Girls with makeup covered faces and crimped hair anxiously wait for their name to be called. Relief fills their hearts as they stand to receive a rose and to unite them with their sisters.

The annual Rosebuds Garden Club initiation dinner occurred Oct. 23 at the Texarkana Waterall Building. This was the first time the new members gathered with the entire group.

“It was fun dressing up, eating dinner and bonding with my friends and everyone else in the club,” sophomore Candra Thompson said. “I am so excited for the activities we get to do with our sisters.”

At the dinner, new members learned who their big sister and family was and spent time getting to know each other.

“I love the initiation dinner because it’s the first time we all get together as a club and everyone gets to meet their families,” President Meredith Maynard said. “We do family style groups where the juniors choose one or two sophomores to be their little sister and it creates families.

The sophomores each year anticipate the moment, while upperclassmen also look forward to gaining new family members.

“I was really happy that I was close with my big sister already,” sophomore Bailey Groom said. “I am excited about making memories with the big sister that I got. It was a very memorable night. ”

Not only does the group offer fun activities and volunteer opportunities, but Rosebuds also has positive long term benefits.

“It’s important that we have the dinner because it introduces all the juniors and sophomores to their sisters,” Maynard said. “It allows us to have a formal dinner with other young women to socialize and get a start on everything we will do to help improve the rest of their lives.”