OSC President Tricia Bitsko's Convention Remarks (2017)
Dear Sisters,
I wish I could share with all of you the feelings that are going through my mind at this time. As I look out over this congregation of beautiful spirits I am in awe of the power and devotion in this room. I can tell that each one of you truly bee . . .lieves in P.E.O. And although I sometimes lack the confidence in myself to lead our state for the next year, I feel that all of you really do bee . . .lieve in me and that is humbling to say the least. I can only promise that I will do my best to be deserving of your faith in me.
Twenty years ago, at the birth of my first grandchild, I signed a card “Nana B”. At the time, “B” was just the second letter of the alphabet, the letter that begins my last name, the letter that might differentiate me from the other grandma’s this beautiful child would have. Little did I know that over the next 20 years, bees would begin to take on a whole new meaning as they soon became ever present in my home on shelves and walls, backyard ornaments, on birthday cards, jewelry, kitchen accessories, even shoes, (just no tattoos, yet!).
When it came time to select my theme for the coming year it was a no-brainer – “Bee . .lieve in P.E.O.”. But that is a pretty broad statement, what does that really mean, what does it encompass? It begins with our ability to Bee . . .lieve in ourselves. We must believe that each one of us truly is P.E.O. It is not what we are, it is who we are.
We must Bee . . .lieve in our sisters, in their ability to reach out to each other to share the love and support we have for each other. Bee . . .lieve in your chapter. That’s your home, your hive, your place to bee -long. Although we love to gather together, to break bread together, to have fun together, we have a purpose even greater than that. To bee . . .lieve in our project recipients, to reach out, find them, hunt them down if we must and set them on a right path to enrich their lives and the lives of those they touch through enhanced educational opportunities. Bee . . .lieve in their success. Bee passionate in your search for them.
My challenge to us for the coming year is to bee. . .lieve in the value of our sisterhood through our local chapters, our hives. Some of us are busy bees, attending every meeting and participating in all our activities, attending workshops, reciprocity and convention. Some of our bees have moved, relocated and never found another “hive” to call home. We have lost touch, allowing them to lose focus on what bee . .ing a P.E.O. is all about. I want to challenge you to help them find that passion again. My challenge is to find new chapter homes for our unaffiliates, those non-resident bees who live in an area that is not their “hive”. They need a new hive so they can feel the passion of Bee . . .ing a P.E.O. again. So, I am challenging each chapter to find a new hive for two unaffiliate or non-resident members. Maybe you invite a sister to transfer to your chapter, or you help your non-resident member to find a new hive in the community in which she now lives. Every bee deserves a hive! The other way to reach this goal is to reinstate two members who have been inactive for one or more years. Let’s take care of all the bees in our hive. So, in a nutshell, my challenge is to see two transfers in or two transfers out, or two reinstatements, or any combination of two of the above by Feb. 28 of 2018. There’s no paperwork to fill out. This will be easily trackable on your annual reports. Bee intentional in helping sisters find a home hive. Don’t assume someone else will do it, take this on as a challenge and let’s see all those bees in their new hives next year!
Bee inspiring!
Bee relevant!
Bee passionate!
Bee intentional!
Bee P.E.O.!
I wish I could share with all of you the feelings that are going through my mind at this time. As I look out over this congregation of beautiful spirits I am in awe of the power and devotion in this room. I can tell that each one of you truly bee . . .lieves in P.E.O. And although I sometimes lack the confidence in myself to lead our state for the next year, I feel that all of you really do bee . . .lieve in me and that is humbling to say the least. I can only promise that I will do my best to be deserving of your faith in me.
Twenty years ago, at the birth of my first grandchild, I signed a card “Nana B”. At the time, “B” was just the second letter of the alphabet, the letter that begins my last name, the letter that might differentiate me from the other grandma’s this beautiful child would have. Little did I know that over the next 20 years, bees would begin to take on a whole new meaning as they soon became ever present in my home on shelves and walls, backyard ornaments, on birthday cards, jewelry, kitchen accessories, even shoes, (just no tattoos, yet!).
When it came time to select my theme for the coming year it was a no-brainer – “Bee . .lieve in P.E.O.”. But that is a pretty broad statement, what does that really mean, what does it encompass? It begins with our ability to Bee . . .lieve in ourselves. We must believe that each one of us truly is P.E.O. It is not what we are, it is who we are.
We must Bee . . .lieve in our sisters, in their ability to reach out to each other to share the love and support we have for each other. Bee . . .lieve in your chapter. That’s your home, your hive, your place to bee -long. Although we love to gather together, to break bread together, to have fun together, we have a purpose even greater than that. To bee . . .lieve in our project recipients, to reach out, find them, hunt them down if we must and set them on a right path to enrich their lives and the lives of those they touch through enhanced educational opportunities. Bee . . .lieve in their success. Bee passionate in your search for them.
My challenge to us for the coming year is to bee. . .lieve in the value of our sisterhood through our local chapters, our hives. Some of us are busy bees, attending every meeting and participating in all our activities, attending workshops, reciprocity and convention. Some of our bees have moved, relocated and never found another “hive” to call home. We have lost touch, allowing them to lose focus on what bee . .ing a P.E.O. is all about. I want to challenge you to help them find that passion again. My challenge is to find new chapter homes for our unaffiliates, those non-resident bees who live in an area that is not their “hive”. They need a new hive so they can feel the passion of Bee . . .ing a P.E.O. again. So, I am challenging each chapter to find a new hive for two unaffiliate or non-resident members. Maybe you invite a sister to transfer to your chapter, or you help your non-resident member to find a new hive in the community in which she now lives. Every bee deserves a hive! The other way to reach this goal is to reinstate two members who have been inactive for one or more years. Let’s take care of all the bees in our hive. So, in a nutshell, my challenge is to see two transfers in or two transfers out, or two reinstatements, or any combination of two of the above by Feb. 28 of 2018. There’s no paperwork to fill out. This will be easily trackable on your annual reports. Bee intentional in helping sisters find a home hive. Don’t assume someone else will do it, take this on as a challenge and let’s see all those bees in their new hives next year!
Bee inspiring!
Bee relevant!
Bee passionate!
Bee intentional!
Bee P.E.O.!