Greetings from our President . . .
Good Day Sorors, Friends and Community Members:
Thank you for visiting the digital home of the Detroit Deltas. Since 1939, the Detroit Alumnae Chapter has served our community by meeting the needs of the day.
In 1947, we started the Delta Home For Girls and provided residential and treatment services to adolescent girls who were a part of the judicial system. In 1988, we dedicated Delta Manor, a 99 one-bedroom senior citizen housing complex that operates in downtown Detroit. In 2015, the Chapter was one of the first organizations to host an award-winning expungement fair that helped countless citizens to clear their records and walk past hurdles that hindered them for years. Our Chapter’s efforts were instrumental in the passing of the Clean Slate legislation to help make expungements easier.
The Detroit Deltas continue to service Detroit, Hamtramck, Harper Woods, Highland Park and the Grosse Pointes through the Sorority’s Five Point Programmatic Thrust: Economic Development, Educational Development, International Awareness and Involvement, Physical and Mental Health, and Political Awareness. We are committed to continuing our legacy of service and meeting today’s needs during the 2025-2027 biennium by moving Forward Together with each other and the community.
If you are a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and looking for a chapter home, please consider joining Detroit Alumnae Chapter. We are a Chapter that is steeped in history while also setting new standards of service. We welcome you to join us at our monthly meetings held between October and June on second Saturdays beginning at 11:00 a.m.
Thank you again for visiting our website. We hope to connect with you in person soon.
In Delta Service,
Jenice Mitchell Ford, President
Chapter
History
The Detroit Alumnae Chapter was chartered on May 13, 1939 as Alpha Pi Sigma Chapter and was renamed Detroit Alumnae Chapter in 1958. Detroit Alumnae, which celebrated its 85th anniversary in 2024, is one of the largest chapters in the Sorority with membership averaging more than 800 Detroit Deltas annually.
Chapter members have risen to serve on the regional and national levels of the Sorority. From 1971–1975, 14th DAC President Lillian Pierce Benbow served as the 15th National President. The 41st DAC President Lois E. Bingham was selected as the executive director of the Sisterhood. Most recently, the Rev. Dr. R. Janae Pitts-Murdock who was initiated into DAC in 2007, was appointed as the national chaplain.
Since its chartering, Detroit Deltas have instituted programs and projects that significantly benefited the residents of the city. These have included the Delta Home for Girls, which for more than 40 years housed young girls who had been removed from their homes by the courts, and the Detroit Delta Preparatory Academy for Social Justice, the nation’s first school created by a National Pan-Hellenic Council organization. An ongoing project is Delta Manor, a senior citizens apartment building serving residents since 1989.
Detroit Alumnae Chapter has been honored by the community and the Sorority. Beginning in 2013, Delta’s centennial year, DAC’s projects and artifacts were displayed in a gallery exhibit at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. DAC’s service was recognized by the Michigan Chronicle, which named Detroit Deltas their Newsmaker of the Year.
Over the years Detroit Deltas have won numerous awards at the state, regional, and national levels, including Midwest Region Large Alumnae Chapter of the Year in 2015 and 2017; Delta Dear of the Year, International Awareness and Involvement, and Economic Development Awards in 2018. The Chapter also placed as a finalist in multiple categories in 2019. In 2025, Midwest Soror of the Year was awarded to a Detroit Alumnae Member.
Chapter Structure
Meet our Elected Officers
Jenice Mitchell Ford
President
Kimberly English Davis
First Vice President
Kimberly E. Fisher
Second Vice President
Kimberly L. Mitchell
Recording Secretary
Jonaz S. Byrd
Assistant Recording Secretary
Lynisha Oliver
Corresponding Secretary
Angela Pinkett
Assistant Corresponding Secretary
NiKole Howard-Whitsett
Treasurer
Shanta’L Overton
Assistant Treasurer
Lisa E. Cox
Financial Secretary
Barbara Locke
Assistant Financial Secretary
Cheryl Y. Greer
Budget and Finance Chair
Denise Thames Jackson
Internal Audit Chair
Tracy Ball
Nominating Committee Chair
Tonya Norwood
Nominating Committee Member
Germaine Pentsil
Nominating Committee Member
Erica Pettis
Nominating Committee Member
Donna Thornton
Nominating Committee Member
Laurie Washington
Nominating Committee Member
Cassie Williams
Nominating Committee Member
Stephanie L. Williams
Immediate Past President
Standing & Special Committees
| Committee | Designations |
|---|---|
| Arts & Letters | Tamra Maben (Chair), Althea Sauls (Co-Chair) |
| Budget and Finance | Cheryl Y. Greer (Chair), Lisa E. Cox, Mary Elcock, Patricia Ford, Leslie Gillespie, Barbara Locke, Deborah Kent, Mildred Morton Cross, Shanta’L Overton, Sherita Tate, Nikole Howard-Whitsett |
| Collegiate Connection | Tracy Boyce (Chair), LaShawn Ware (Co-Chair), MaKayla Rawls (Co-Chair) |
| Communications & PR | Alicia Nails (Chair), Brittany Knox (Co-Chair) |
| Community Outreach | Kendra Byrd (Chair), Charlene Jones Mitchell (Co-Chair), Patrice Simpson (Co-Chair) |
| Delta D.E.A.R.S. | Georgia Cambell (Chair), D. Janelle Drake (Co-Chair), Lynn Kelley (Co-Chair) |
| Delta GEMS | Ashlei Brooks (Chair), Glenda Olivache (Co-Chair), Edythe Hayden Friley (Co-Chair) |
| Delta Academy | Delana Baltimore (Chair), Ester Sutgry (Co-Chair) |
| Economic Development | Marilyn Smith Hines (Chair), Marlin Williams (Co-Chair) |
| Educational Development | Bridgette Rudolph (Chair), LyShay McGowan (Co-Chair) |
| EMBODI | Shelly Nevels-Ester (Chair), Cydni Penn (Co-Chair) |
| Emergency Response | Sylvia Cox (Chair), Marletta Boyd II (Co-Chair) |
| Fundraising | Staci Brooks (Chair), Stacey Olivache (Co-Chair) |
| Heritage & Archives | LaCharmine Jefferson (Chair), Mikki Zachary (Co-Chair) |
| Hospitality | Lynetta Hughes (Chair), Brenda Gardner (Co-Chair) |
| Housing & Properties | Michelle Puryear (Chair), Robyn Joya Johnson (Co-Chair), Audrey Bibbs, Lillian Renee Jenkins, Anitta Y. Orr, Ermelda Polk, LeDora Scott, Tara Smith, Patricia Ford, Marjorie Porter |
| Internal Audit | Denise Thames Jackson (Chair), Donzell Green, Pamoline McDonald, Bridgette Shephard, Patricia Walker, LaShawnda Wrice |
| International Awareness | Akilah Benton (Chair), Sherrelle House (Co-Chair) |
| L.E.A.D. Mentoring | LaCema Womack (Chair), Loriann Bell (Co-Chair) |
| Lillian Pierce Benbow Leadership | Larmender A. Davis (Chair), LaNeice Jones (Co-Chair) |
| Membership Services | Kimberly E. Fisher (Chair) |
| Nominating Committee | Tracy Ball (Chair), Tonya Norwood, Germaine Pentsil, Erica Pettis, Donna Thornton, Laurie Washington and Cassie Williams |
| Physical & Mental Health | Jameel Smith (Chair), Rachel Harris (Co-Chair) |
| Policies & Procedures | Erica Donerson (Chair), Clarice Ogilvie Posey (Co-Chair) |
| Program Planning & Development | Kimberly English Davis (Chair) |
| Protocol & Traditions | Lisa M. Williams (Chair), Lisa Biles (Co-Chair) |
| Risk Management | Monica Swain (Chair), Janella Robinson (Co-Chair) |
| Ritual & Ceremonies | Veroncia Daffin Cowans (Chair), Sherrice Douglas (Co-Chair) |
| Scholarship | Kimberly English Davis (Chair), Laronda Jackson (Co-Chair) |
| Sister Circles | Diane Smith (Chair), Christina Holt (Co-Chair) |
| Special Services (Omega Omega) | Katrina V. Young (Chair), Glynis Dale (Co-Chair) |
| Social Action | Natalie Bien-Aime (Chair), Kenya Baines (Co-Chair), Jalonne White-Newsome (Co-Chair) |
| Strategic Planning | Katrenia L. Camp (Chair), Gwendolyn Prater (Co-Chair) |
| Step & Stroll | LaKena Crespo (Chair), Janee Nesmith (Co-Chair) |
| Technology | Brittany C. Knox (Chair), Jacinta Mba (Co-Chair), Tosha Padgett Brown (Co-Chair) |
| Choir | Teresa Youngblood (Chair), Phelecia McCall (Co-Chair), Courtney Washington (Co-Chair) |
| Elections | Tiffany Leflore (Chair), Sonja Barney-Tate, Cynthia (CJ) Morrell, Andrea Dunbar |
| Events Coordinating | Cheryl Johnson (Chair), Keelie Lackey (Co-Chair) |
| Founders Day | Tonya Roscoe (Chair), Yolanda Day (Co-Chair) |
| May Week | Edwina King (Chair), Angelia Mock (Co-Chair) |
| Midwest Impact Day of Service | Deborah Hunter-Harvill |
| Leader of Minerva Circle | Kimberly E. Fisher |
| Round Up | Alanna Price (Chair), Latrelle Pickens (Co-Chair) |
| Past Presidents Council | Beverly Gray (Chair), Marcia A. Jackson (Co-Chair) |
| Delta Network Affiliates | American Cancer Society, CHWMAAH (Doreen Odom, Liaison), Federation of Youth Services (Courtney Hough, Liaison), NAACP-Detroit (Donyale Stephen-Atara, Liaison), NAACP-Grosse Pointe (Diamond Clay, Liaison), NCNW (Sharon Wilson, Liaison), NPHC (Phonecia Jackson, Representative; Nadonya Muslim, Support Representative), UNCF (Yolanda Tait-Sain) |
Appointed Positions
| Position | Members |
|---|---|
| Council of Chaplains | Jessica Ingram (Chair), Yolanda Bean, Erika Bryant, Yvonne Hackett, Theresa Mattison, Cynthia Stephens-Hill, Nutrena Tate, Alethea Wells |
| Custodians | Beverly Wilkerson, Lisa Butler Moore |
| Journalist | Alicia Nails |
| Legal Advisors | Roshunda Price (Chair), Andrea Cartwright, Tanisha Davis, Taylor Ester, Joelynn T. Stokes, Marcileen Pruitt |
| Parliamentarians | Joan C. Price (Chair), Jewel Jones, Marilyn Mayberry, Dedria Willis |
| Sergeant-At-Arms | Izetta Bright (Chair), Naomi Fair, Deborah McCreary, LeDora Scott |
| Time Keeper(s) | Gloria Cadge |
Past Presidents
| Name | Years |
|---|---|
| Stephanie L. Williams | 2023–2025 |
| Katrenia L. Camp | 2021–2023 |
| Larmender A. Davis | 2019–2021 |
| Lois E. Bingham | 2017–2019 |
| LaNeice Jones | 2015–2017 |
| Marcia A. Jackson | 2013–2015 |
| Beverly A. Gray | 2011–2013 |
| Mardi L. Woods | 2009–2011 |
| Anitta Y. Orr | 2007–2009 |
| Barbara J. Anderson | 2005–2007 |
| Jessye Verona Franklin | 2003–2005 |
| Marion E. Binion | 2001–2003 |
| Edythe Hayden Friley | 1999–2001 |
| Shirletha Simms Binion | 1997–1999 |
| Barbara J. Benford* | 1995–1997 |
| Kay Diane Armstrong | 1993–1995 |
| Bernice Finley Morton* | 1991–1993 |
| Rose Marie Dickens Swanson | 1989–1991 |
| Evelyn V. Browne* | 1987–1989 |
| Carol Sayers Puryear* | 1985–1987 |
| Mattie Jones Johnson | 1983–1985 |
| Velma Mobley* | 1981–1983 |
| Jean Sharon Porter | 1979–1981 |
| Carrie Rogers Brown | 1977–1979 |
| Shirletha Newsom Denning* | 1971–1973 |
| Virginia Munger* | 1969–1971 |
| Juanita Williams Stafford | 1967–1969 |
| Eleanor Boykin Jones* | 1965–1967 |
| Lillian Pierce Benbow* | 1963–1965 |
| Dorothea Flounoy Jackson* | 1961–1963 |
| Esther LaMarr* | 1959–1961 |
| Helen Garvin* | 1957–1959 |
| Junetta Robison Watt* | 1955–1957 |
| Margaret Piper* | 1953–1955 |
| Ahnastasia Dudley* | 1951–1953 |
| Mathilda Williams* | 1949–1951 |
| Frances Langford Owens* | 1947–1949 |
| Gladys W. Barthwell* | 1946–1947 |
| Roberta McGuire Pickett* | 1944–1946 |
| Lucy Belle Morris* | 1943–1944 |
| Cecil Boykin McFadden* | 1942–1943 |
| Marion Carter* | 1939–1942 |
Charter Members
| Name |
|---|
| Loretta McKee (Briscoe)* |
| Esther Randall (LaMarr)* |
| Mamie Alexander* |
| Elizabeth Cole* |
| Lucy B. Morris* |
| Ruth Routt (King)* |
| Gladys Barthwell* |
| Irene Duncan Wise |
| Sue Morton* |
| Louise Sims* |
| Marquerite M. Bleach |
| Hortense Fears* |
| Elizabeth Morton* |
| Margret Smith |
| Eleanor Boykin (Jones)* |
| Maxine Fears (Worsham)* |
| Wilamette Mosby* |
| Zelma Sykes (Sparks)* |
| Marion Carter* |
| Bertha Lantoin* |
| Frances Owens* |
| Marion Taylor |
| Ethel Childs (Baker)* |
| Victoria McCall (Davenport)* |
| Ernestine Postles |
| Helen Thomas* |
| Phyllis Colden* |
| Ruby McLendon (Wills)* |
| Edith Watson (Bland)* |