HR52INTRODUCED
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HR52
NYDA8J8-1
By Representative Givan
RFD:
First Read: 21-Feb-24
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5 NYDA8J8-1 02/21/2024 LMG (L)lmg 2024-811
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First Read: 21-Feb-24
HR___ CELEBRATING ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA SORORITY DAY AT THE
CAPITOL ON TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2024.
WHEREAS, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, is
the first intercollegiate historically African American
sorority; it was founded on January 15, 1908, at Howard
University in Washington D.C., by a group of 16 students led
by Ethel Hedgemon Lyle; the sorority was incorporated on
January 29, 1913; and
WHEREAS, the sorority is one of the nation's largest
Greek Letter Organizations, having more than 350,000 members
in 1,024 chapters in the United States of America and
several other countries; the members share the bonds of
sisterhood and are committed to servant-leadership; and
WHEREAS, Omicron Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha
Sorority, Incorporated, received its charter on October 24,
1924, in Birmingham, Alabama, becoming the 15th chapter of
the sorority and the first graduate chapter to be chartered
in the Southeastern Region; the eight charter members, Hilda
Evans, Vivan F. Bell, Jessie Coleman, Wilma Davis, Mabel
Harris, Eunice Hudson, Thelma Kingsley, and Veronica Pierce,
became the first African American members of a sorority in
the State of Alabama; and
WHEREAS, the chapter's membership has included
thousands of professional women who are dedicated public
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thousands of professional women who are dedicated public
servants and graduates from universities throughout the
United States; today, chapter membership stands at 385, the
largest in the chapter's history; and
WHEREAS, in the early 1950s, under the leadership of
A. Lucile Brewer, Omicron Omega Chapter experienced another
milestone by becoming the first Black Greek Letter
Organization to purchase a chapter house in the State of
Alabama; additionally, in this same timeframe, they were
instrumental in establishing the Birmingham Chapter of the
Panhellenic Council; and
WHEREAS, over the course of the last century, Omicron
Omega Chapter has had a profound philanthropic impact on the
greater Birmingham community, having donated over $1.5
million in charitable contributions to organizations such as
the United Negro College Fund, National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People, Miles College, The Sickle
Cell Foundation of Central Alabama, March of Dimes, Dance
Across Birmingham, and the American Heart Association; and
WHEREAS, additionally, Omicron Omega Chapter has
invested time and financial support to Birmingham children
and their education; the members have spent thousands of
hours volunteering in local schools, and the Chapter has
distributed over $500,000 in college scholarships to
Birmingham-area students; and
Whereas, Omicron Omega Chapter has overseen the
establishment of five undergraduate chapters on college
campuses in the greater Birmingham area: Gamma Pi at Miles
College in 1970; Iota Phi at The University of Alabama at
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College in 1970; Iota Phi at The University of Alabama at
Birmingham in 1975; Mu Mu at the University of Montevallo in
1978; Nu Delta at Birmingham-Southern College in 1979; and
Omicron Mu at Samford University in 1988; and
WHEREAS, in 2001, Omicron Omega Chapter established
its philanthropic arm, the Cultural and Educational
Advancement Foundation, to further its philanthropic impact
on the Birmingham community; in 2022, CEAF opened The Pearl
Center, a $1.6 million facility in the Bush Hills
neighborhood designed as a space to facilitate charitable
endeavors for the larger Birmingham community; now
therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA, That on Tuesday, February 27, 2024,
we celebrate Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Day at the Capitol,
and we express sincere appreciation to the Omicron Omega
Chapter for their continuing dedication to service to the
community and to the great State of Alabama; we wish Alpha
Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, continued success in all
future endeavors.
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