Names: Anne Marie Parnell and Charlotte Kornegay
Majors: Parnell is studying Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting and Kornegay is majoring in Communication Studies, hoping to focus on Public Relations.
Years: Both are Juniors
Hometowns: Parnell is from Parkton, NC and Kornegay is from Goldsboro, NC
Parnell poses after winning the title of Mrs. Greek and money for her sororities philanthropy.
Kornegay in front of The White House in Washington D.C.
Anne Marie Parnell and Charlotte Kornegay, of Alpha Chi Omega and Alpha Phi respectively, participated in UNCW sorority Alpha Gamma Delta’s annual Mr. & Mrs. Greek Pageant and tied for the title of Mrs. Greek.
HC: What sorority are you in?
Anne Marie Parnell (AMP): I am in Alpha Chi Omega.
Charlotte Kornegay (CK): I am a member of Alpha Phi, the Eta Xi Chapter.
HC: Do you hold any positions in your sorority? If so, explain what you do.
AMP: This past year I have served on the executive board as the Vice President for New Member Education. I also have recently been elected as the Assistant Vice President for Finance and Junior for the upcoming year.
CK: I am currently Director of Formal Recruitment. This past recruitment process I assisted our Vice President of Membership Recruitment and made sure that our formal process went smoothly and efficiently. I also have been the Director of Continuous Open Bidding. My term is coming to a close within the next week so I’m eager for another position where I can help better our chapter and stay as involved as I can be.
HC: What is the Mr. & Mrs. Greek Pageant?
AMP: The Mr. & Mrs. Greek pageant is an event put on by the ladies of Alpha Gamma Delta to benefit their philanthropy, the American Diabetes Association. Representatives from each sorority and fraternity compete in friendly competition to become the next Mr. and Mrs. Greek.
HC: What are the different aspects to the pageant?
CK: There was an onstage question, talent, and Halloween costume portions. It was a lot of fun having to stay quiet with the rest of the contestants backstage.
HC: What was your talent and your costume?
AMP: For my talent I played the guitar and sang “Oh Atlanta” by Alison Krauss–one of my favorite songs–and for my costume I dressed up as a birthday present and wore a gift bag, a lot of tissue paper, and bows.
CK: For my talent I sang “A Broken Wing” by Martina McBride. That is probably one of my favorite songs to perform because it is so powerful. I also just really love Martina McBride. And for my Halloween costume I decided to dress up as Leslie Knope from “Parks and Recreation.” That show has been my recent Netflix obsession.
HC: Was there a charitable aspect to the pageant?
CK: Yes, there was! Not only did Alpha Gamma Delta raise money for their own philanthropy, but the winners were to receive $100 for their chapter’s philanthropy as well. The people’s choice winner also received $50 for their philanthropy.
AMP: All ticket sales benefited the American Diabetes Association and they donated 50 dollars to Alpha Chi Omega’s philanthropy, which is about domestic violence awareness, since I won the title of Mrs. Greek!
HC: What philanthropy is your sorority currently working on?
CK: Alpha Phi’s philanthropy is the Alpha Phi Foundation. We target Cardiac Care as a whole for men and women. We just had our Phifa Soccer Tournament which was very successful. We are very grateful for the people who came out and participated and helped us raise money for the Alpha Phi Foundation. Keep an eye out for our upcoming events next semester. I’m very excited about our Red Dress Gala!
AMP: As an Alpha Chi Omega, I support domestic violence awareness. We just had our signature philanthropy event, Lyre Fest, where we raised nearly 4,000 dollars for our local domestic violence shelter, The Open Gate.
HC: What does it mean to you to have won the title of Mrs. Greek?
CK: I was really excited! I have competed in pageants before and always loved it. It’s especially fun when you win! I’m also just very happy that I was able to not only help the wonderful sisters of Alpha Gamma Delta but I’m also excited that I was able to help Alpha Phi win money so we could do even more with our Philanthropy this school year. I was happy that my chapter nominated me to represent them this year!
AMP: I was super excited and shocked to have won the title of Mrs. Greek! I think that the Mr. & Mrs. Greek pageant is a great opportunity to shed positive light on Greek life. We have the opportunity to show our peers that members of the Greek community at UNCW are talented and intelligent individuals. I am extremely proud to not only represent Alpha Chi Omega as Mrs. Greek, but UNCW Greek life as a whole.
Photos courtesy of Charlotte Kornegay and Anne Marie Parnell.