SPRING 2017
THE COLORADO GAMMA
RAMS CONNECTION Official Newsletter of the Colorado Gamma Chapter of Phi Delta Theta at Colorado State University
LIFE-LONG FRIENDSHIPS
DIVERSITY AND FUN STRENGTHENED THE BOND
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teve Long 561 arrived in Fort Collins from a small town in Ohio in 1968 to pursue a degree in Wildlife Biology. That winter, he pledged Phi Delta Theta and signed The Bond on April 14, 1969. Steve lived at 614 Matthews Street, then the home of Colorado Gamma. “My Phi Delt brothers studied hard, had defined goals, and knew how to enjoy college in the late 60s and early 70s,” says Steve. “We were about as diverse as you could be at that time, but that helped me discover who I was and helped me become the best version of myself.” Steve credits Phi Delta Theta and the bonds he developed with his brothers with helping him cultivate his interest in the environmental sciences. Following graduation in 1972, Steve returned to Ohio where he spent two years in the Appalachian coalfields working for the Ohio Division of Reclamation where he inspected mining operations. Steve credits his days in the Fraternity with providing him the interpersonal skills to adapt to new environments and to work with
those around him quickly. He then returned to CSU to obtain a masters degree in Forestry. Steve joined a large environmental “WE WERE ABOUT consulting firm in Fort Collins, eventually AS DIVERSE AS teaming with two YOU COULD BE AT partners to form Cedar Creek Associates, Inc. THAT TIME, BUT The process of moving THAT HELPED ME back to Fort Collins DISCOVER WHO I and reconnecting with fraternity brothers WAS AND HELPED reminded Steve of his ME BECOME THE strong feelings for Phi Delta Theta. BEST VERSION OF
MYSELF.” These rekindled feelings of brotherhood led to Phi Delt reunions in 1984 and 2009. “There was always an adventure around the corner given the dichotomy in style of our brotherhood that led to Continued on page 4
PRESIDENT’S CORNER
CO GAMMA STEALS THE SHOW AT CONVENTION & FALL WRAP UP
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his past year has been very successful for the men of Colorado Gamma. The Chapter sent four representatives to the 81st Biennial Convention in Savannah, Georgia and six brothers to Oxford, Ohio where the Fraternity’s Kleberg Emerging Leaders Institute was held. The Chapter was recognized with several awards including: the Paul C. Beam trophy for the most outstanding one-day philanthropic event, a Community Service Citation award for the chapter’s outstanding community service efforts, the #1 Scholarship Award for achieving the top scholastic ranking within our Greek community, the Gold Star Outstanding Excellence Award for overall achievement, and for the second consecutive year in a row, the St. Louis Fraternity Education Trophy for the best continuous Phikeia education program. We were honored to remain one of the top awarded chapters in all of Phi Delta Theta, but more importantly it recognizes the efforts of our brothers and our achievements as a collective chapter. This has motivated
us to continue to strive for success and to become the greatest versions of ourselves. We carried that momentum into the fall semester, both in the classroom and in the community. We had five brothers with a 4.0 GPA which helped us finish as one of the top performing chapters on campus. The Chapter participated in several competitions and were first place champions in CSU Homecoming, IFC football, and CSU intramural flag football. Additionally, the Chapter completed over 400 hours of community service and we continued to strengthen our partnership with Habitat for Humanity and ALS. If you are ever in Fort Collins, we hope you stop by 200 East Plum and say hello! Yours in The Bond, Austin Hayes 1133, Chapter President Astnh@rams.colostate.edu
STAY CONNECTED
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here are a number of ways for you to stay connected to what is happening with Colorado Gamma and we want to hear from you! Our alumni club is open to any Phi so if you are in the Fort Collins area, we encourage you to see what events might be taking place. Annual events hosted by the Alumni
ABOUT US
The Colorado Gamma Rams Connection is published two times per year by the Colorado Gamma Chapter of Phi Delta Theta at Colorado State University for alumni and parents. ©Copyright 2017 Colorado Gamma. All rights reserved. Send news, address updates and photos to: Colorado Gamma Chapter of Phi Delta Theta 2 South Campus Avenue Oxford, Ohio 45056 STAY UP-TO-DATE /PDTCOAreaAlumni @phideltathetacogamma pdtcoloradoalumni@gmail.com linkedin.com/groups/6950240 colostate.phideltatheta.org ALUMNI CLUB Brandon Baines, President Nate Rehm, Vice President Glenn Jacobsen, Marketing
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Rams Connection » Spring 2017
CHAPTER OFFICERS Austin Hayes, President Matt Murphree, Vice President Matt Morris, Treasurer Koen Browning, Recruitment Natie Caraway, Philanthropy Frank Davis, Phikeia Educator Jackson Wilhelm, Risk Management Tyler Voigt, Secretary Grayson Burrow, Warden CHAPTER ADVISERS Keith Lopez, Chapter Adviser/ Chapter Advisory Board Chairman Kayla Cothrun, Chapter Academic Adviser Marc Mores, Phikeia Education Adviser HOUSE CORPORATION Marc Mores, President Nathan Flynn, Vice President Brandon Baines, Member
Club are Founders Day, Alumni Club Golf Tournament, Alumni Club house project, CSU’s Homecoming Football Game and more. Also, we have a Facebook page where you can stay up-to-date on events and a LinkedIn group to network with like-minded individuals. Missing Phis We have a number of lost brothers! If you can help us locate these missing Phis, please send their address, phone number, and email address to pdtcoloradoalumni@gmail.com. Donald L. Showalter, ’67-530 Frederick R. Morgan III, ’67-519 David C. Reynolds, ’66-517 Frank J. Farrell, ’67-521 John T. Harutun, ’67-527 Corwin D. Hurst, ’67-520 Robert L. Miller, ’67-529
Todd W. Bassett, ’91-728 Cameron D. Newell, ’91-727 Mark E. Salmon, ’91-735 Clinton C. Young, ’91-730 Michael L. Jackson, 91-726 Martin L. Lutes, ’91-731 Kris L. Sybrant, ’91-736
UPDATE YOUR CONTACT INFO! Please visit phideltatheta.org/members/update-your-info/ to update your contact information.
Colorado Gamma
CO GAMMA 92
BY THE NUMBERS
Total number of current members
RAISED FOR ALS
126,487
$117,627 Walk to Defeat ALS • $8,860 Fratagonia Week 2016
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SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS
TOP 6 IN GRADES
Colin Diehl 1184: Dean’s Scholarship Award Evan Torres 1201: Daniel’s Fund Scholarship Matt Murphree 1125: Whole Man Scholarship Matthew Morris 1157: James R. Ballard Scholarship
5 2 Back-to-back winners of the St. Louis Fraternity Education Trophy from PDT GHQ
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Semesters in a row
MEMBERS WITH A 4.0 GPA* Merrick Crispell 1167 • Mark Flood 1105 Trevor Ivan 1098 • Kurt Reed 1200 Jeremy Sinner 1183
170k
$
Current mortgage
Years in a row winning from PDT GHQ
AVG FALL INITIATES
25
over last three years
AWARDS/DISTINCTIONS
$ RAISED FOR ALS
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GOLD STAR AWARD
Chapter Adviser Keith Lopez 1024 won the Association of Fraternal Leadership & Values Wilford A. Butler Award for Outstanding Fraternity/ Sorority Alumnus Dan Pastwa 1161 placed first in the CSU Daniel's Fund Business Ethics Competition and won the prestigious Air Force ROTC Field Training Superior Performance Award Francisco Gallegos 1128 was named Outstanding Student Employee at the Lory Student Center Jack Lansford 1137 was the grand prize winner of the International Study Abroad (ISA) Student Video Contest 2016 Charlie Hushek 1118 won 2016 President of the Year at the CSU Fraternity and Sorority Life Awards
18
Total number of states represented by current undergraduate brothers
* for fall 2016
200
East Plum
150k
$
Spent over three years for property improvements CO Gamma Members
MEET OUR NEWEST INITIATES
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e have been consistently recruiting around 25 men each fall during the last three years. This year was no different as we had the privilege to initiate 25 outstanding men into Colorado Gamma. With over 50% of the men being from out-of-state, this is also a very diverse group. Through the challenges of their Phikeia semester, the class has proven themselves as worthy Phis through their hard work and perseverance. The class did their Phikeia retreat at the Colorado State University Mountain Campus, where they learned about brotherhood, Phi Delta Theta, and themselves. After their retreat experience, the class was tightly bonded by brotherhood and is going to make a great addition to our chapter. These men will take Colorado Gamma to new heights and become the greatest version of themselves.
colostate.phideltatheta.org
Pictured left to right (2nd row): Kurt Reed, Blake Burchard, Austin Menzel, Ryan Issacson, Sampson Briggs, Andrew Behm, Stephen Quinn, Henry Williams, Justin Faherty, Eric Lawson, Connor Craddock, Austin Haid, Ryan Kveton, Issac Scott. (1st row): Chad Dunnell, Colin Diehl, Josh Madden, Ryan Staab, Alec Bright, Tyler Wagner, Evan Torres, Jeremy Sirner, David Guglielmo. (Not pictured): Bailey Volle, Natie Caraway. Rams Connection » Spring 2017
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Looking to connect with fellow Phis in the Greater Colorado area? LIKE US: /PDTCOAreaAlumni FOLLOW US: linkedin.com/groups/6950240
Colorado Gamma Chapter of Phi Delta Theta 2 South Campus Avenue Oxford, Ohio 45056 Address Service Requested
REFER A PHI! Know any young men who would be great Phis? Refer them here: colostate.phideltatheta.org/join/ refer-someone/. Then, send them to our Greatest U recruitment campaign: futurephidelt.org.
many wonderful moments we still reminisce about to this day when we get together at our reunions and other adventures we continue to pursue,” recalls Steve. The Phi Delta Theta brotherhood has been an extended family for Steve and he is passionate about helping the current members of Colorado Gamma have a similar positive and rewarding experience. Steve has authored numerous reclamation and wetland mitigation plans for various types of coal and hard rock mining projects, utility corridors, and industrial and private development projects across the West and in Alaska. He has also authored two technical manuals and several technical papers published in professional journals and conference proceedings. Steve is married to Karolee, a Nebraska native, and is the father of Connor and Molly Kate. They reside in Fort Collins with their dog, Happy Jack.
RECENT & UPCOMING EVENTS Last Hurrah at Hughes Recent alumni returned to Fort Collins for the final game at Hughes Stadium in November 2016. The Rams beat New Mexico, 49–31. The Rams look to an exciting season next fall in their new stadium!
Inaugural Career Day Event On Sunday, October 8th, the Colorado Area Alumni Club will host the inaugural Career Day in Fort Collins! Help juniors and seniors prepare for life after college. Résumé and interview tips, general career advice, and an alumni panel are planned. Watch our Facebook page or email us for more information.
FOUNDERS DAY
April 1, 2017
The Phi Delta Theta Colorado Area Alumni Club invites you to celebrate with us on April 1, 2017 for our Founders Day Celebration. We’re stepping it up a notch this year! The evening will include plenty of catching up, a few drinks, a nice steak dinner, some dancing, and of course, lots of laughs. We hope you will attend and look forward to seeing you and your significant other at the Denver Opera House. To purchase tickets and RSVP: pdtco17fd.eventbrite.com For more information, please contact Alumni Club President Brandon Baines at: pdtcoloradoalumni@gmail.com