Our History
Rho Eta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.® emerged from the Chickahominy Interest Group. Its first organizational meeting was held at Nielsen Restaurant, budding into the chartering on May 21, 1988. The occasion was celebrated at the Omni Hotel in Richmond, Virginia, under the leadership of then Mid-Atlantic Director, Mary Jefferies. The first President of Rho Eta Omega Chapter was Margie Chrichlow. Under her leadership, Rho Eta Omega held its first public event, “Illumination of Splendor”, at Bellwood Defense General Supply Center (DGSC, Chesterfield, Virginia). Our first signature program was called “Project Yes”, which stood for Youth Enrichment Services. This program served youths in grades five through eleven. It evolved into another signature program called “Ride For Knowledge”, where high school students were introduced to Historically Black Colleges and Universities first through various pre-college seminars and finally via a bus tour of various HBCUs. Today, our signature project is “Belles and Beaus” which is an enrichment program, which serves our middle school year youth.
Thirty five years ago, Rho Eta Omega was chartered with thirty-seven members. We have currently grown to over 90 members, have won numerous awards and are very active in the Richmond community. Our motto remains: “We are small enough to be a sisterhood, and large enough to make a difference.”
Charter Members
- Brigitte Andrews
- Charmaine Brooks
- Karen Brown
- Linda Brown
- Marie Brown*
- Marilyn Brown
- Joan Bynum
- Inez Byrd
- Sandra Craighead
- Maria Crenshaw
- Muriel Felder
- Jeanette Flippen
- Linda Gordon
- Lillian Greene*
- Cynthia Hampton
- Sada Hill
- Stella Johnson
- Gloria McCowin
- Yvette Martin
- Cynthia Mayo
- Joyce Melton
- Marcita Mines
- Paula Powell
- Diane Ready*
- Rhonda Russell
- Jerome Seldon
- Joyce Shockley
- Margie C. Smith
- Lena Thompson
- Elaine Washington*
- Yvette Washington
- Angela West
- Stephanie White
- Gwendolyn Whiting
- Brenda Williams
- Nannie Wilson
- Annie Wood*
- *Ivy Beyond the Wall
Former Chapter Presidents
Margie Smith
1988-1990
Linda Brown
2003-2004
Tamara Johnson
2019-2020
Karen Brown Taylor
1991-1992
Sada Hill
2005-2008
Vanessa Myers-Mason
1993-1996
Nikki Adkins
2009-2010
Faye Cates
1997-1998
Arlene Skinner
2011-2014
Lena H. Thompson
1999-2002
Maria Crenshaw
2015 - 2018
Chapter Officers
Chapter Officers
President Monica Darden
Vice President Jannette Ricks
Treasurer Kimberly Davis-Wiley
Secretary Robin Lewis
Hostess Didi Thomas
Assistant Secretary Carmen Zimmitt
Ivy Leaf Reporter Chari Brown
Corresponding Secretary Rhonda Toms
Door Keeper Clarissa Bull
Financial Secretary Vanessa Walker Harris
Parliamentarian Sadà Hill
Chaplain Jeaneen Pitts
Historian Anne Miller
Graduate Advisors Willnette Pegram
Immediate Past President Tamara Johnson
Committee Chairmen
Archives Anne Miller
Audit Lorraine Adeeb
Awards Lynda Gant
By-Laws Sadá Hill
Belles & Beaus Tiffany Helber
Connection and Social Action Vanessa Johnson
EAF Coordinator Carlita Alford-Jones
Finance Kimberly Davis-Wiley
Fundraising Vanessa Myers Mason
Graduate Advisory Committee Gloria Burke, Sada Hill, Anne Miller, Willnette Pegram, Robin Lewis, Helen Wilkins
Leadership Development Maria Crenshaw, Delisa Stuckey
Membership Diveda Palmer
Nominating Elsie Coleman
Pan- Hellenic Council Bridgette Alford, Zakiya Calloway, Selma Dandridge
Program Jannette Ricks
Protocol Brigitte Andrews/Rhonda Taylor
Publicity Chari Brown
Remembrance Didi Thomas
Risk Management Coordinator Nedra Hicks
Rituals Helen Wilkins
Scholarship Pat Thompson
Sisterly Relations Delisa Stuckey/Maria Crenshaw
Standards Gwen Peters
Technology Tracy Osborne, Joycelyn Josey-Harris
Program Initiatives
Strengthen Our Sisterhood: Delisa Stuckey, Maria Crenshaw
Empower Our Families: Kiaundra Hurt
Build Our Economic Wealth: Tamara Gray
Enhance Our Environment: Melanie Little/Joleeta Williams
Advocate for Social Justice: Vanessa Johnson
Uplift Our Local Community: Sheanita Carter/Leslie Stevenson