Story #013: The First International Chapter

In celebration of Alpha Phi’s 150th Anniversary in 2022, we proudly share stories and moments that have created the legacy of sisterhood originally launched by our ten founders and which we still hold dear today.

 This is story 13 of 150.

The First International Chapter

Since the establishment of our first international collegiate chapter in 1906, our Canadian sisters have been a strong and vital part of our sisterhood. The Xi chapter was established in Toronto following discussions that began at the 1906 Convention. Alpha Phi invited two members of Psi Delta at the University of Toronto, Vera Lyon and Margaret Cole, to meet with Alpha Phi delegates at the Convention. After weeks of waiting to hear whether our petition to establish a chapter in Toronto would be granted, we received good news.

On December 3, 1906, Mabel Lewis Cooper (Alpha-Syracuse), Marion Condon Difendorf (Alpha-Syracuse), Agnes Kent (Alpha-Syracuse) and retired Quarterly editor Martha Keefe Phillips (Alpha-Syracuse) headed to Toronto to “inaugurate international Alpha Phi.” The business of initiation and installation of the Xi chapter began the next day at Margaret Houston’s (Xi-Toronto) home.

In celebration of welcoming new sisters and forging ahead to become an international Fraternity, the women gathered with university faculty and the dean of women for a reception at Queen’s Hall, the women’s dormitory at the university. The festivities also included a shopping excursion, a banquet and luncheon at the Teapot Inn. 

Eighteen sisters joined Alpha Phi in that first momentous class. The special women who launched the Xi chapter and made Alpha Phi an international Fraternity helped fulfill our Founders’ belief that we would one day connect with women at the universities in other countries in the spirit of sisterhood.

PHOTO – Xi has been a cherished part of Alpha Phi, and past International President Mary Macaulay Adams called the Xi chapter home. Outgoing International President Mary Macaulay Adams (Xi-Toronto) and incoming International President Sara Ann Wheeler Hatton (Omicron-Missouri) pose together at the 1966 Convention.