Ground broken for new Phi Mu headquarters

Ground broken

for new Phi Mu headquarters

Phi Mu Foundation, the

educational and fundraising arm of Phi Mu Fraternity, sponsored a groundbreaking

ceremony May 3 for a new national headquarters building in Westpark Office

and Commercial Center in Peachtree City.

Despite the

rain and previous night's dangerous storms, nearly 100 invited guests

attended the ceremony, which marks the public phase of the Foundation's

capital campaign, "The Campaign for Phi Mu: Turning Dreams into Reality"

to construct the new 31,672-square-foot national headquarters.

Alumnae from

as far away as California and as close as Fayette County, area collegians

and Peachtree City officials attended the ceremony, which was held at

the Wyndham Peachtree Hotel and Conference Center.

"We could

not be more pleased with the fabulous design of the new Phi Mu Headquarters

building," said Peachtree City Mayor Pro Tem Dan Tennant. "This

beautiful building will enhance an already attractive network of handsome

sights in the Westpark area of the city. The depth and beauty of the design

will create a landmark of our city for decades to come."

Kathie Garland,

Phi Mu Foundation's Executive Director from Lawrenceville, welcomed guests

to this long-anticipated event. Leona Hughes, a 74-year initiate of the

fraternity and past foundation president from Sarasota, Fla., gave a moving

invocation.

Foundation

President Claudia Nemir provided attendees with a "roadmap"

of the 84-year journey from Phi Mu's first headquarters in New Orleans

to the new Peachtree City site.

Phi Mu Fraternity

President Kathy Williams of Oxford, Miss., followed suit with a description

of how the five-acre site, located in Westpark, was discovered.

After the official

presentation, guests were invited to enjoy light refreshments before boarding

shuttles to the site on Westpark Drive. Upon arriving at the site, golden

shovels were used to turn the ground, thus symbolizing the actual groundbreaking

and construction to come.

Guests were

given the opportunity to have their pictures taken turning the red Georgia

soil while sporting white hard hats designed for the occasion. Afterwards,

guests were able to enjoy a break in the rain and visit with one another

under a large white tent decorated with festive ribbons, flowers and an

architectural rendering of the completed headquarters building.

Phi Mu Foundation,

a 501(c)(3) organization, is conducting the capital campaign to raise

over $4 million dollars to build the new national headquarters for Phi

Mu Fraternity, a national social organization for women, with 118 collegiate

and 160 alumnae chapters.

The new headquarters

will primarily consist of office space, though a large leadership training

center and museum will also be housed in the building.

Phi Mu Fraternity

was founded 151 years ago at Wesleyan Female College in Macon, focusing

on the social, mental and moral improvement of its members.

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