QUARTERS Remembering theReason Joining KA on Johnson Street

Sixty+ Years Of KA & Gamma Phi Brotherhood

On August 14, 2022, six KAs, each one particularly involved in the early leadership of Gamma Phi Chapter at the University of Louisiana, Lafayette, gathered at Bowling Green Hunting Club outside of Woodville, Mississippi, to share good food, fine wine, and fond memories of their college days together more than 60 years prior. It was a unique experience to spend three days together in an isolated environment with no distractions other than each other.

It was a fun and relaxing time to be with a group of brothers who all lived together in the original fraternity house at 1109 Johnson Street, Lafayette, Louisiana. That chapter house was originally the home of

Alpha Sigma Kappa, our local fraternity, and then the first home of Gamma Phi Chapter. The house was the headquarters and home for establishing KA in Lafayette.

There were many stories (most of them fairly accurate, but all very nostalgic) about those early days when one of the main objectives was to establish a favorable image of the newest national fraternity on our campus, Gamma Phi Chapter of Kappa Alpha Order. The six of us gathered were so thankful for our long lives and the ability to still get together. Importantly also, we were thankful for KA in creating the common bond of brotherhood that has remained over the decades.

Early leaders of Gamma Phi attending were:

Ron Phillips

(Gamma Phi–Louisiana-Lafayette ʹ60), a retired banker, CPA & CFO, our host and first President of Alpha Sigma Kappa in 1959/60. Ron organized the petition to become a chapter of the Order.

Fred Aultman

(Gamma Phi–Louisiana-Lafayette ʹ60), a retired U.S. Air Force Colonel, and Gamma Phi’s second Number I, following the late Bruce Arceneaux the first Number I in 1960;

Dick Domico

(Gamma Phi–Louisiana-Lafayette ʹ60), a successful New Orleans–area Realtor;

Ken Ardoin

(Gamma Phi–Louisiana-Lafayette ʹ60), who retired as an executive from Pfizer after 42 years;

Corky Perret

(Gamma Phi–Louisiana-Lafayette 60), a Marine Biologist who retired as Deputy Director of Mississippi Department of Marine Resources;

Max Merrick (Gamma Phi–Louisiana-Lafayette 60), retired owner of Merrick Construction Co.