buddy. We encouraged each other, chatted away the nerves, and bonded over our addictions to the soft serve in Harcombe, the old dining hall (RIP). We quickly realized recruitment had given us a friendship before we had even joined a sorority and that wherever each of us ended up would be the right place for us. Little did I know that she would end up running down Bowman with me into the arms of Tri Delta. And better yet, I developed the same quick and real connection with my new sisters as I did with my friend, now sister, in line.

Every time I left Tri Delta’s doors I felt a rush of authenticity, reliability, and serenity. Each woman I spoke to was different. They each had their own interests, their own style, and their own goals. However, they all shared the same passion for their sisterhood and had their own individual impact that Tri Delta has left on them. I felt as though my search for the friends I desperately needed were in that room, waiting to experience the good and bad with me. On bid day ,I ran down Bowman to a bunch of strangers but felt as though I was running towards girls I had known forever. The different qualities in each woman I met through Tri Delta gave me multiple perspectives, shared a range of advice, and shaped me to be the woman I am at Clemson today. I would not have been able to emotionally handle my struggles during my freshman year without my Tri Delta sisters who were there for me without fail. I had met all of these talented, compassionate, hilarious women who took time out of their hectic new college schedule to be that comforting shoulder I came to Clemson without. They broke my shy spell, eased my worries, cried with me, walked to the pod right before it closed to binge on Ben & Jerry’s, and left me feeling like myself again. Even now, two years later, when my struggles surface my sisters are quick to respond. They are a late night call, long drives to each other’s houses, random facetimes in stores to help with decision making, cuddles in those small twin beds, midnight Lil Caesars, funny faces that we wish we could say were filters, and the absolute best family away from home.

I can’t thank Tri Delta enough. Not only have the women proved to be what I like to call my “forever friends,” but Tri Delta has opened doors for me that I never imagined would. I have attended leadership conferences where I met incredible girls from the entire Southeast, learned skills that I will carry with me into my career from different workshops, and found my passion in helping others through St. Jude. I came to Clemson lost and alone but have developed independence, true friendships, confidence, and a goal for my life, all because of what Tri Delta has offered me. I cannot help but want this same experience for each new woman entering recruitment and encourage you to be who you are because we love your individuality! Enjoy the process, have fun meeting each and every Greek member during rounds, be vulnerable and open, and chat with girls in line because you never know what forever friends you have waiting for you at the end of Bowman!