Lighting the Path Forward
- Tri Sigma Foundation
- Dec 15, 2025
- 2 min read
Julie Lammel
Alpha Sigma–University of Southern Mississippi
Julie Lammel (right) at Convention 2025 with Kathy Rayburn Kopperud (center right), Past National President Joyce Newcom O'Daniel (center left), and Donna Grogan Herndon (left).
When Julie joined the Heritage Society years ago, she imagined her planned gift as a legacy for the future—something that would strengthen Tri Sigma long after her own membership journey was complete. But as she stayed engaged, Julie began to see a growing need; chapters were working hard to thrive amidst slowing recruitment numbers, limited chapter resources, and growing mental health concerns among collegiate women.
Julie recognized something familiar in their challenges. She remembered what it felt like to keep a chapter going during difficult seasons, the weight of responsibility, the desire to do right by her sisters, and the hope that the chapter she loved would be there for the next generation. Those memories stirred something more profound: a wish to help today’s women navigate those same pressures with strength, skill, and support.
So, Julie made a powerful decision. She transformed her planned gift into an immediate investment, establishing the Julie Lammel Leadership Endowment, a fund created to uplift under-resourced chapters and help them grow stronger, more confident, and more connected.
Her endowment provides practical support for collegians who need financial assistance to participate in leadership development and educational opportunities. In simple terms, it helps ensure that a member’s potential to lead is never limited by her chapter’s budget or her own financial circumstances. Whether it’s officer training, development programs, or educational experiences that build confidence and capability, Julie’s gift opens doors that might have otherwise remained closed.
The heart of this fund is bigger than local grants. It’s about sustaining our Tri Sigma sisterhood, ensuring that chapters can weather hard times, build strong foundations, and continue shaping generations of women who learn, lead, and thrive together.
Julie often says her hope is simple: that every chapter, no matter its size or resources, has the chance to flourish. Through this endowment, she is lighting that path forward, showing today’s sisters that they are seen, supported, and never alone, and ensuring that tomorrow’s sisters will inherit a sisterhood strengthened by her generosity.
Her gift started as a legacy for the future. Today, it’s transforming the present. And for countless Sigmas, that impact will be felt for generations.
The Julie Lammel Leadership Endowment will provide grants to under-resourced chapters to support educational opportunities and leadership training development. Click here to learn more about this endowment and others.
