Not everyone recognizes the name Beta Sigma Phi, but most people are familiar with the group’s Fourth of July pie booth. Pie sales have been the annual fundraiser for the group’s mission to supply teddy bears to the fire and police departments and the hospital emergency room to give to children in crisis or distress.

The Wrangell chapter of Beta Sigma Phi has decided to disband after nearly 50 years of learning, community and service.

Alice Rooney, a long-time member, wrote that the group has been affected by a number of factors, including declining membership, the aging of current members and the shuttering of their umbrella international organization in June of this year.

Over the years, the service sorority has met once or twice a month for dessert and conversation, educational presentations and event planning.

There have been barbecues, Christmas parties and candy sales, the Valentine Ball with the crowning of a queen, and the Woman of the Year celebration, highlighting outstanding volunteers in the community. 

The Fourth of July pie booth has been the stalwart fundraising activity to purchase the teddy bears.

“It will be sad not to do the pie sales,” said Olinda White, a long-time member. “People would stop by just to talk; others gave donations without taking any pie. The general feedback was that we were doing a good thing and people supported us.”

White said they have funds to buy the teddy bears for the next couple of years but hopes another community group will pick up the program.

Another activity that they hope will continue is the annual mother-daughter tea for graduating seniors.

“The tradition was started by the Wrangell Civic Club many decades ago,” explained Rooney. Handed over once, it is ready to be handed over again.

Artha DeRuyter, who has only been a member for a year, spoke enthusiastically about this year’s program for graduating seniors. “It’s wonderful to see everyone all dressed up, and accompanied by their mother or grandmother or auntie,” she said. 

While everyone enjoys gathering for delicious sweet and savory treats, the most meaningful aspect of the program are the stories afterward. 

“We ask the young women to speak about their plans after graduation. Then we invite the mothers to talk about what they had planned after their graduations, and the ways those plans had adapted and changed. Then the members of Beta Sigma Phi tell their stories, about our goals when we were young, and how important it is to be flexible,” said DeRuyter.

“It’s been so interesting to see changes across time,” said White. “I remember my first mother-daughter tea, in 1989 or 1990. Only one student from the group had plans to go to college. This year, nearly all the young women were planning on college or some kind of extended education. It’s been very rewarding to see.”

She also noted that some of the young women who attended as students were now attending with their graduating daughters. 

The ending of the sorority is a sad but practical reality for its members. Their legacy is reflected in the ways they have been a support to one another and the community. They look forward to new groups finding satisfaction in continuing that legacy. “I don’t want the funds and the projects to be forgotten,” White said.