SSU Delight Ministries Brings 70+ Women Together

Victoria Reffit, Staff Reporter

A new campus organization, Delight Ministries, opened its doors this semester on Monday, Sept. 9 to all Shawnee State women. SSU Delight plans to meet weekly on Mondays at 8 PM in the Administrative Annex building, where the first of many meetings were held this past Monday night. The doors opened at 7 PM and the meeting began at 8 PM. They referred to this first meeting as a “Kick Off Party” to start the semester. This new organization seems to be starting off well, with over 70 Shawnee State women attending the first meeting.

Many may be wondering what Delight Ministries is. According to the SSU Delight Ministries Team Director, Taylor McQuay, “Delightis a national organization that is in over 150 college campuses in the United States. It is a faith-based ministry that focuses on bringing college aged women into a welcoming and Christ-centered community where girls can take a break from the stresses of school and life.”

There seems to be much happening at Delight meetings. At Delight’s “Kick Off Party”, the girls began with friendly conversation and a variety of snacks and beverages. Once everyone settled in, the meeting officially began around 8:15 PM. Regional Director, Hope Mitchell, lead them in prayer to start the meeting. They then transitioned into playing interactive icebreaker games. Autumn Lewis, admin of SSU Delight Social Media stated, “When girls have light-hearted fun together, it allows conversation exchanges to be less awkward and helps them make connections with each other.”

After the games, Lewis told how Delight was started at Shawnee State. “I just felt like something was missing from Shawnee’s campus, but I didn’t know what. So, when I found out about Delight and learned about the Christ-centered community it offered, I knew I had to start a chapter at Shawnee State.” Lewis first discovered Delight from an advertisement on Instagram and began filing the paperwork to create the group for Shawnee.

“The Kickoff Party is meant to be light-hearted and a place for all the new and returning girls to get to know each other. During our typical weekly meetings, we will all be doing a wonderful devotional together to grow in our faith and our relationships with each other,” said Lewis. They plan to start the devotionals next Monday.

To end the meeting, the Delight Leadership Team drew names for over 20 different prizes, such as Delight books, goodie baskets, gift cards and more. Each girl who attended left with some snacks, a button and a Delight bookmark.

Not only did the group have a successful turn out, but those who attended seemed to enjoy the experience. “My favorite part of the Kickoff Party was how well everyone got along and connected! I loved the atmosphere because it was very welcoming” said first-time Delight attendee, Emily Howard. Freshman and first-time attendee, Callie Link, describes how she discovered SSU Delight,“I heard about Delight through another freshman and I also saw their booth at Weekend of Welcome. I loved how bright, passionate and excited all the girls were!” Howard and Link met for the first time at the Kickoff Party and hope to continue to grow their friendship there.

McQuay says, “Delightis more than just an organization, it truly is like a close-knit family of women who can do life together no matter how crazy and messy it can get sometimes.” In order to be a part of the group, McQuay says, “You just have to show up to the meetings, you can come to as many or as few as you want. Our doors are open to all women on and off campus!” Contact Autumn Lewis, Delight Social Media admin, for more information on the group or how to join.