TOPEKA, Kan. — She’s 90 years old and, now, she’s officially a member Washburn University’s Zeta Tau Alpha sorority.
Bertie McConnell is about four times her fellow zeta sisters’ ages. She’s been married and has had three kids.
But being a Zeta is what she’s wanted since she was 20 years old. Finances prevented her from joining Washburn University, and that haunted her ever since.
“Every once in a while when we drive through the campus, I would say, ‘Oh there’s the sorority house.'”
Her daughter, Judith McConnell-Farmer, wanted to give her mother something unforgettable for a milestone birthday.
On Sunday, the sorority officially initiated Bertie into their chapter. And Bertie was overjoyed.
“You were all so kind to take me into your chapter,” she said.
Some of Bertie’s sorority sisters have since made plans to visit her on a regular basis at her retirement home in Lawrence, Kan.