Painting Education In Red
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Highlights Style, Education Thru Annual Fashion Benefit
Story & Photo By Hamil R. Harris
Greenbelt’s Martin’s Crosswinds was packed with high fashion and glamour on and off the runway on a Sunday afternoon as the Prince George’s County Alumnae chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority hosted its 41st Annual Scholarship Benefit Fashion Show and Luncheon. The Deltas awarded $75,000 in scholarships to 24 high school and continuing college students.
More than 1,400 men and women attended the March 19 event that was really a cultural experience as African American professional women joined the ladies of Delta for an afternoon of fashion and fellowship entitled “Rouge & Blanc Rule the Runway.”
The grand space at Martin’s was brimming with women in dazzling red or white dresses and outfits that rivaled anything seen onstage. Outside the doors, vendors and paparazzi opportunities lines the halls and entranceway like a Paris fashion bazaar—full of dazzling colored hats, brilliant jewelry and, above all, stylish people who knew how to make it all work.
“The education of our children is long-standing process by which we continue to encourage continuous academic achievement and service to others,” said Greta Wiggins Lewis, President of the Prince Georges County Alumnae Chapter and Wanda Jones Rogers, Chairperson of Prince George's County Delta Alumnae Foundation (PGCDAF), in a joint statement printed in the program. “The best thing about education is that no one can take it away from you.’
From Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Angela Alsobrooks to Elizabeth Hewlett, chair of the Prince George’s County Planning Board and the Maryland Park and Planning Commission, Martin’s was filled with gifted women of Delta Sigma Theta who made good on their own college investment.
“I want to say thank you to the 23 Delta women who started the Prince George’s County Alumnae Chapter and the past presidents,” said Mo Ivory, a law professor and WHUR radio personality, who, along with WPGC’s Guy Lambert, hosted the event.
The education fundraising component is a gala standard but this year, the Deltas added a domestic violence awareness component to the event.
In addition to feasting on Herb Salmon and Breast of Hen with stuffing, red potatoes, green beans and carrots, attendees were treated to high fashion with models showing off a range of hot looks courtesy of Millers Furs and Lord & Taylor and an assortment of fashion designers from the U.S. to France brought together by event Chairperson, Sinthea Myrick Kelly, and members of the Fashion Show Committee. The Marcus Johnson Project provided great R&B influenced jazz that added to the electric atmosphere of the afternoon.
But First Vice President of the Prince George’s Alumni Chapter Miriam L. Brewer emphasized that the true meaning of the event is about raising scholarship money to send young people to college. Brewer is also chair of the scholarship committee.
“The fashion is the back drop for us to award the scholarships,” Brewer said. “We just want to focus on the children. It is nice for us to gather and have 1,400 plus people but to support these kids and for them to come back and say thank you that is why we do it.”
