The Orange Baton: Winter and Spring 2014

Volume IV, Issue II and III

Publishing Chair: Sarah Montague with the help of Amy Hodges

♥

Theta Alumnus and Life Member

Bob Schapper, Life Member

Your experiences with the Theta Chapter My experiences with Theta Chapter go back to 1966. Back then, we didn’t pay attention to rituals or anything that dealt with the district or national, but we did know how to serve the band – mostly because our director needed us. I was asked to be the secretary of the chapter. This turned out to have more responsibilities than I could have realized. When our director died, I was expected to write an article for the Podium and help arrange for a memorial plaque. Unfortunately, our chapter never adjusted to the needs of our new director and we went inactive – something that I took too personally.

Fortunately, when the chapter began its process of reactivation some 37 years later, my wife and I had moved within a reasonably short trip to campus. Since reactivation in 2009, it’s been my pleasure to work with many new members of Theta.

What the Anniversary Banquet meant to you Having a well-organized, well-attended banquet to celebrate 50 years of Theta service to the OSU band program was very special. But more impressive than the event itself, are all the KKPsi members that participated. I’ve long been impressed with the character of the members of Theta chapter, but the chapter’s 100% commitment to put the banquet together is such a detailed fashion just deepens my respect for each one of the members. Also, the fact that we had so many guests from other chapters was very moving and extends my respect to KKPsi members outside Theta.

The importance of keeping chapter history recorded I honestly believe that our chapter could have avoided going inactive in 1972 if we had had an understanding of chapter’s wonderful history. For around 20 years our chapter had no sense of service or at most a very limited sense of service. It’s not a surprise that we went inactive. If we had known that 50 years earlier the chapter had sponsored the first state high school band contest and had managed week-long tours throughout the state, and had known that chapter sponsorship had continued for 20 years, we could have seen options and choices that we didn’t know we had.

Any post-event thoughts I was nearly overwhelmed by the banquet. I wish more alumni could have made to the event. It would be hard to believe that anyone could leave our banquet without positive feelings about the members of this new generation of KKPsi members.

WIND ENSEMBLE TOUR Danny Mitchell, Zeta Class Over the course of two days and one night, the Wind Ensemble got the opportunity to go on tour to Chehalis, Washington to perform a concert with the W.F. West High School Wind Ensemble.

The best part about putting on a concert with this ensemble was that we got to see Adam Campagna, an Oregon State Alumni, and new Honorary Member, in action. It is so amazing to see members of the Chapter, active or not, out in their element and to see the great things that they are doing.

After an outstanding concert, we stayed the night at the Great Wolf Lodge near Chehalis for a fun evening—although I was never able to play their MagiQuest interactive adventure‌ The following morning, the OSU Wind Ensemble gave an ensemble clinic to the members of the Beaverton High School Wind Ensemble. This was a really great experience for everyone, not only because we were able to help the students become better musicians, but we also were able to physically witness the wonderful contributions that high school students are making to music. It is always great to see the wonderful works that music has to offer and it makes me smile to see all of the great qualities, exactly like the ones in KKPsi, which each student has when they make music!

OSU SAXOPHONE QUARTET Tim Chase, Theta Class I transferred to Oregon State as a junior this year and rapidly found myself involved in multiple ensembles. One of the most beneficial groups was the saxophone quartet. In the past, I have rehearsed and performed one piece at a time for a concert in a saxophone quartet, but this was the first time I had the pleasure of working on an entire set of repertoire with three other great musicians. When I first took my seat in this section, I knew I would not be able to simply breeze through my music. If I was going to measure up, I would need to invest and work hard. That fact was most true in the saxophone quartet. Since there are only four parts, everything I played was exposed. There was nowhere to hide, and I had to practice the difficult portions of the music so that I wouldn't stick out in my magnificent section. We worked up a fifty minute set list of tunes ranging from a tango to modern funk and swing.

Not only did I learn to be responsible for my part as an individual, but our section as a whole plays together so much better now as a result. If I hear one of my section members practicing in a different room, I know that it's them because I recognize their voices. One of the biggest ways being at Oregon State has changed me as a musician is by the fact that I am surrounded by so many incredible musicians. It isn't like high school any more where I could get by or excel, without significant practice time. Now I spend every day in groups of musicians who I am honored to make music with and am constantly challenged by. They challenge me with their work ethic, artistry and dedication. Every ensemble I have the privilege of performing in makes me better, and I'm grateful.

Running for District Office Don Jahne, Eta Class Running to be the Western District Member-at-Large was easily the most stressful, intense, and worrisome process that I have ever been through, but it has also been the most rewarding and beneficial ordeal I have faced. I received enumerable support from Brothers both inside and outside of Theta. I created lasting bonds with Brothers that I will never forget. Most importantly, I found out who will be there for me when I most need them.

My journey began back at DLC 2014 in Seattle, Washington. The month before, I had been at Wagon States Days and met so many new Brothers from Gamma, and was excited to see what DLC would be like. I was surprised to see how far people are willing to travel for the sake of brotherhood and sisterhood. It was astounding.

At DLC, I attended some workshops. These ranged from discussing the role of a Big Brother to determining how to survive a plane crash in the Arizona desert. (Thanks Beta Omicron, Gamma Kappa, and Omega. Without you this Northwestern boy would have been hypothetical buzzard food.)

After diving into various aspects of the fraternity in these workshops, I met a handful of other Vice Presidents of Service across the district. Once we discovered that group of us were all service chairs we started to talk about service. These small chats combined with the service ad hock committee made me realize that we were all jumping through the same hoops when an obstacle came up. At this point I decided I wanted to do something, I just didn’t know what.

It wasn’t until we discussed in a separate session the constitutional definitions of each district office that I had even thought about running. On a semi-long car ride back to Portland, I bounced ideas back and forth with Stephen, Geoff, and Sarah and came to the conclusion that through the office of Member-at-Large, I could best address the lack of communication between Vice Presidents of Service. I saw an issue, I saw a solution, and I sought out to pursue the solution.

I quickly gathered the list of tasks I needed to complete and compile into my packet. First thing first, I needed to make a KKΨ resume. Believe it or not, I believe this was one of the most important parts of the packet process for me. Stating my objectives and qualifications helped me to truly get in the right mind set: this is something I am doing, it is my objective, and this is why.

Once I had that completed, (with help editing from Greg Urban and Stephen Marshall, thanks guys), I knew MAL was something I was going to go for. I got my chapter’s support and announced to the list serve. Then came the most important part of these initial phases, figuring out what the heck I was doing! Thankfully, I was able to talk with three people across the district that really helped me focus my intent and strengthen my ideas, Kaila Eason, Charlene Ronnie, and our very own Sean Hunter. Fun fact: other people are really smart and they can help show you thing you didn’t know that you didn’t know. Yes, just like Pocahontas. Beyond just strengthening my ideas, my bonds with them were all strengthened and I know I can go to them whenever I need to. Isn’t that cool? Sorry, I just think that it’s the coolest thing ever that there are people in this brotherhood, my brothers, all across the Western United States, that I can go to anytime.

My biggest worry during all of this was “what will it be like running against 4 other people?” This in mind, March rolls around and it’s the women’s Pac-12 tournament in Seattle (yes Seattle again, I can hardly believe I went there so much myself.) I was on Facebook all the time trying to see who else in Seattle at the tournament would want to hang out. The best part of this process was Lindsay Culp, another Brother running for MAL, being the first one to want to see me again. If anything, both running for office brought us even closer together and I can confidently say that Lindsay is one of my best friends and my Brother for life. There was absolutely no animosity, and I like to think that is what Kappa Kappa Psi is all about. Oh, and I met a bunch of cool people there too and took a ton of selfies with Brett Moffatt #nbd.

Flash past the end of the winter quarter, and WDC LA 2014 had arrived. After a fun filled Thursday in Disney Land with my Gamma peeps and a relaxing croughnut filled Friday morning with Stephen Marshall and Danielle Aguilar, it was convention time; a time of no sleep, constant hunger, not wanting to eat, and Starbucks that close at 10pm.

This is where all of the stress came in. Along with Theta peeps, the strongest supporters in this time were all of my fellow candidates. All nine of us running for office huddled together to weather out the storm that was caucusing and nominations committee. In retrospect, that was the coolest part about the entire process. I don’t believe any of us knew each other’s platforms, the platforms did not matter. All that mattered was going through the same ordeal. I like to believe we all respected each other on a new Brotherly level.

The rest of the story is not as important. Going through all of this and seeing dozens of individuals show unyielding support through the process is beyond gratifying. Running for office certainly is not easy, but the bonds I created and strengthened with Brothers and Sisters all across the district have sewn in an unwavering understanding of what it Much Love in the Bond truly means.

That being said,

Don Jahne

BUILDING THE PODIUM Jamie Gregory, Zeta Class

One thing that I am very excited to write about for this edition of the Orange Baton is the development of a new service project. This project has yet to ever be attempted or completed by our chapter. The Theta chapter has been asked to build a podium for our new director of Athletic Bands, Dr. Dana Biggs. This fall, Dr. Biggs joined Oregon State University's faculty. As director of Athletic Bands he conducts for various pep band gigs, like basketball games, wrestling meets, and gymnastics meets. Due to the growing number of members joining the pep bands, many students find having a hard time seeing Dr. Biggs or guest conductors when they stand on the ground floor of Gill. In response to his request our chapter has agreed to take on this task of building a podium.

We plan on having a podium that will rise a conductor up approximately 7.5� to where the first row of students stand and will feature a conductors stand that will have the ability to turn or swing. This is so that conductors will be able to easily step on or off of the podium. So far our committee has had two meetings to discuss possible design and material ideas. We plan on meeting this weekend to go look at building materials and prices. Personally, I am very excited for this project and I can’t wait to see how it will turn out! Of course, pictures to come later of the finished product!

The finished product. The top two photos show the sides of the steps, and the bottom photo shows the top of the podium.

Thank you to Jamie Gregory, Danny Mitchell, Amy Hodges, and Trina Morago for their hours of work put into planning, gathering materials, building, and painting the podium.

Amy Hodges, Theta Class At the beginning of this year, if someone had told me that I would not only be a member of a fraternity, but also actually decide to run for a position in the Executive Council, I would probably have laughed in their face. No, that’s actually not true. I would have forced an uncomfortable laugh, shaken my head, stared at the floor, and shrunk away as much as possible into the background, because I would be unbelievably timid, unconfident, and uncomfortable. Even though I would still use those words to describe myself today, I feel like I’ve grown to be less-so, at least a little.

I’ve made it a personal goal to always do things that scare me.

My whole life has been spent playing it safe, hiding from people and experiences, which is exhausting and depressing. So I have decided to always take advantage of opportunities, especially if they scare me.

Almost every aspect of Kappa Kappa Psi scared me: the bid process, being a prospective member, the education process, driving to Los Angeles in a van full of people, running and being elected for Recording Secretary, and probably most of all, going to events and meeting a bunch of hyper people who wanted to hug me. Being an introvert in such a social environment can be scary, but it is absolutely worth it.

I’ve grown a lot as a person by being in these social situations, where I can’t fade into the background.

I feel that without Kappa Kappa Psi, I would not have grown so much this year. I learned how to be a part of a group, and how to put myself out there, even if it’s just a little bit. I will forever be a wallflower, but now I feel like I can be a slightly more colourful one. So here’s my advice to everyone ever…

Do things that scare you. You’ll thank yourself later.

Danny Mitchell, Zeta Class One thing that is so great about OSU music, is the fact that we are able to experience such great music while we are here! This spring term, the Corvallis-OSU Symphony put on a performance of Gustav Mahler's Sixth Symphony, also know as his "Tragic" Symphony. Over the course of about two months, several brothers from the Theta Chapter and I spent numerous hours practicing and rehearsing for this one performance! As hard and emotionally draining as this hour and a half symphony was, it was amazing to hear the wonderful sounds that my brothers and I were making! With hard work and dedication, we were able to communicate some beautiful music to our brothers that were supporting us in the audience. It is such an amazing experience to express wonderful music-by Mahler, Strauss, Haydn, and a variety of composers- with my colleagues and brothers in music! I truly will remember these experiences for the rest of my life! There is no better way to say it:

As I reflect on my time in Kappa Kappa Psi, I am amazed at how far we have come and how much we have grown. As a member of Epsilon Class, I joined Theta Chapter in a period of transition. It had only been a few years since Theta Chapter had been reinstated. Our young chapter never lacked dedication; we just hadn’t yet learned how to work cohesively to find effective solutions to our problems. This lead to meetings filled with arguing, unnecessary procedures, and bickering over semantics.

By the end of my sophomore year, the chapter had grown to the point where these meetings had to come to an end. While I can’t name a particular moment or point to an individual person that sparked this change, there was definite growth. Our discussions of service and brotherhood have broadened from the routine to the point where we have annual reading bands, our first ever outdoor degree ceremony, and still provide the quality of service that helped earn us Western District Chapter of the Year.

The best thing that has ever happened to Theta Chapter was learning how to delegate.

Realizing that no one person was responsible for everything, but instead that everybody was responsible for something was a very important change in perspective for this chapter. Because of the selflessness of our brothers, we now operate on a high level, our service projects have broadened, we fundraise at an all-time high, and our music making is unbelievable. But perhaps most improved of all is chapter morale. Meetings are friendly, effective and productive.

In closing, I am proud to see how we have transformed and I am excited to see what the future holds for Theta Chapter after I am gone.

I can only hope I was half as good to you all as you were to me. The dedication, enthusiasm, and overall awesomeness of this chapter is unparalleled. If there is one thing that I have learned in my years here it is that Theta chapter will always STRIVE FOR THE HIGHEST!

Ryan Auerbach Theta Chapter – Epsilon Class