This summer during the Phi Mu Foundation Annual Meeting, we recognized two incredible collegiate members – Jehme Pruitt (Alabama) and Daryn Polzin (Oklahoma City) – with the 2022 Pollack Award for philanthropy leadership in their chapters, on their campuses, and in their communities.

The Pollack Award was established in December 1979 with a gift to Phi Mu Foundation from Gerald and Sheldon Pollack of the J.O. Pollack Company. This award is presented to individuals who excel in social service leadership. Collegians are nominated for this award and receive $1,000 for first place and $500 for second place. Here’s a glance at this year’s winners:

Nominated by her chapter president, Jehme Pruitt is the first-place recipient of the Gerald and Sheldon Pollack Award. She serves as her chapter’s Philanthropy Chair and has helped plan and raise over $100,000 for CMN Hospitals through events such as Raising Dough, Bonnamu and Miracle Week.

Jehme understands the importance of not only raising money for philanthropies, but also for her and her sisters to give hope, love, and joy to those they are serving. Her chapter sisters say her keynote phrase is, “Philanthropy is not just about writing a check to make you feel good and then never looking back. It is about being steadfast, loyal, brave, and hopeful. It is about your continuing efforts to serve and find the passion and joy of serving others. You are genuinely making a positive and necessary difference in someone else’s life. It is about giving people what they need and being dutiful”.

The Gerald and Sheldon Pollack Award Honorable Mention was awarded to Daryn Polzin. Daryn recently wrapped up a year of service on the Phi Mu Foundation Leadership Council, is the director of Dance Marathon on her campus and serves her chapter as Philanthropy Chair and now chapter president. In addition to serving her chapter and campus philanthropies, she also started her own 501C3 non-profit organization, “Making Miracles for Kids,” which works to start Dance Marathons at the high school level.

Daryn led her chapter to support the Foundation’s M3 Campaign at 100%, including writing more than 200 emails to alumnae to help support her chapter’s fundraising efforts. She has also worked to have her chapter help charities internationally by adopting 25 Afghani refugee families, along with a local nonprofit, to ensure they had essentials such as food, clothing, water and toys.

Each year, Phi Mu Foundation selects a group of exceptional collegiate donors to represent their chapters on the Collegiate Leadership Council. Together, the council shares their passion for philanthropy and the Foundation’s powerful mission by educating, motivating and inspiring others to give back to Phi Mu Foundation.

Members of the Council will provide perspective on collegiate engagement, cultivation, stewardship, as well as provide insight on fundraising and other philanthropic efforts. They’ll also serve as social media advocates for the Foundation. Click here for an overview of the CLC program.

“Through my CLC experience, one line on the creed rang true during the entire experience – being steadfast in every duty small or large. Whether it was an Instagram Story post or campaigning for M3, everything was for the betterment of sisters everywhere!”

Past CLC Member Yiannoula Katsadas, Beta Upsilon, Westminster University

If you’re a rising junior or senior member in good standing with at least a 3.0 GPA, apply today! All applications must be completed by July 10, 2022.

Please contact Communications & Marketing Director Jessi Horne at jhorne@phimu.org with any questions.

We’re excited to offer the opportunity for interested members to volunteer for the Foundation Social Media Advocate Committee again this year!

Last year, our Social Media Advocate team of volunteers supported the annual 18 Hours and 52 Minutes of Giving, the M3 Campaign and the launch of the One Destiny Campaign and helped us raise critical funds to support the lifetime development of Phi Mu women. Because of their commitment to educating and inspiring Phi Mu women through their personal social media, more members than ever before have access to information about how the Foundation can help them throughout their membership experience and how their contributions to the Foundation are lending a helping hand to sisters in need.

If you are interested in joining us on the volunteer Social Media Advocate team this year, please sign up here. Please save the date for the 18 Hours & 52 Minutes of Giving Social Media Advocate Webinar on Wednesday, October 27 at 8 p.m. ET. and the day of giving to follow on Thursday, November 4 beginning at 6:00 a.m. ET.

The Foundation Staff is excited to announce two new members who are joining our team this fall!

Chloe Franklin Long, Theta Zeta (Georgia Institute of Technology) is serving as the Donor Relations Assistant, working with Amy Moore, Donor Relations Manager. While completing her masters’ program in Public Health, Chloe was an Outreach Coordinator for Coastal Campaign for Healthy Kids, a grant-funded program to help enroll and renew children and teens into Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids.

In her role with the Foundation, Chloe is helping to maintain our donor database, overseeing donor acknowledgment efforts and supporting various Annual Fund campaigns. Chloe works part-time in the Foundation office and resides in Peachtree City, Georgia, with her husband and little girl.

 

Angel Anderson Sorochak, Gamma Rho (University of West Georgia) will join the team later this month as the Development Officer, working with Mandi Young, Senior Director of Development. Angel comes to the Foundation with 11 years of fundraising experience, most recently serving as the Executive Director of Elevate Savannah, a non-profit focused on mentoring relationships in the community.

At the Foundation, Angel will oversee a portfolio of donors as she works with Mandi to support the One Destiny Campaign, in addition to managing the Foundation’s Annual Giving Programs and advancing individual giving efforts. Angel will work remotely from Savannah, Georgia, where she resides with her husband. Her daughter, Addison, is a new member of the Kappa Mu Chapter at Georgia Southern University.

Welcome to the team, Chloe and Angel!