When talking to Panhellenic women during recruitment, the number one thing I mentioned when asked what I was looking for was real, authentic friendships. Going through recruitment, the phrase "find your people" is constantly thrown around, as someone who was coming from out of state, not really knowing anyone at UF, I wasn't entirely sure this was possible. Never could I have imagined that "my people" was the girl standing in line behind me again and again as I went from house to house. Having stood next to each other at multiple houses, it was only fate that Shayna Cohon and I started talking. When I saw her under the Alpha Epsilon Phi tent before prefs, I just knew that there was a reason we were going through this together. Low and behold the girl that I sat next to during prefs and the first person I found on Bid Day became my person, best friend, and future roommate. But it doesn't end there. The night before my 19th birthday, I met another girl at dinner and we decided to hang out. From that night on, Sophie Sokolik, Shayna, and I were inseparable. And it just so happen that the one girl from my hometown who decided to go to UF, Annakah Smolensky, also went Alpha Epsilon Phi. While we were friends before college, being sorority sisters brought us closer than I ever could have imagined. In a few short months, these three girls will be my roommates. Moving so far from home, I had no idea what my college experience would look like or if I would ever find those college friends that you always hear about. I wish I could tell myself a year ago not to worry because the friendships I have made are ones I know will last far beyond the four years I spend at UF. I have truly found my people in Alpha Epsilon Phi and Panhellenic.
With Love,
Lexy Cohen