The mission statement set the standard for the Bronze Beauties from the day the student club was founded, April 1, 2016.
It’s “to bring forth positive self identity, development to the women of EMU’s campus while providing community outreach to people of all walks of life,” club President DeShaia Ventour said.
Club members said they take pride in the strength of their sisterhood.
Along with social events, Bronze Beauties, a student club at Eastern Michigan University, participates in volunteer events both on campus and in the Ypsilanti community.
“We’ve done Blessing Bags; we give out hygiene bags to different places and across shelters in Washtenaw County,” Ventour said. “A lot of our events are mainly social, but we have the community outreach aspect as well.”
Members have the opportunity to be on committees and help plan events, whether it strictly be Bronze Beauties events or collaboration events with other organizations on campus.
A prominent aspect of Bronze Beauties is the balance between focusing on the community and building relationships among the members. The club does not strictly serve as a way to volunteer within the community, but it also serves as a safe space for women to come together and relax and vent about school or any issues they might have.
“Our club brings attention and awareness to having a sisterhood and also doing community service in our university and the Ypsilanti community,” Anya Fuller said. Fuller serves as vice president and social chair of Bronze Beauties.
The impact of Bronze Beauties' sisterhood can be seen among its current members as well as alumni who often make an appearance at events.
“Once you in BB, you’re forever in BB,” Ventour said.
At the beginning of each year, the club holds an informational program where prospective members can learn about the club and get to know its current members and enjoy some delicious snacks. The welcoming atmosphere is what drew Ventour and Fuller to Bronze Beauties. They both were looking for ways to be involved in campus life as well as wanting to make the most of their college experiences.
“I was looking on Eagle Sync, and I thought Bronze Beauties stood out by their mission statement,” Fuller said. “I connected with them quickly.”
Ventour and Fuller express that many of their favorite events have been the ones that were collaborations with other organizations on campus. Fuller’s favorite is Aux Wars where Bronze Beauties hosted different organizations to perform different songs.
“We had different song categories, and each organization had to pick a different song pertaining to that category,” Fuller said.
While Ventour said she loved that event as well, one of her favorites was Dip Wars.
“Dip Wars was between the four main female-based organizations on campus," including Project Big Sister, You Beautiful Black Women, and I am P.I.N.K, Ventour said. It is a friendly cooking competition to bring unity among Black women on campus.
Aside from being a fun way to bring the organizations together, Dip Wars also served as a fundraiser. People were able to come in and pay $1 to each organization and try their dip.
Every year on April 1, the club has a Founder's Day brunch, to honor those who started the club and providing a chance to reflect on its progression over the years.
“I think the founders would be proud of the progression from back when they started in 2016 till now in 2023,” Fuller said.
Although many aspects of Bronze Beauties have stayed the same, such as bylaws, the mission statement, and the core events, new faces make the events that much better.
With so many events and opportunities, club members could easily be swept up in the hustle and bustle. However, Bronze Beauties works to maintain a balance between work and play.
“We equally balance all of it. Between our bondings and community service while still doing our philanthropy posts and everything,” Ventour said. “We do study tables sometimes, get our homework done before we go out. We are a fun group!”
Fuller said the club welcomes new members and works to make them feel comfortable.
“We don’t want them to feel like they are in it just to be in it,” Fuller said. “We want them to know that they have a voice and can add to the organization.”
