Hey there, my name is Emmy Tane, and I cannot believe I am a senior already. I love Chi Omega with my whole heart. As a retired theater kid, of course I live for Samford’s longest tradition, and I am honored to have been chosen twice to represent Chi Omega in Step Sing as a director to help create and teach a show to some of my closest friends. There is just something about the spirit that sweeps through campus in January. Now as one of the least competitive people I know, I feel Step Sing is definitely for having fun and creating a space for others to come together and to get to try something new or get to do something they love.
Serving the chapter as a director for two years was a huge blessing. The amount of support, encouragement, and affirmation I received from the girls was so unexpected but helped shape my view of leadership. I have never seen myself as a leader, I am quick to see my inadequacies and just how much I cannot do. Thankfully, I was not expected to do this job alone. I only know Step Sing with Faith Jones, and I admire her even more than I did before leading with her for three years. From her humble and passionate leadership, I learned how to lead in a peaceful way, extending more grace than you’d think we would need. She is a leader who cares deeply about the work being done and about the people involved. Her creativity and vision when approaching a project are full of excitement that hooks you and lights a fire under you. I am so thankful to have seen how to lead with such zeal and detail, working for excellence, while having fun. I learned about how to lead boldly from Sarah Beth Galbreath and EmilyAnn Smith, and how to think outside the box to quickly find solutions and get a better result than we thought of initially. Sarah Beth always saw the end result and was confident in the work being done. Watching and leading with her helped me become a bolder and more honest leader. I admire both of their logistically powered brains that help piece together and organize the abstract mess of ideas I tend to pour out. All of the women I led with have shaped me into the leader I currently try to be, and I am overly thankful for all they have taught me.
Chi Omega has greatly influenced who I am today, and for that I am thankful. I have had wonderful mentors to look up to, have been poured into by those around me, and I have been affirmed, shaped, and uplifted by my sisters, encouraging me to be the best version of myself. I am embarrassingly proud to watch Chi O Zombies too many times each month and am caught too often singing “Thriller” and “It’s Hairspray” everywhere I go. I am beyond proud to be attached to such a niche tradition and, obviously, to be a Chi Omega.
