Wendy J. Johnson Roniesha L. Copeland

D E LTA S I G M A T H E TA S O R O R I T Y, I N C .
A SERVICE SORORITY ▲ GRAND CHAPTER
President’s Message
CALLING ALL DELTAS! CALLING ALL DELTAS!
ome from the North and the
South, the East and the West—
from all seven regions of our
glorious sisterhood. Come from
the United States, the Bahamas,
Bermuda, England, the Republic of South
Korea, Tokyo and Okinawa, Jamaica,
Germany, the Virgin Islands—from the
more than 900 chapters of our distinguished sorority. Come from wherever you
may be in our global sisterhood. Come
with your Sisterly Love to the city of
Brotherly Love! Come to Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania!
My sorors of Delta Sigma Theta, as
National President, I am honored and
privileged to issue this clarion call, officially summoning you to the 48th National
Convention of Delta Sigma Theta
Sorority, Inc. which will be held in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 27-August
2, 2006.
You are called at a time when our
nation, in fact the world, has experienced
unprecedented environmental upheavals.
Nevertheless we have stayed the course of
our mission as we provided an anchor for
scores of individuals and families and
empowered communities through our
committed service. So let us flood
Philadelphia by the tens of thousands for
it is time again for the members of our
amazing sisterhood to assemble in Grand
Chapter to conduct the business of our
great Sorority.
You are called to celebrate with our
Philadelphia sisters who eagerly await our
arrival in their historic city where the first
Congress of the United States met; where
the first treatise against slavery published
in any part of the world appeared; where
the first public school in the American
Colonies was established for “…all children and servants, male and female…” ;
where The Philadelphia Library, the first
public institution of its kind in America,
was founded; and where the Philadelphia
Hospital, the oldest in America, was established. Historically the city has been a
C
48th National Convention
place for creative solutions and big pictures, and the Executive Board, National
Headquarters Staff, and host sorors are
working tirelessly to ensure that this convention will be one of the most exciting,
enlightening, and exhilarating conventions
in our history.
Begin your 48th National Convention
experience with the ease and efficiency of
completing your convention and hotel registration online as you have done for our
last two cycles of regional and national
meetings.
From the moment you arrive until the
day you depart, beams of Delta love will
shine on you and you’ll be embraced by a
whirlwind of joy from that “good ole
Delta spirit” as you see acquaintances and
meet new sorors.
The emotions generated by the conventions are always diverse but positive.
You will be inspired and invigorated during the plenary sessions, seminars, and
workshops. You will be educated, motivated, and mesmerized. You will be heard
through your voice and your votes. You
will shed tears and roar with laughter. You
will be celebrated and entertained. You
will have moments to remember and
memories to treasure.
While you are in business sessions,
your families and friends will be engaged
in a variety of activities, including tours,
card games, and a golf tournament. There
will be something for everyone to enjoy,
and the host chapters have gone beyond
the call of duty in planning activities especially for the men in our families and
friendship circles.
As for hotel accommodations, we
have enough rooms for everybody, and
again sorors, we urge you to use the rooms
that we have reserved to accommodate our
members. When you book your rooms
outside of the ones we have blocked exclusively for our membership and the
Sorority does not use all the rooms
reserved, it results in our paying a tremendous penalty. If you have already made a
reservation, please consider re-booking
your room within Delta’s exclusive room
allocation and canceling your outside
reservation so that we don’t have to continue to justify our existence when we
negotiate hotel rates. I know that I can
rely on your sisterly spirit of cooperation,
and for this, I am very grateful to you.
And so my sorors, answer the Call to
Convention and pour into Philadelphia by
the tens of thousands. Wearing our red
and white and bringing bundles of Delta
love, we will be a welcome hit! In fact,
when we leave Philadelphia, the city will
be warm and radiant from our good ole
Delta spirit, and we will be exhilarated and
energized by the 48th National
Convention experience.
I look forward to seeing you in
Philadelphia.
Sisterly and sincerely,
LouiseA. Rice
Louise A. Rice, Ph.D.
National President
1
Message from the
National Convention Coordinator
GREETING, MY SORORS!!!
elta Sigma Theta Sorority,
Inc. held its 3rd National
Convention in Philadelphia
in December 1921 during
the first term of our first
National President and Philadelphia’s own
Dr. Sadie T.M. Alexander.
The times have changed and the City
of Philadelphia has changed as well. We
are the number one city for African
American tourism and second on National
Geographic’s list of up and coming cities.
D
Philadelphia Has a Spirit and Flavor
That is Our Own.
The Spirit of Philadelphia is reflected
in the sound of Philadelphia: the O’Jays,
Jill Scott, Kindred, The Roots, Teddy,
Patti, Vivian Green, Boyz II Men, Pieces
of a Dream, and the Brockington
Ensemble. I could go on, but when you
come to Philly you will hear their sounds
being played.
What’s the flavor of Philadelphia?
Well, where should I begin? There are our
cheese steaks, our Tastykakes, our pretzels,
our potato chips, and our peanut chews.
Then, of course, there are the restaurants:
Delilah’s (right across the street from the
Convention Center), Miss Tootsie,
Zanzibar Blue, Warmdaddy’s, Bluezette’s,
and Savannah’s. I could go on, but when
you come to Philly you will certainly dine
well.
Then there’s the history of
Philadelphia. A Black man designed the
Philadelphia Art Museum. We have the
Johnson House, a stop on the
2
Underground Railroad, the Marian
Anderson Historical Museum, The Paul
Robeson House, The Patriots of African
Descent Monument in Valley Forge
National Historical Park, Mother Bethel
AME Church, the Philadelphia African
American Museum, and the Barnes
Museum. I could go on, but when you
come to Philly you can visit these places.
Of course, there is the tax-free shopping. Our African American boutiques are
waiting for you including Sans Appelle
and Lady Elegant, where the best dressed
women shop (owned by sorors, of course).
We have the King of Prussia Mall and the
Franklin Mills Mall. I could go on, but
when you come to Philly you can shop
until you drop.
The City of Philadelphia is preparing
to roll out the RED carpet for you. The
600 plus sorors from the six host chapters
(Chester Alumnae, Epsilon Delta,
Gamma, Philadelphia Alumnae, Quaker
City Alumnae and Valley Forge Alumnae)
are enthusiastically awaiting your arrival.
Come On and Join Us Aboard the
Delta Love Train.
Yours in Delta,
Rita L. Waters
Rita L. Waters
National Convention Coordinator
CALL TO CONVENTION
2006
Message from the Eastern Regional Director
and Eastern Regional Representative
BELOVED SORORS,
t is a true delight and honor to greet
you on behalf of the Diligent,
Steadfast, and Tenacious sorors of
the Dynamic and Historic Eastern
Region. We are eager to embrace
and welcome you to our sorority’s 48th
National Convention.
Our 23rd National President, Dr.
Louise A. Rice, has challenged us to abide
by the charge of One Mission, One
Sisterhood. In answering the call, it is only
right that we join united in Philadelphia,
the city of sisterly love and Delta affection.
Philadelphia is a city rich in history and
culture, a place that has bred some of the
greatest musicians in our history and a
place that has served as the location for
tremendous milestones in the progress of
this country.
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. itself
embodies history and culture. Our 93
years speak of triumph and challenge, stability and progression. The years reveal an
ongoing story of what it means to be a
purpose-filled and passionate change-agent
in a society that deems you inferior. The
continued existence of Delta and the proliferation of her ideals are proof that our
work is still necessary and valuable. We
challenge you to take advantage of the
opportunity to grow and develop through
workshops, luncheons, and the many
other activities planned by our hardworking host committee. Our progression as a
sisterhood depends on our willingness to
challenge ourselves. The 48th National
Convention is surely the opportunity to
do so.
I
48th National Convention
It is with enthusiasm and eagerness
that we anticipate the overflowing abundance of sorors traveling from near and far
to celebrate another two years of excellence
in service. Even more so, we await the
exchange of hugs, kisses, laughter, and
tears, the creation of unforgettable memories, and the building of new and lasting
sisterhood bonds. Sorors, this is sure to be
a joyous and memorable occasion, one
that you cannot afford to miss. We look
forward to seeing you in Philadelphia.
In love and sisterhood,
Wendy J. Johnson
Wendy J. Johnson
Wendy J. Johnson
Eastern Regional Director
Roniesha L. Copeland
Roniesha L. Copeland
Eastern Regional Representative
Roniesha L. Copeland
3