NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release
January 3, 2025

Contacts:

Doxie A. McCoy (North Atlantic Region)
doxiemccoy@gmail.com, (202) 746-0072

Ayana Hernandez (Mid-Atlantic Region)
ayanahernandezaka@gmail.com, (919) 335-8256

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® Donates More Than $29,000 to Support Community Service Efforts in Washington, D.C., Maryland and Northern Virginia 

Donations of More Than 13,120 Items and In-Kind Support Valued at $29,000 Provided to Greater DC Diaper Bank; Appearance by Phylicia Rashad Highlighted the Founders’ Day Celebration with Thousands of DMV AKA Members

Washington, D.C. – Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® North Atlantic Regional Director Elicia Pegues Spearman, Esq., and Mid-Atlantic Regional Director Nadine Vargas Stewart and members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority gathered at the Joint Metropolitan Founders’ Day on Saturday, January 3, 2026, at the Gaylord National Harbor Resort & Convention Center, 201 Waterfront Street in Oxon Hill, MD 20745. 

Under the theme, “United in Sisterhood, Anchored in Legacy: Celebrating 118 Years,” accomplished actor and stage director Phylicia Rashad, a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, was the speaker at the brunch program. Danette Anthony Reed, International President & CEO of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated®, Charletta Wilson Jacks, First Vice President of the sorority, also participated in the program.

A service project in partnership with Greater DC Diaper Bank, themed Women Supporting Women—One Essential at a Time,” was the key focus of the Founders’ Day event. AKA members from the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia joined in a collective effort to provide essential supplies for vulnerable families who are supported by two Diaper Bank programs: The Baby Pantry and The Monthly. Sorority members donated items, such as diapers, pacifiers and breast pumps to The Baby Pantry, and menstrual products to The Monthly. 

According to Liz Schurgin, executive director of the Greater DC Diaper Bank, “We are so grateful for these donations. Now, more than ever our families need it. Over half the families in our region are struggling to access the diapers they need to keep their children healthy and dry. It is especially important that we start the year off with so much generosity,” said Schurgin. “This drive is historic for us in receiving donated items in-kind from a non-corporate community partner.”

“Gathering as sisters 118 years after Alpha Kappa Alpha’s founding at Howard University is a powerful testament to how we continue to advance our timeless mission to provide ‘Service to All Mankind,’” stated Spearman. “Through the critical act of collecting items that nurture and uplift our community, we honor our founders’ vision and reaffirm our commitment to caring for those who need us most.”                                                                 

“Service is the heartbeat of Alpha Kappa Alpha, and our members consistently rise to meet the needs of women and children with extraordinary compassion,” said Stewart. “By giving generously, we not only provide essential resources for families today—we honor 118 years of a proud legacy rooted in uplifting our communities locally and across the globe. This is who we are, and this is the enduring impact of our founders’ vision.”

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated ® (AKA), an international service organization, was founded on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 1908. It is the oldest Greek-letter organization established by African American college-educated women. The sorority is comprised of more than 390,000 initiated members in more than 1,105 graduate and undergraduate chapters located in 14 nations and territories including the United States, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, Germany, Japan, Liberia, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, South Korea, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Led by International President & CEO Danette Anthony Reed of Dallas, Texas, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, often is hailed as “America’s premier Greek-letter organization for African American women.”