There was a very special pride I could feel on the campus of University of Southern Mississippi (USM). Maybe it was the students’ handprints that mark your path on the way to the football stadium or the iconic All-American Rose Garden or even the giant Golden Eagle mascot statue that welcomes you to the front of the school.

“You love it or you don’t – it’s all in or not at all,” says Mississippi Alpha Molly Miller.

For Molly, a fifth generation Golden Eagle, there was no doubt in her mind where she would go to college. One thing she may not have considered is how Pi Beta Phi could become a family affair too.

Molly glows at the mention of her younger sister, Mississippi Alpha Amy Miller. Since the sisters are 10 years apart, Molly has seen Amy make USM and Pi Phi her own place, even becoming a great leader for the chapter they both love. Amy originally joined Pi Phi because “she saw the love I have for the chapter and the love they had for me, and she wanted to experience the same thing.” Molly is proud of her sister, not only because they are part of the same chapter, but also because each have made their own best friends.

One of Molly’s own Pi Phi best friends and college roommate is Mississippi Alpha Virginia Hollingsworth. This past October, the two came up with the idea of nominating their mothers to participate in the Alumna Initiate Program. On the same weekend, in front of their daughters, Cherry Miller and Faye Hollingsworth became members of Pi Beta Phi Fraternity as alumnae members of Mississippi Alpha. Cherry said she was honored that her daughter thought enough of her to be her sorority sister and not just her mom. Is it just me or is someone cutting onions in here?

Molly continues to be involved in Pi Beta Phi, now serving as President of the Hattiesburg Alumnae Club. The alumnae club has a great respect for the chapter and the club wants to support them as best as they can. Molly is honored working with the chapter that has given her and her family so much.