I served as a Leadership Consultant in 2021-22 and I’m now pursuing a master’s of social work at The Ohio State University. I am deeply appreciative of both the Kappa Foundation and Wilma for supporting my dream of becoming a mental health professional.

After grad school, I plan to become a mental health professional with a focus on sport-based positive youth development. This path could lead to working as a mental health counselor in a school or nonprofit program management. Regardless of where my graduate studies take me, I am eager to make a positive impact on children’s lives.

Thank you for helping me reach my goals with this scholarship. I am so appreciative of Wilma’s generosity and the support from the Kappa Foundation. I often tell people that Kappa is the gift that keeps on giving. It’s so true. This sisterhood has provided me with opportunities to grow as a leader, meet some of my best friends, and further my education. Kappa continues to add value to my life year after year. Thank you again.

Loyally,
Megan Chunias,
Miami (Ohio)

We share this story in loving memory of Wilma, who died in September 2023. She was a Loyalty Award recipient and dedicated Kappa volunteer of over 40 years.

The next step was a referral to the Nicklaus Children’s Brain Institute’s ION-Channel Clinic. Grayson was admitted in April for tests. We were finally given a name for his disease: SCN2A Developmental Epileptic Encephalopathy (loss of function and mixed function). There are only 360 reported cases in the world, and effective treatment is unknown. What we do know: His condition is lifelong and the prognosis is likely to mean severe to profound intellectual and physical disabilities and continued seizures.

We traveled to Boston to attend the FamilieSCN2A Conference. We met with the most sought-after specialist for this condition at Boston Children’s Hospital and continue to consult with our team in Miami as well. Grayson has intensive therapies each week, including speech, physical, occupational, and feeding therapy.

As Grayson’s full-time caregiver, I have taken an extended leave of absence from work and Drew picks up extra shifts, which takes him away from our family. Grayson no longer says the words he once loved to show off. He has yet to learn to clap, point, or wave but he has started walking and growing in his gross motor skills. We have learned to celebrate the small wins and live in the present.

While we have planned for many what-ifs, our savings have been wiped out and the loss of a second income has been unexpected. The Kappa Foundation’s Rose McGill financial assistance during this difficult time has eased our burden and we are grateful for the help with circumstances beyond our control so we can focus on Grayson’s health and progress.

With gratitude, Kathie, Central Florida, and Drew Bradley

Upon her return home, Mary continued her career in the advancing medical field. She became the first woman medical director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, where she turned her focus to industrial medicine for the next 30 years. Women played a vital role in history but were often marginalized or overlooked in historical narratives. Kappa’s history is rich and filled with women, like Mary, who challenged the status quo and blazed a trail for generations to follow. We are committed to preserving our heritage and women’s history so future generations can learn about and from the women who’ve paved the way.

Dr. Mary Osborne, Monmouth, Stewart House Museum Director, uses the archives to educate others and further her own knowledge of trailblazing Kappas, like Mary M. Crawford. Dr. Osborne has spent recent years studying Dr. Crawford’s war-time diary. Along with preserving history, Kappa aims to make remarkable accounts of historical moments, like Dr. Crawford’s war-time diary, available to the public. Later this year, McFarland and Company Publishers will print This Ghastly War: The Diary and Letters of a Woman Doctor in the American Ambulance Hospital in France, 1914–1915 by Mary M. Crawford, M.D., and edited by Mary E. Osborne. The combination of Mary Crawford’s firsthand accounts paired with Dr. Osborne’s introductory essays paint a holistic picture of what it was like supporting the war efforts in the early 1900s.