Cora Bollinger Block
(Mrs. Lewis) 1869-1944
Mrs. Block served as
Alpha Xi Delta's first President and first Grand President. With Mr.
Block, a charter member of Sigma Nu at the University of Iowa and a
prominent attorney of Davenport, and their three sons, Mrs. Block was a
recognized community leader.
Alice Bartlett Bruner (Mrs. M.T.) 1878-1966
An accomplished
musician, Mrs. Bruner taught for a while at the Lombard Conservatory,
although Dr. Bruner and her two Alpha Xi Delta daughters soon monopolized
her time. She was instrumental in establishing Beta Epsilon Chapter at
Monmouth College in Illinois.
Almira Lowry Cheney 1875-1946
After some years of teaching, Miss
Cheney became a minister of the Universalist Church, and as director of
Universalist Sunday Schools in Ohio, was a pioneer in religious education.
Frances Elizabeth Cheney 1869-1901
Frances Cheney, the eldest of
nine children in a pioneer Illinois family, was a staunch advocate of
woman's suffrage and freedom and a talented writer responsible for many of
the Fraternity's early songs. Transferring from Lombard, she graduated
from Ryder Divinity School in 1895 and served as a rural pastor until her
untimely death.
Bertha Cook Evans (Mrs. O.C.) 1874-1957
Mrs. Evans's home and her
three daughters, two of whom became Alpha Xi Deltas, were the chief
interests of her mature life. However, following her husband's death, she
turned to new pursuits and served as a fraternity house director, and as
administrator of a home for the aged.
Eliza Drake Curtis Everton (Mrs. J.L.) 1867-1934
Entering Lombard
already widowed, Eliza Curtis graduated in divinity and became a
Universalist pastor, serving until her marriage to the Rev. Mr. J.L.
Everton, a Lombard Sigma Nu. Mrs. Everton did outstanding work in the
missionary field and served as executive director of the Sampson County,
NC, Chapter of the American Red Cross during World War I.
Julia Maude Foster 1875-1948
Miss Foster early decided that
teaching in the primary grades was her field, and after special training
devoted her entire career to teaching in the St. Paul, MN, schools. A
staunch patriot and descendant of patriots, she was recognized for her
outstanding working inculcating American ideals in children of foreign
birth. She served Alpha Xi Delta as a member of the committee that drafted
the first constitution.
Lucy W. Gilmer 1872-1939
Alpha Xi Delta's first vice president was
both a teacher and a nurse. She never realized her ambition to become a
physician, but she did spend many years traveling from city to city,
practicing nursing and learning about her country first-hand.
Harriet Luella McCollum (Mrs. C.W.E. Gossow) 1874-1948
It was in
the apartment Harriet McCollum shared with Cora Bollinger that the first
plans were made for Alpha Xi Delta. Although married and the mother of two
children, as feminist Miss McCollum used her maiden name and became a
nationally known lecturer and author. She pioneered in adult education and
applied psychology, with particular interest in the psychological causes
of crime.
Lewie Strong Taylor (Mrs. E.A.) 1867-1950
After several years of
teaching while very young, Lewie Strong obtained a leave of absence for
additional study at Lombard. It was during this year that Alpha Xi Delta
was founded and its emblem, the Quill, was design by Lewie Strong. During
additional study at the University of Utah, she met and married Mr. E.A.
Taylor, a member of the faculty. Of their four children, the two daughters
are Alpha Xi Deltas. Mrs. Taylor's original stickpin badge is on display
at Fraternity Headquarters. It was donated to the Fraternity by her
daughter Aileen (Mrs. Hugh Bernecker). who ws initiated with her mother's
badge at the 1926 National Convention. It is the only Founder's badge in
the possession of the Fraternity.
Cora Bollinger Block (Mrs. Lewis) 1869-1944
Mrs. Block served as Alpha Xi Delta's first President and first Grand President. With Mr. Block, a charter member of Sigma Nu at the University of Iowa and a prominent attorney of Davenport, and their three sons, Mrs. Block was a recognized community leader.
Alice Bartlett Bruner (Mrs. M.T.) 1878-1966
An accomplished musician, Mrs. Bruner taught for a while at the Lombard Conservatory, although Dr. Bruner and her two Alpha Xi Delta daughters soon monopolized her time. She was instrumental in establishing Beta Epsilon Chapter at Monmouth College in Illinois.
Almira Lowry Cheney 1875-1946
After some years of teaching, Miss Cheney became a minister of the Universalist Church, and as director of Universalist Sunday Schools in Ohio, was a pioneer in religious education.
Frances Elizabeth Cheney 1869-1901
Frances Cheney, the eldest of nine children in a pioneer Illinois family, was a staunch advocate of woman's suffrage and freedom and a talented writer responsible for many of the Fraternity's early songs. Transferring from Lombard, she graduated from Ryder Divinity School in 1895 and served as a rural pastor until her untimely death.
Bertha Cook Evans (Mrs. O.C.) 1874-1957
Mrs. Evans's home and her three daughters, two of whom became Alpha Xi Deltas, were the chief interests of her mature life. However, following her husband's death, she turned to new pursuits and served as a fraternity house director, and as administrator of a home for the aged.
Eliza Drake Curtis Everton (Mrs. J.L.) 1867-1934
Entering Lombard already widowed, Eliza Curtis graduated in divinity and became a Universalist pastor, serving until her marriage to the Rev. Mr. J.L. Everton, a Lombard Sigma Nu. Mrs. Everton did outstanding work in the missionary field and served as executive director of the Sampson County, NC, Chapter of the American Red Cross during World War I.
Julia Maude Foster 1875-1948
Miss Foster early decided that teaching in the primary grades was her field, and after special training devoted her entire career to teaching in the St. Paul, MN, schools. A staunch patriot and descendant of patriots, she was recognized for her outstanding working inculcating American ideals in children of foreign birth. She served Alpha Xi Delta as a member of the committee that drafted the first constitution.
Lucy W. Gilmer 1872-1939
Alpha Xi Delta's first vice president was both a teacher and a nurse. She never realized her ambition to become a physician, but she did spend many years traveling from city to city, practicing nursing and learning about her country first-hand.
Harriet Luella McCollum (Mrs. C.W.E. Gossow) 1874-1948
It was in the apartment Harriet McCollum shared with Cora Bollinger that the first plans were made for Alpha Xi Delta. Although married and the mother of two children, as feminist Miss McCollum used her maiden name and became a nationally known lecturer and author. She pioneered in adult education and applied psychology, with particular interest in the psychological causes of crime.
Lewie Strong Taylor (Mrs. E.A.) 1867-1950
After several years of teaching while very young, Lewie Strong obtained a leave of absence for additional study at Lombard. It was during this year that Alpha Xi Delta was founded and its emblem, the Quill, was design by Lewie Strong. During additional study at the University of Utah, she met and married Mr. E.A. Taylor, a member of the faculty. Of their four children, the two daughters are Alpha Xi Deltas. Mrs. Taylor's original stickpin badge is on display at Fraternity Headquarters. It was donated to the Fraternity by her daughter Aileen (Mrs. Hugh Bernecker). who ws initiated with her mother's badge at the 1926 National Convention. It is the only Founder's badge in the possession of the Fraternity.
