Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Distributes ‘Blessing Bags’ To Homeless Of Christiansted

The Chi Rho Chapter at the University of the Virgin Islands’ Zeta Phi Beta (ΖΦΒ) Sorority Incorporated, traversed areas in Christiansted on Monday where homeless residents are known to gather, to deliver what the sorority calls “blessing bags”, one of the various giveback efforts the group undertakes yearly.

Dressed in blue and white, a group of about 10 ladies made the rounds delivering the baskets — about 40 in total — which included items such as soaps, body wash, shampoo and conditioner, toothpaste, sanitary napkins and even snacks. The giveback effort was also conducted on the sorority’s Founders Day, which also happens to be Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

“It’s a little way of giving back to our community, in which we have already started doing so and they’re very grateful for what we’re doing today,” said Jewelise Fahie, undergraduate president of the St. Croix chapter of the sorority.

Crystal Peter, an educator and member of the organization, described a sorority as a sisterhood with the interest of positively impacting society. She said though the various sisterhoods are represented by different colors, “We are all founded under under the same principle,” with ΖΦΒ being founded under scholarships, service, sisterhood and finer womanhood. Monday’s giveback was the group’s demonstration of community service, according to Ms. Peter.

The sisterhood, Ms. Peter went on, also serves as a family outside of blood relatives, with members being able to rely on each other in multiple areas of need. Other ΖΦΒ efforts in the Christiansted town include a breakfast for the homeless held at the market.

“We like doing these things,” Ms. Peter said. The ladies thanked members of the sisterhood — who they said donated all of the items given away on Monday — for their unwavering commitment in ensuring that the group’s activities are carried out successfully.

ΖΦΒ consists of over 50 members locally, according to Ms. Peter. The sisterhood is an international, historically black Greek-lettered sorority, which was formed in 1920 by five women from Howard University, who envisioned a sorority that would raise the consciousness of their people, encourage the highest standards of scholastic achievement, and foster a greater sense of unity among its members, according to Wikipedia.

These women believed that sorority elitism and socializing overshadowed the real mission for progressive organizations. From their zeal and passion, Zeta Phi Beta was born. Since then, members have worked to address societal ills, prejudices, poverty, and health concerns of the day, according to Wikipedia.