On June 29th, 2007, I was diagnosed with a rare childhood liver cancer called Hepatoblastoma. This was a bit of a shock to my family because the odds of developing this particular type of cancer is only 1 in a million. At the age of 4, I had surgery to remove the left lobe of my liver, followed by chemotherapy. I received my treatment at Kosair Children's Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. We live in Western Kentucky, so our commute to the hospital was over 2 and a half hours long. This was a overwhelming time for me and my family, but little did we know one our biggest blessing would come in the form of warm beds, home cooked meals and smiling faces.

The Ronald McDonald House in Louisville became essential to my family during my treatment period. RMHC mission is to create and support programs that directly improve the health and well-being of children, and strengthen families by keeping them together in times of medical need. Our journey with this organization began when my family stayed during my liver resection surgery at the start of my treatment. My family and I stayed many nights in the House while I had outpatient chemotherapy treatments and diagnostic testing. Ronald McDonald welcomed us with open arms and full hearts time after time.

The Ronald McDonald House went above and beyond to help accommodate the families staying in the House. This meant suppling us with three hot meals each day and still asking nothing in return. They usually had activities and other events to help the children staying there feel special. The most significant night that stands out to me is when the woman of the Epsilon Delta chapter, of Alpha Delta Pi spent the evening with the other children and me for a movie night. This was always something that I hung onto growing up and throughout the rest of my treatment. The women of ADPi were genuinely excited to be there and made me feel like the most important person in the room. As someone who did not grow up with sisters, having a positive female role model made a huge impact, even for one evening. I admire the way these women held themselves with such poise and grace.

I see these qualities in my sisters daily. As a PNM, the women of ADPi held themselves to the same standard that I remembered 15 years ago. Going through recruitment, I could see the passion the members of ADPi had for not only their philanthropy but a huge involvement across this campus. One of the things I admire most about these women is their passion for leadership and their determination for service. Among this chapter we have members represented on the DanceBlue committee, MEDLIFE, Phi Delta Epsilon, Wildcat Wardrobe, the Red Shoe Crew, Women in Neuroscience and so much more. As ADPi women we strive to committee ourselves fully to whatever organizations we are involved with on and off campus. ADPi women have such a huge heart for service, it is always so special to see such passionate women come to get to support a philanthropy like The Ronald McDonald House. Not only are these women my sisters but they are leaders, volunteers, philanthropist and role models. I am proud to call myself an ADPi woman.