The Founders of Sigma Alpha Iota
Minnie Davis Sherrill was the first President of SAI. She was an accomplished pianist and a member of the faculty at the University of Michigan. She served two terms each as National President and National Corresponding Secretary. Sherrill was the last of the founders to pass away, on February 12th, 1972. She was 100 years old!
Elizabeth Campbell's motto was "ready to serve." And serve she did, as the Vice President of the Alpha chapter. Throughout the years, she had served a term in almost every office by the time she was National President. She was a voice teacher at the University of Michigan, and was present at the installation of the Beta chapter at Northwestern University. She passed away on September 18th, 1949.
Frances Caspari was the first treasurer of SAI. She was a soloist and concert artist in New York and Detroit, and became a first soprano of the Choral Union at the University of Michigan. She sang at Carnegie Hall, and maintained studios in Ann Arbor and Detroit. She passed away on December 15th, 1948.
Leila Farlin Laughlin was a graduate who returned to the Univeristy of Ann Arbor to teach voice for seven years. She also served as the head of the vocal department at the Pennslyvania Normal College in Indiana, PA. She also served as the National Treasurer. She was the first break in the "bond of seven", and passed away at a young age on December 6th, 1921.
Nora Crane Hunt was a contralto who taught at the University of Michigan for 38 years. Even after her retirement, she served as Alumni Secretary of the School of Music. She had a great sense of pride in SAI and carried an alluring presence, which brought her to be jokingly known as the "longest of the seven pipes of Pan." In 1958, a residence hall for women was named after her. She passed away on November 14th, 1949.
Georgina Potts recieved an Artists Diploma in 1903. She lived in Toledo, where she was active in the Toledo Piano Teachers Association. Her dedication was so strong that she commuted to Ann Arbor from Toledo for classes! Although she went blind in her later years, she maintained a reputation for being an accomplished pianist who relied on her memory to make music. She passed away on February 2nd, 1972.
Mary Storrs Andersen studied voice at the University of Michigan and went on to study and teach in Berlin. While there, she met and married her theory teacher, Arthur Olaf Andersen, and became the only founder to have children. One of her daughters even became a patroness member! She affiliated with the Gamma Chapter in Chicago until her death on November 25th, 1946.
Delta Lambda Chapter - Eta A Province
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