The Decades Editions: 1990s Heidi Berday

Welcome to the fourth installment of The Decades Edition for AXO Omega Alumnae. The Decades Edition is an ongoing series in which Sigma Psi Sigma, the virtual AXO Omega Alumnae Chapter, profiles alumnae from different decades. Check out these other AXO Omega Decades Editions: 1960s, 1970s, 1980s

Each profile celebrates an inspirational and energizing sister. We hope these profiles inspire you to connect with an AXO Omega sister or two.

Say Hello to Heidi Berday MC1990

Let's do it. Those are the words that ultimately appeared on my phone screen after texting Heidi a few times. I asked her to be the profile for the 1990s Decade Edition, and she was in! She was concise and to the point—just like our dear Omega sister.

The Surprise

Heidi headed to Washington State University from Redmond, WA, in the Fall of 1988. As a high school athlete and ASB vice president in high school, she was uncertain if sorority life would be a fit. She moved into Regents dorm, and it turns out that dorm life brought her Alpha Chi Omega.

While living in the dorms her first year, Heidi became friends with newly pledged AXO sister Marcie (Fauske) Cain. Their friendship led Heidi to participate in recruitment, where she found the Omega chapter to be a good fit. She met a peer group of sisters with diverse personalities and backgrounds she felt could help her grow. Thirty-five years later, those bonds from the chapter house at 735 NE Monroe are the source of her most cherished friendships she has kept close to her heart over the years.

Heidi loved being an active AXO member. As Omega's Communications VP, she planned events, various communications, and news releases (no blogs yet ). She used her artistic talents to design lots of event swag for the AXO dances, parents' weekends, cruises, and fundraisers. She was the AXO QB for the Omega team that won the championship in the 1989 Lamba Chi Alpha Watermelon Bust powder puff tournament. (Young Alums - Ask an older Omega alum about Watermelon Bust or Waterbust). The tournament included 12 sororities and the AXO team was coached by the fraternity coaching staff.

When she wasn't at AXO, Heidi played club soccer for WSU, golfed at Palouse Ridge, and enjoyed co-ed intramural basketball and volleyball.

Heidi parlayed her experience in sports into a one-of-a-kind internship during the summer before her senior year. She interned for Football Hall of Fame inductee and Seahawk legend Kenny Easley. She worked the PGA golf circuit with his golf equipment company and his Seattle sports agency with local pro-athlete clientele.

A New Kind of Career

After graduating from WSU with a Public Relations degree, Heidi returned to Seattle and looked for a temporary job. She landed a gig at an up-and-coming mid-size company. Its name was Microsoft.

In her 30+ years at Microsoft, Heidi credits her natural STEM capabilities, adaptability, and competitive nature to her longevity in tech. From being the keeper of Bill Gates's mobile phone in the early 1990s to leading product development on sophisticated software cloud services and AI today, she loves the constant growth. The ability to have been on the teams responsible for Windows, MacOffice, Office365, Azure and the launch of the cloud services for Microsoft in China were all unique opportunities that no one could have imagined when she was in college.

Family and Fun

While still at WSU, Heidi met a Delta Tau Delta, Doug, who began dating and subsequently married in 1994. They celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary and became first-time grandparents, as one of their two daughters gave birth to a beautiful baby girl in April. Both of her daughters attended WSU; one will start as a middle school teacher this week in Las Vegas, and the other will graduate from UNLV School of Dental Medicine as a DDS this May, so she looks forward to more chapters of continuing to Seek the Heights in life.

Heidi looks forward to CFS in the fall and time with the AXO Sisters, be it at a local winery, a WSU Football Game on the road, or a fabulous destination. As Heidi put in a recent social media post, "It's always a good time with AXO sisters! "

Look for events and outings with the 90s alumni—all are welcome!

Heidi Berday – We are proud to call you Sister!