About Wichita Alpha Phi
The innovative leadership and organizational practices of Alpha Phi's Founders in 1872 set the spirit for the Alpha Phi of today... a sisterhood that values the past but looks forward to the progress offered by the future.
We live by our motto: Union Hand in Hand.
MISSION STATEMENT
Alpha Phi is a sisterhood of women supporting one another in lifelong achievement.
PURPOSE
The objectives of our Fraternity are the promotion of growth in character; unity of feeling, sisterly affection, and social communion among our members.
In all that we do, we try to obey God's principles of justice and right. We have banded ourselves together to improve our minds and hearts, and we seek to aid each other through a constant watchcare always given in love.
We believe ourselves to be sincere searchers for truth.
We seek the highest ideal of womanhood, and we try to gain this ideal by cultivating not only the power and passion for seeking intellectual development but, also, the spirit of love and charity. And we who are thus united are under a solemn pledge to lend a helping hand to one another.
‐ Constitution of Alpha Phi International Fraternity, Incorporated, Article II
CREED
I believe in my Fraternity.
I believe in the friendships formed in the springtime of my youth.
I believe in its high ideals which lift me up beyond myself.
I believe in its earnest drive for good scholarship, moral character, and genuine culture.
I believe in it as a shrine of international sisterhood wherein I may find love and loyalty, sympathy and understanding, inspiration and opportunity.
I believe in it as a creator of good citizenship, helping me to do my work well, to live in harmony with others, and to serve my country and to trust in God.
I believe in my Fraternity.
I believe in Alpha Phi.
-Annette Holt Hitchcock, (Pi-North Dakota) 1912.
SYMBOLS
CREST
The Fraternity Crest is the Alpha Phi coat-of-arms, adopted by Convention delegates in 1922. The shield is Bordeaux with a scroll and ivy leaf above it. Inscribed on the scroll is the public motto, Union Hand in Hand. A bar of silver crosses the shield from left to right; the upper half of the shield contains a Roman lamp in silver and the lower half, Ursa Major. The meaning of the symbols depicted on the crest is a significant part of the ritual witnessed at our initiation. The use of the Fraternity crest is reserved for jewelry, sportswear and other Fraternity equipment befitting the dignity and honor of Alpha Phi’s heritage.
IVY
The ivy leaf is perhaps our most recognizable symbol. The ivy leaf is reflected in our new member pin and is part of our crest. Ivy symbolizes the intertwining of intellectual, philanthropical, and social pursuits. It is also symbolic of the way in which our lives become intertwined with one another, as we become friends and sisters in Alpha Phi.
FLOWERS
The flowers of Alpha Phi are the Lily-of-the-Valley and the sentimental Forget-Me-Not. The blue and gold of the Forget-Me-Not reminds us of our Fraternity's original colors. This flower also reminds Alpha Phis to always remember their sisters.
CONSTELLATION
The Fraternity constellation is Ursa Major, or the Great Bear. This constellation can be seen displayed in the ceiling of our sorority house. Gamma Xi is one of two Alpha Phi chapter houses where this can be found.
