Senate Resolution No. 1533

BY: Senator COMRIE

COMMENDING Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority,
Incorporated Epsilon Pi Omega Chapter upon the
occasion of hosting its Annual Community Charter Day
Celebration, and paying tribute to this year's
honorees on June 9, 2019

WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to commend those
illustrious organizations within the State of New York whose focus and
intent have made a substantial impact on the quality of life in their
communities; and

WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to
commend Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated Epsilon Pi Omega
Chapter upon the occasion of hosting its Annual Community Charter Day
Celebration, and to pay tribute to this year's honorees on Sunday, June
9, 2019; and

WHEREAS, This year's honorees include: Gary B. Clifton, Outstanding
Community Leader, Recreational Inner-City Sports and Education program
(R.I.S.E.); and St. Albans Congregational Church's Because We Care Food
Pantry and Clothing Boutique, Excelsior Award for Outstanding Community
Organization; and

WHEREAS, In addition, college scholarships will be presented to
several deserving graduating high school students who reside in Queens,
New York; and

WHEREAS, On January 15, 1908, Ethel Hedgeman and eight of her
like-minded friends founded Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA) Sorority,
Incorporated at Howard University, a historically black university
located in Washington, D.C.; the women created the support network to
benefit not only themselves, but others through their talents and
strengths; and

WHEREAS, From the original group of nine women, AKA Sorority has
grown into a force of more than 290,000 collegiate members and alumnae,
constituting 1,007 chapters in 42 states, the District of Columbia, the
US Virgin Islands, the Bahamas, Germany, Liberia, South Korea, Japan,
Canada, South Africa and the Middle East; and

WHEREAS, For more than a century, AKA Sorority has remained true to
its mission comprised of five basic tenets: to cultivate and encourage
high scholastic and ethical standards, promote unity and friendship
among college women, study and help alleviate problems concerning girls
and women in order to improve their social stature, maintain a
progressive interest in college life, and above all, be of Service to
All Mankind; and

WHEREAS, In 1950, 32 dynamic college-trained, professional women
sought to perpetuate the traditions and ideals of AKA; their vision to
improve the quality of life for the residents of the Queens community

led them to form the Epsilon Pi Omega Chapter, which was chartered on
May 13, 1950, at the Springfield Gardens United Methodist Church; and

WHEREAS, Over the years the Chapter's membership has increased from
the original 32 charter members to over 100 active Sorors; in keeping
with the sorority's tradition of promoting academic excellence and
enriching the lives of college women, the Chapter chartered two
undergraduate chapters, Nu Mu and Nu Psi for selected students in
Queens; and

WHEREAS, Since its inception, Epsilon Pi Omega has collaborated with
a variety of governmental and community organizations to address the
needs of residents of the Queens community through innovative programs
and activities which focus on education, economic empowerment, health,
the arts and the black family; and

WHEREAS, Under the luminous leadership of President DeRosette
Harrison, the success of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated
Epsilon Pi Omega Chapter is in direct correlation to the efforts of its
dedicated members, whose involvement is, and always has been,
characterized by an impressive commitment, an unbridled enthusiasm, and
an uncompromising standard of excellence in all endeavors on behalf of
the sorority and the population it serves; and

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that those
organizations which enhance the well-being and vitality of their
community and have shown a long and sustained commitment to excellence
certainly have earned the recognition and applause of all the citizens
of this great Empire State; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commend Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated Epsilon Pi Omega
Chapter upon the occasion of hosting its Annual Community Charter Day
Celebration, and to pay tribute to this year's honorees on June 9, 2019;
and be it further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to DeRosette Harrison, President, Alpha Kappa Alpha
Sorority, Incorporated Epsilon Pi Omega Chapter.