This woman and some others began to hook, and by summer we sold $200 worth of rugs during our summer speaking trip among the supporters of the mission. And she was able to pay the over-due interest. The floral was done in low relief, which I had not seen for years. I saw the rugs and found that the colors were good and that the the hooking was exceptionally fine. She had hooked some small rugs, but did not think that they amounted to much. On being questioned as to her resources she said that there was not much of anything that she could do which had commercial value. A woman, in deep need, came to me to ask if I knew of some way in which she might save her mortgaged home.

What seems to be in part of a solution of the problem for a few of them is the rug industry, which grew out of a casual incident. It was a way to help the residents earn money, according to this account by Alice M. The March 1926 Sigma Kappa Triangle tells this story of the Maine Seacoast rug industry. This fall, the Maine Seacoast Mission honored Sigma Kappa with the Sunbeam Award.Īfter a friend visited Maine a few years ago, she sent me a picture of the Sigma Kappa rug from Sadie’s Winter Dream: Fishermen’s Wives & Maine Seacoast Mission Hooked Rugs 1923-1938. Through the Sigma Kappa Foundation, members support the mission’s Christmas program, emergency relief program and scholarships. Sigma Kappas still support the Maine Sea Coast Mission. The decision honored Sigma Kappa’s founding in Maine as well as the members who volunteered in support of this missionary society. In due time, Beta and Gamma disappeared.Īt the 1918 convention, the Maine Sea Coast Mission was chosen as Sigma Kappa’s first national philanthropy. In 1893, a vote was taken to limit Alpha chapter to 25 members and to stop Beta and Gamma initiations. Although there were some early joint meetings, the members did not think it feasible to continue that way. After Alpha chapter’s membership reached 25, a Beta chapter was formed. The original chapter is known as the Alpha chapter. In Sigma Kappa’s first constitution, membership in Sigma Kappa was limited to 25 women. The five founders of Sigma Kappa are Mary Low Carver, Elizabeth Gorham Hoag, Ida Fuller Pierce, Louise Helen Coburn and Frances Mann Hall. The group received a letter from the faculty approving the organization’s petition, which included a constitution and bylaws. They were the only females enrolled at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. Sigma Kappa was founded on November 9, 1874, by five young women.

Kappa alpha psi founders day 2019