Today, January 8, is the date of Dr. Charles Richardson’s birth. He was born in 1864. A Fayetteville, Arkansas, dentist, he did his undergraduate work at Emory & Henry College in Virginia and then studied dentistry at Vanderbilt University. He was an active member of Kappa Sigma at both schools and later served his fraternity as a national officer.
What he is most famous for is his role in the founding of Chi Omega and his lifelong dedication to that organization. With his guidance, Chi Omega was founded on April 5, 1895 at the University of Arkansas by four young women. He was known as “Sis Doc” to generations of Chi Omegas and he is counted as a founder.
Fast forward to 1912, when the Chi Omega alumnae of New Orleans set up a lunch room in one of the most destitute of schools. A young patron of the lunch room asked a non-fraternity woman if she was a “Lucky X.” The “Lucky Xs” were, according to the young lad, the “Penny Lunch Ladies, them that has pins and things wid er horse-shoe and er X on ’em.” Sis Doc crafted the first “Lucky X” out of dental gold. (The article below, from a 1913 Chi Omega magazine, tells of a wonderful philanthropic effort which took place more than a century ago. It is worth the read!)
1913 article reprinted in a 1994 issue of “The Eleusis,” (Photos courtesy of Lyn Harris, Chi Omega’s Archivist)
Some of the patrons of the Penny Lunch Room.
The original Chi Omega badge crafted in dental gold by “Doc Sis.”
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Congratulations to:
President George H.W. Bush and his wife Barbara on 70 years of marriage! President Bush is a Delta Kappa Epsilon (Yale University). The First Lady is an alumna initiate of Pi Beta Phi. She attended Smith College, one of the Seven Sister schools, prior to marriage. Her chapter of initiation is Texas A&M University, home of the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library.
Mr. and Mrs. George Herbert Walker Bush, 1945.
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The @PhiPsiArchives celebrated five years in the twitterverse. The twitter account went live on 1/7/2010. The tweet about the milestone brought the number of tweets to 7,000 and there are 1446 followers. The amount of historical information which is presented is amazing. Great job, @PhiPsiArchives!
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Beth Hirschy Royals, an alumna of Zeta Tau Alpha (Elon College) became a millionaire in December when she won the top prize in the 47th Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest. Her award winning recipe for Peanutty Pie Crust Clusters can be found at http://bit.ly/1AHXtgW.
© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2014. All Rights Reserved. If you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/
