A women-only campus group called Lucky 13 became a student organization in January with plans to recharter the women’s social club Delta Theta.
The group, which includes 22 women, hosted its first service project, writing letters to veterans and troops, in the Campus Center Thursday. The club was started by Shelby Short, freshman kinesiology major from Caddo Mills, and Leksi Vasquez, sophomore biology major from Wichita Falls.
“It’s for women to find community while serving our community,” Short said. “There’s never enough opportunity for service. I think it’s really positive for women to build each other up.”
Vasquez said she thought about starting a club because, as an RA in Sikes, she thought there was a need for a new club with so many women in the freshman class. She said she researched what clubs would be good to recharter and decided Delta Theta would receive the most support from alumnae.
“I’ve noticed that maybe there is a demand for more communities that young women can be involved in,” Vasquez said.
The group sponsors include Alyssa Ellison, student activities coordinator, Emerald Cassidy, associate director of enrollment marketing, and Mark Lewis, dean of students. Cassidy and Ellison were members of Delta Theta.
“If they just want to do Lucky 13 and not turn into a social club, that’s totally fine,” Ellison said. “Right now it is a student organization anyone can join. Their main focus has been on the present.”
Lucky 13 was the name of a club founded in 1926 which rechartered to became Delta Theta, according to the 1990 Prickly Pear. The club went inactive in 2011 after both of its sponsors resigned.
“I think we need to worry about where we are presently and anything in the past doesn’t have a lot of relevance to where we are at right now with Lucky 13,” Short said.
The group must be a student organization for one year before it can recharter as a social club, so Ellison said the group will focus on working together and building community for now. The group includes mostly freshman and sophomores, as well as two seniors, Vasquez said. Short and Vasquez said any women are welcome to join and they hope to continue the service organization even if Delta Theta is rechartered.
“Although our end goal is to be a social club, we don’t want to allow Lucky 13 to go off campus after that,” Short said.
Lucky 13 has plans to paint Easter eggs on April 8 with residents at Chisholm Place, an assisted living center on E.N. 10th.
