Epsilon Sigma Alpha
Encyclopedia
Epsilon Sigma Alpha International is a collegiate and service organization
for women and men ages 18 and older. The organization states that its purpose "is to inspire leadership and service by bringing good people together to pursue programs and projects that make a positive difference locally, nationally and internationally."
Established in 1929, ESA is a network of an estimated 15,000 members in over 1,000 community based chapters, with coordinating organizations at state and international levels. ESA also includes United States collegiate chapters which provide charitable service to their campuses and communities. All service by ESA members is unpaid, with membership fees covering large portions of administrative and chapter expenses.
and the Easter Seal Society
. As of July 2006, ESA raised over 100 million dollars for St. Jude's Children's Hospital, meeting an organization goal for their 75th year anniversary. http://www.stjude.org/groupsandorgs/0,2602,570_3072_11744,00.html ESA has endowed the St. Jude Bone Marrow Transplant area in the hospital's Patient Care Center and the fourth floor of the ALSAC Tower.
ESA also encourages each local chapter to select and support local benevolent, charitable or civic enterprises. ESA activities on local levels may be jointly organized with men's fraternal organizations, including the Lions Clubs International
. As a whole, the chapters have created an impressive record of service. Each year, members help raise millions of dollars for philanthropic projects and give an estimated 650,000 hours of personal service.
In addition, the ESA Foundation supports education through an ongoing Scholarship/Endowment Program and provides grants to individuals involved in charitable service for children and adults.
from 1923 to 1925, spearheaded the sorority's organization by proposing a national education and service sorority. In 1929 a group of community oriented women in Jacksonville, Texas
drafted an organization charter. With ten signatures, a national charter was issued to ESA by the state of Missouri on February 11, 1930. The organization still functions under the original charter but is now incorporated in the state of Colorado.
Prichard was appointed the first National Director, and spearheaded the sorority's early growth. She asked prominent women from around the United States to serve as members of the Founder's Chapter and to act as advisors. The chapter included Pearl Kinman; Clara Leach; Althea Terry, State President of the Business and Professional Clubs; Susan. B. Rebhan, a State Supreme Court Judge; Florence Sterling, writer and editor; Phoebe Kerrick Warner, author and National Chairman of the Rural Women's Clubs; businesswoman Florence Crawford; teacher Daisy Birchfield; and Mary Redfield Plummer, lecturer on parliamentary law at Northwestern University. The first National Headquarters office was located in Kansas City, Missouri
, with a central states divisional office in St. Louis
.
Director Sybil Murphy Flaherty organized the first National Convention in 1938. Two chapters in Kansas City hosted the convention with about 60 delegatess attending. At that time, delegates set up a National Advisory Council (the forerunner of the present International Council), and elected Irene Copeland Lugland of Kansas City as the first National President.
During World War II
, ESA National Headquarters sponsored an “Empty Your Purse for Uncle Sam” campaign, one of the first nationally organized activities of the organization. In this door to door campaign, members collected metal for recycling into munitions. ESA also collected books and other reading material for distribution to soldiers around the world. Local projects to assist the war effort were encouraged, and many chapters enrolled and sponsored Red Cross courses to combat local emergencies.
In 1948, an ESA chapter was organized in Voorsburg, in the Netherlands
. The name of the National Advisory Council was then changed to the International Advisory Council. Since then, Epsilon Sigma Alpha chapters have been organized in Germany, Guam, Denmark, Peru, Australia, Mexico, the Philippines, and Scotland.
The yellow jonquil was chosen as the organization's floral emblem as it is "rich in color, perfect in form." A members magazine, "The Jonquil," takes its name from the flower and is published twice yearly.
Charitable Connections:
Service club
A service club or service organization is a voluntary non-profit organization where members meet regularly to perform charitable works either by direct hands-on efforts or by raising money for other organizations. A service club is defined first by its service mission...
for women and men ages 18 and older. The organization states that its purpose "is to inspire leadership and service by bringing good people together to pursue programs and projects that make a positive difference locally, nationally and internationally."
Established in 1929, ESA is a network of an estimated 15,000 members in over 1,000 community based chapters, with coordinating organizations at state and international levels. ESA also includes United States collegiate chapters which provide charitable service to their campuses and communities. All service by ESA members is unpaid, with membership fees covering large portions of administrative and chapter expenses.
Philanthropic projects
Chapters, both independently and jointly, conduct fund raising activities for charitable causes. As the care and expenses of handicapped children are a current ESA priority, the international Philanthropic Projects of Epsilon Sigma Alpha are St. Jude Children's Research HospitalSt. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, founded in 1962, is a leading pediatric treatment and research facility focused on children's catastrophic diseases. It is located in Memphis, Tennessee. It is a nonprofit medical corporation chartered as a 501 tax-exempt organization under IRS regulations.In...
and the Easter Seal Society
Easter Seals
Easter Seals is an international charitable organization devoted to providing opportunities for children with physical disabilities. See*Easter Seals *Easter Seals *Easter Seals...
. As of July 2006, ESA raised over 100 million dollars for St. Jude's Children's Hospital, meeting an organization goal for their 75th year anniversary. http://www.stjude.org/groupsandorgs/0,2602,570_3072_11744,00.html ESA has endowed the St. Jude Bone Marrow Transplant area in the hospital's Patient Care Center and the fourth floor of the ALSAC Tower.
ESA also encourages each local chapter to select and support local benevolent, charitable or civic enterprises. ESA activities on local levels may be jointly organized with men's fraternal organizations, including the Lions Clubs International
Lions Clubs International
Lions Clubs International is a secular service organization with over 44,500 clubs and more than 1,368,683 members in 191 countries around the world founded by Melvin Jones Headquartered in Oak Brook, Illinois, United States, the organization aims to meet the needs of communities on a local and...
. As a whole, the chapters have created an impressive record of service. Each year, members help raise millions of dollars for philanthropic projects and give an estimated 650,000 hours of personal service.
In addition, the ESA Foundation supports education through an ongoing Scholarship/Endowment Program and provides grants to individuals involved in charitable service for children and adults.
History
Adelia Prichard of Oregon, a National President of Business and Professional Women's ClubsBusiness and Professional Women
Business and Professional Women's Foundation Business and Professional Women’s Foundation is an organization focused on creating successful workplaces by focusing on issues that impact women, families and employers. Successful Workplaces are those that embrace and practice diversity, equity and...
from 1923 to 1925, spearheaded the sorority's organization by proposing a national education and service sorority. In 1929 a group of community oriented women in Jacksonville, Texas
Jacksonville, Texas
Jacksonville is located in Cherokee County, Texas, United States. The population was 13,868 at the 2000 census. It is the principal city of the Jacksonville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Cherokee County and part of the larger Tyler-Jacksonville Combined Statistical...
drafted an organization charter. With ten signatures, a national charter was issued to ESA by the state of Missouri on February 11, 1930. The organization still functions under the original charter but is now incorporated in the state of Colorado.
Prichard was appointed the first National Director, and spearheaded the sorority's early growth. She asked prominent women from around the United States to serve as members of the Founder's Chapter and to act as advisors. The chapter included Pearl Kinman; Clara Leach; Althea Terry, State President of the Business and Professional Clubs; Susan. B. Rebhan, a State Supreme Court Judge; Florence Sterling, writer and editor; Phoebe Kerrick Warner, author and National Chairman of the Rural Women's Clubs; businesswoman Florence Crawford; teacher Daisy Birchfield; and Mary Redfield Plummer, lecturer on parliamentary law at Northwestern University. The first National Headquarters office was located in Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, with a central states divisional office in St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
.
Director Sybil Murphy Flaherty organized the first National Convention in 1938. Two chapters in Kansas City hosted the convention with about 60 delegatess attending. At that time, delegates set up a National Advisory Council (the forerunner of the present International Council), and elected Irene Copeland Lugland of Kansas City as the first National President.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, ESA National Headquarters sponsored an “Empty Your Purse for Uncle Sam” campaign, one of the first nationally organized activities of the organization. In this door to door campaign, members collected metal for recycling into munitions. ESA also collected books and other reading material for distribution to soldiers around the world. Local projects to assist the war effort were encouraged, and many chapters enrolled and sponsored Red Cross courses to combat local emergencies.
In 1948, an ESA chapter was organized in Voorsburg, in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. The name of the National Advisory Council was then changed to the International Advisory Council. Since then, Epsilon Sigma Alpha chapters have been organized in Germany, Guam, Denmark, Peru, Australia, Mexico, the Philippines, and Scotland.
Emblems and symbols
Emblems associated with ESA include the Greek letters Epsilon Sigma Alpha (ESA) and a national emblem of the Open Book representing “the wealth of knowledge and strength of wisdom.” The giraffe was chosen as a mascot because it is "a head above the rest."The yellow jonquil was chosen as the organization's floral emblem as it is "rich in color, perfect in form." A members magazine, "The Jonquil," takes its name from the flower and is published twice yearly.
External links
- Epsilon Sigma Alpha International website.
- Collegiate website.
- US Chapter Index by State
- Charitable Entity Registration - State of Washington
Charitable Connections:
- Affiliation with St. Jude's Hospital: St. Jude Web site http://www.stjude.org/stjude/search/search_results.jsp?QueryText=ESA&GO=GO
- Affiliation with Easter Seals: Easter Seal Web site http://www.easterseals.com/site/PageServer?pagename=ntl_epsilon