Winter 2017
CHAPTER UPDATE Breaking News! The Supreme Council has authorized a temporary suspension of chapter and colony social activities with events that include alcohol. This moratorium allows the organization to pause and gather both research and feedback that will help us move forward and reaffirm our support of other Greek-letter organizations. The temporary suspension period begins on Monday, December 4, 2017, and will end on Monday, February 28, 2018.
CHAPTER OFFICERS Eminent Archon Bernard Neil Herbkersman ‘19 bernardh@email.sc.edu
Eminent Deputy Archon Thomas Drake DiBona ‘19 tdibona@email.sc.edu
Eminent Chaplain John Livingston Ayers Kelly ‘18 jlkelly@email.sc.edu
Eminent Herald Thomas Boyd Lister ‘19 tlister@email.sc.edu
Eminent Recorder Luke Allsbrook Rankin ‘20 lrankin@email.sc.edu
Eminent Treasurer Benjamin Jay Hoopes ‘18 bhoopes@email.sc.edu
Eminent Warden Christopher Raymond Kraft ‘18 ckraft@email.sc.edu
Eminent Warden Zachary Benjamin Smith ‘18 zbsmith@email.sc.edu
President, Housing Corp. Courtney Leavitt ‘00 clgamecock@gmail.com
Delta Drummer
ALUMNI REPORT 6 Great Reasons to Renew Your Participation with SC Delta This Year Alumni Association Offers Plenty of Ways to Uphold Your Connections and Enhance Your SAE Experience We’ve recently launched an enhanced alumni program, which will be driven by frequent publication of the Delta Drummer newsletter and our new online community, www. sigmaalphaepsilon.info. We are counting on you to make our program a continued success. There are plenty of reasons to maintain your connections with SC Delta Chapter after graduation, and we thank the brothers who have remained active in their alumni years. For those of you who may have fallen away from the fraternity, we’ve compiled 6 great reasons to make this the year you renew your commitment to SAE. 1. We are the backbone for our future active chapter. It is critical that our alumni bond together to form a unified, solid base for SC Delta in 2019 and 2020. The newest members of our fraternity will look to us to set an example of what it means to be a true gentleman. 2. The SAE experience doesn’t end with graduation. Membership in SC Delta is for life, and there are plenty of ways to stay involved: through alumni events, by serving as a volunteer, by actively participating in our alumni program, and, most importantly, by providing financial support to the annual fund. 3. We have a unique legacy to maintain. We are fortunate to have a rich history and special traditions. If you were SC Delta during your college years, you are part of a
single brotherhood that is bonded together by a core set of values and principles. 4. We developed a new way for you to connect throughout the year. Check out our new alumni web site, www.sigmaalphaepsilon. info, where you can read the latest chapter news, find event details, and reconnect with old friends. Be sure to sign up for our monthly eLetter! 5. You have a lifelong network of brothers. Find contact information for your fellow SC Delta brothers at www.sigmaalphaepsilon.info, and connect with them for job networking opportunities, to renew old friendships, to find brothers in your area, and more. 6. You’re the key to our past and the link to our future. As a thriving alumni association, we boast generations of brothers that have contributed to our rich history. We have collectively preserved traditions, enriched lives of young men, and kept a thriving organization going strong at South Carolina for years. You have a unique place in that history, and are asked to maintain your connections to pay it forward for future generations. We have lots or reasons to maintain our connections to SAE in our alumni years. If you haven’t been involved recently, we personally invite you to renew your participation this year. As you can see, there’s no reason not to.
Visit us on the web at www.sigmaalphaepsilon.info
1
ALUMNI UPDATES News & Notes from SC Delta Brothers Jack Kaneft ’51 (jackjr@ colonialpackaging.com) is Chairman
Emeritus of Colonial Packaging Group in Columbia. Jack began helping son Bill shortly after the company started and has stuck around ever since. He believes the company’s strengths are its customers and employees. Now a strong office force and warehousing group makes travel across the entire Southeastern United States possible, Jack says. “We’ve come a long way. We’re most thankful for the people — they are the reasons why Colonial has been such a success and why we’ve been in business 30 years.” So why doesn’t Jack retire and watch Colonial flourish from afar? He says if we want to live a full live, we should stay active and productive as long as we can. “I wouldn’t stop for anything,” he adds. In 2007, a few years after 83-year-old Jack Kaneft’s wife of 54 years, Mary Anne “Cap,” died of cancer, he decided to pursue an interest in art. His inspiration was not just a life-long fascination with drawing and painting, but one particular artist. Betty Kornegay, 78, lost Jack, her husband of 47 years, in the 2004 ice storm that paralyzed Columbia. The couples had known each other for many years through church, their sons were good friends, and Cap and Jack Kornegay had even served on a committee together. After her first husband’s death, Betty began giving adult art classes, and although she says she wasn’t interested in a late-in-life relationship, she allowed Jack Kaneft into her class. “It was all ladies in the classes – and me,” he laughs. She says he was a challenging student, but he charmed her. “She told me that if I didn’t start blending colors, she would get me a box of crayons,” he says. And so he learned to blend colors and inched his way into her life. Betty and Jack Kaneft decided to marry. They moved into the home she purchased next door to her son after her first husband died. There, they each have their own art 2
studio space. He has learned to “blend colors” to such an extent that 701 Whaley asked the couple to present their work at a husband and wife show in the community art gallery this past summer. All but two of the 40 pieces sold, with proceeds going to Savannah College of Art and Design’s Reformed University Fellowship, where Betty’s granddaughter serves. Dr. Bob Vaught ’86 (orthobob7@aol. com) attended the University of South Carolina on an athletic scholarship for springboard diving, and graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology. He earned his Doctor of Dental Medicine degree from the Medical University of South Carolina, and completed his advanced post-graduate residency in orthodontics at Saint Louis University, where he earned his Master of Science Degree in Dentistry and was honored as Valedictorian of his class. Bob is a board-certified Diplomate of the American Board of Orthodontics, a published author, and an active member in many leading dental organizations. Bob’s commitment to the future of the dental profession and the specialty of orthodontics has been significant. He is a past president of the Georgia Association of Orthodontists, the Savannah Dental Society, and the Southeastern District Dental Society. Bob’s contributions to the profession in Georgia have been recognized with Honorable Fellowship in the Georgia Dental Association, where he has served on the Board of Trustees, as a member of the House of Delegates, and as a founding board
member of the Georgia Dental Insurance Service. Bob and his wife, Kathy, have been married nearly 25 years and are the devoted parents of three children, Kate, Robert, and Will. His hobbies keep him outdoors. He can often be found in the woods hunting with his boys, or on the water, where he is an avid saltwater fly fisherman. Cravens Ravenel ’63 (cravenel@brblegal. com) is an attorney with the firm of Baker, Ravenel & Bender, LLP in Columbia. He began practicing law in 1970 after service in the U.S. Marine Corps and several years as a school teacher. He has been listed by his peers in The Best Lawyers in America and Super Lawyers in the field of personal injury litigation and as a “Top Lawyer” in Corporate Counsel for 2010. He is active in promoting and safeguarding the legal profession and served on and as Chairman of the South Carolina Supreme Court’s Committee on Character and Fitness for 15 years. Away from the practice of law, he has served as a volunteer board member and past president/chairman of the Midlands Commission on the Homeless and the South Carolina Episcopal Home at Still Hopes. He has also served as a board member with the Columbia Christian Action Counsel and the Columbia Community Relations Council. He graduated from Carolina with degree in History.
Visit us on the web at www.sigmaalphaepsilon.info
Connect!
Get all the latest news and updates www.sigmaalphaepsilon.info
Winter 2017
ALUMNI EVENT 135th Anniversary Reunion – 70’s & 80’s SC Delta alums from the 70’s and 80’s gathered on Friday, Nov. 10, 2017 for a 135th Anniversary Reunion. The event was a pig pickin’ and oyster roast, held at the Pine Tree Hunt Club in Columbia, SC. We wanted to share some pictures from the event. Let us know if you have any additional pictures from this or any other SC Delta event by visiting www.sigmaalphaepsilon.info and submitting an update to the alumni updates section.
SHARE A STORY! Why did you join SAE as an undergrad? _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Tell us about a lifelong friendship you’ve maintained thanks to the fraternity. _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Have you recently reunited with any fellow brothers? Share the story and pictures. _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What is your funniest or fondest memory? Do you have any good pictures to share from your college days? _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What’s new in your life today? _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mail this form to:
Please include pictures! Name: _________________________________________________ Grad Year: ______________________________________________ Email Address: __________________________________________ Delta Drummer
SAE at South Carolina U. Alumni Relations Office, PO Box 7007, Albert Lea, MN 56007-8007 Your responses may be published in an upcoming newsletter.
Visit us on the web at www.sigmaalphaepsilon.info
3
In this issue of the Delta Drummer….
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID State College, Pa. Permit No. 2
• 6 Great Reasons to Renew Your Fraternity Participation! • 135th Anniversary Reunion Update • From the Archives…
2569-031
NEW ALUMNI PROGRAM 101 Got Questions? We’ve Got the Answers Here Q: Why should I get involved with this new program? A: See page 1 for 6 great reasons.
Q: Why is my mailing coming from Albert Lea, MN, and why are you asking me to send donations and correspondence there? A: We’ve partnered with a third party marketing firm, which specializes in fraternity alumni relations programs for chapters across the country. They operate a secure database and donation processing center in Albert Lea, MN, ensuring that your private data and donation information remains secure. Q: What are my financial contributions used for? A: We rely heavily on your donations to help fund the operation budget for our new
program (printing and postage, web hosting, etc.), as well as for frequent alumni events and upkeep for the chapter house.
Q: How can I get involved? A: The biggest way right now is to update your email address so that we can keep in touch with you throughout the year. You can do so at www.sigmaalphaepsilon.info, by using the enclosed form, or by emailing alumninews@affinityconnection.com. Have additional questions? Direct them to alumninews@affintiyconnection.com or John Stringfellow at johnnstringfellow@gmail.com.
FROM THE ARCHIVES Throwback to 1991 We love coming across great old photos from our chapter’s history, like this one from the chapter Facebook page. Can any brothers pictured share some of their best memories from the early 90’s? Alumni from ALL eras are encouraged to share their best SAE pictures and stories on our website, www.sigmaalphaepsilon.info.
4
Visit us on the web at www.sigmaalphaepsilon.info
Winter 2017