Drexel Day of Giving Pi Kappa Phi's Alpha Upsilon Chapter would like to thank all who participated in the Drexel Day of Giving 2018 by donating to the Frederick W. Schmehl Memorial Endowment Fund. In 2018, 17 individuals donated to the Scholarship Fund, increasing the Scholarship Fund by $804.00, increasing our three year total to $11,257. The preliminary list below reflects the names of all donors per Drexel University. The number in parentheses reflects the number of the three Drexel Days of Giving in which the donor has participated. Since the listing below is based on preliminary giving data from Drexel University, please notify me accordingly if you donated to the 2018 Day of Giving and your name has not been included in this giving list for 2018. Mr. S. Burke Mr. Vincent M. Canzanese (3) Mr. Samuel J. Costa, Jr. (3) Mr. Gino Fortunato Mr. Danny Khademhir Mr. Liam Kelly (3) Mr. Jasper K. MacNaughton (3) Mr. Conlan McHugh Mr. Alexander Noce (3)C Mr. Anthony M. Noce, Esq. (3)
Ms. Emily G. Noce (3) Mrs. Kathleen A. Noce (3) Mr. Michael R. Noce (3) Mr. Joseph Alexander Sheppard Mrs. Lauri F. Sheppard (3) Mr. Walter Keith Sheppard (3) Mr. Dylan Collins Spain (2)
the big 40
Brother Alex Sheppard celebrates at a surprise party at his home in February. With him here are just a few of the attendees: Joe Bayer (#1248), John Pierce (#1258), Scott Kahan (#1252), Alex Sheppard (#1245) and Pete Magliocco (#1253)
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Five Minutes with Brother Rick Berk "Beware of little expenses: a small leak will sink a great ship." Brother Berk graduated from Drexel with a BS in ComputerScience in 1986 and was initiated into Alpha Upsilon in the Winter of 1982. Rick is currently a Partner at Brown Brothers Harriman and Co, a 200 year old global private bank and is responsible for the Risk Management and Compliance Divisions of the bank. Prior to leading these areas Rick served as the Head of Technology, Head of Products and Pricing and have held various other operational roles. Rick currently lives in Duxbury, MA with his wife Christine. Rick was appointed to the Pi Kappa Phi Foundation Board at the Supreme Chapter in Austin Texas in 2016. If you had the opportunity to start your collegiate career over again from scratch, is there anything you’d do differently? If so, why? Though I enjoyed my time at Drexel, it was close to home. My own kids, a son and daughter, both went to school further from home, and would Thomas F (Rick) Berk - Chapter #924 say that the experience of being unable to drive home for the weekend or a weeknight increased their independence and caused them to make deeper personal relationships faster. So if I did it again, I’d probably challenge myself to get out of my comfort zone and cut the apron strings…That said, if I would have chosen a university further from home, I would not have met my wife of 30 years and might not have had my current career, which I love and which started with a Drexel Co-op experience. As an alumnus, you’ve clearly been a leader for Pi Kappa Phi. How has the concept of leadership changed for you over the years? Developing an understanding of what leadership is and how to be a leader has always been important to me throughout my career. The best way to become a leader is to undertake a lifelong study of great leaders. Look for leadership in your teachers and bosses, but also in your peers, and in those who are coming after you. Some of the best leadership lessons I’ve learned have come from my kids. Leadership lessons have to resonate with your values, but can come from familiar or lofty places. If I could pick one great leader from US history to have dinner with, it’d be Ben Franklin (I’ll have to put up with standing near his statue – pictured above). A piece of great American wisdom for those of you who want to go on to lead a company, team, or other commercial or familial enterprise: (Cont. on page 5) 3
Answer to Quiz #1: Who, what, when, where and why…? Last Drexel Homecoming Football Game 1973. IFC requested that the Fraternities provide “volunteers” to be cheerleaders dressed as clowns. The large clown dressed in Pink and Black is our own brother Halsey White (Chapter #774). The outfit was made by Mary Zaid Stees (Wife of Brother Bill Stees, Chapter #726). Halsey’s memory of the event - "Looking at this makes me remember how cold and wet and drunk I was. It was a hoot - College Daze."
Supper under the Big Top after our 2017 Golf Outing. Are you in the picture? We hope you were able to join us at this year’s “Towanda Open” Golf Outing, which was held September 15. If so, you may find yourself in the next DUSAK.
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(cont. from page 3)
Community leadership, or leadership as it relates to “giving back”, is something I’ve come to understand a bit more as I get older. Though I have always felt a connection to Pi Kappa Phi and have contributed financially for years, I have only recently become actively involved. I credit my friend and brother Curt Herzog for reaching out to me after 30 years of non-engagement and encouraging me to become involved as an alumni. I am very active now, realizing how much I appreciate the opportunity to make an impact on a great organization that helped me get my start, and through which I now have the opportunity to support the initiatives that will help young men of our fraternity as they begin their life journeys. What are some of the most important pieces of advice you’ve received in your life? I’ve been blessed throughout my life with people who have shared their best thoughts and advice with me. My family, friends, mentors, colleagues and fraternity brothers have all provided counsel that has helped me throughout the years. Some of the best advice: Work hard and good things will happen Family comes first Don’t be afraid to fail – it’s a great way to learn Don’t be afraid to say you don’t know something – or ask a question Help others succeed and you will succeed too What have been two or three of your most meaningful Pi Kappa Phi experiences? The pledging experience – ultimately showed me when a group comes together and support one another through thick and thin, it builds lifelong connections. I had to become less active during my last two undergraduate years and multiple times thought of leaving school or switching majors. The support
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and encouragement of my brothers helped me get through these challenges. Something I will never forget. Meeting Curt Herzog, Tom Atwood and Mark Timmes who encouraged me to re-engage after so many years. Attending my first Supreme Chapter this last July where I go t to so meet so many other alumni and of course Durward Owen – a true legend! Between all of the undergraduate and alumni members of Pi Kappa Phi, there are brothers that span so many different “ages and stages” of life. What have you learned about brotherhood, and also leadership, that could apply to all of those men, no matter their stage of life? That brotherhood is a lifelong experience and the role it plays in your life is up to you. You can come and go – but your fraternity and brothers are always there (and you are there for them). For me, it has always been there in my heart and mind, and the values it instilled in me led me to a career that emphasizes the core tenants of brotherhood – teamwork and respect for others (to name a few).
In the past we have acknowledged Brother Jack Stoner for his accomplishments and faithful dedication to the fraternity. Jack was a key Alumni leader in the rebuilding and reopening of the Alpha Upsilon Chapter House in 2008, and in 2016 he was honored by Drexel as one of the first five honorees into the Drexel ROTC Hall of Fame as one of the highest ranking military officials to have graduated from Drexel. It is with our deepest sorrow that we announce that Jack passed away on May 15, 2018. His obituary is included below. MG (Ret.) John K. Stoner, Jr., 89, passed away on May 15, 2018, at home in his beloved Stone Harbor, New Jersey. MG (Ret.) Stoner was born in Woodbury, New Jersey on January 26, 1929, the only child of Sara Elizabeth Davis and John K. Stoner. He graduated from Collingswood High School and matriculated as an ROTC cadet to Drexel University (at the time Drexel Institute of Technology), where he pledged his beloved fraternity Pi Kappa Phi and graduated in 1951 with a degree in chemical engineering. He was then commissioned as a SecMG (Ret.) John K. ond Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Chemical Corps. Later, in Stoner, Jr., on the occasion in 2016 of 1956, he also earned a Master in Business Administration his induction into from the Harvard Business the Drexel ROTC School. Hall of Fame. MG (Ret.) Stoner married Ellen Jean Smith of Brookville, Pennsylvania in 1952, and she predeceased him in 1988. He is survived by four children: Kathryn, married to Frank Lasala; Sara, married to John Bachman; John, married to Karen Kelly;
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and Hudson, married to Claudia Piazza. He had seven grandchildren: Jacob Lasala; Kathryn Bachman, married to Thomas Lakin; William Bachman; Kelly Stoner; Ellen Stoner, married to Patrick Leidig; Hudson Stoner; and Grant Stoner. He also had two great grandchildren: John Gilbert Leidig and Sara Lucille Lakin. He instilled a love of education and curiosity in his children, and they in turn passed this love on to their own children. MG (Ret.) Stoner, a veteran of the Korean and Vietnam Wars, had a successful and varied military career, with assignments that took him and his family to numerous locations in the United States, Germany and Panama. When he retired in 1980, he was the Commander of the Communications and Electronics Command at Fort Monmouth in New Jersey. In addition to his professional interests, MG (Ret.) Stoner had many hobbies, including shell collecting (part of his personal collection can be found on display in the Franklin Institute); music (he conducted the Plebe Glee Club at West Point and was the director of the Seven Mile Island Singers in Stone Harbor); and gardening, especially growing roses, a pastime which gave him many happy hours outdoors and even several awards from the Stone Harbor Garden Club. Although an only child, MG (Ret.) Stoner took great pride in his family: his own extended network of cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents who ranged from Lancaster, PA to the now-submerged South Cape May and fondly called him "Jackie;" together with the nieces, nephews, cousins, aunts, uncles and parents of the family into which he married. He is survived by his sister-in-law, Esther Smith Mercatoris of Brookville, Pennsylvania.l University. MG (Ret.) Stoner is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Drexel’s Pi Kappa Phi Chapter Awards Frederick W Schmehl Memorial Scholarships The Alumni Corporation of Alpha Upsilon Chapter of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity annually awards scholarships to current Drexel students based on demonstrated leadership and achievement under the Frederick W. Schmehl Memorial Endowed Scholarships criteria. 2016 was the inaugural year of this $500 scholarship.
2016 Winner - Phillip D. Wolfe - Major Mechanical Engineering & Mechanics Cum GPA 3.64 - Graduated June 2017 2017 Winner - Vincent Michael Canzanese - Major - Biological Sciences Cum GPA 3.83 - Anticipated Graduation June 2019 About Phillip: During his years at Drexel (Phillip graduated in2017), he held a number of responsible positions at Pi Kappa Phi, including Risk Manager, PKP Treasurer, PKP Archon, PKP Housing Manager, and Social Chair IFC. On campus Phillip served on the Drexel Student Conduct Board. Off campus, he belonged to the Marlton Business Association. Phillip was on the Dean’s List in fall 2013, winter 2014, and fall 2015 Philip answered two of the questions on his application for this scholarship in the following way: 1. Please describe your service to the Chapter and the Greek Community at Drexel? 7
I have served as part of the Pi Kapp leadership for over two years now, and I like to try and raise the standards for the position as I serve them. Now that I have taken my tour through the executive council, I have stayed on as Housing Manager and currently get to preserve the house, which has a lot of history behind it. I currently don’t hold any IFC positions because it became a time commitment issue with being President and being on coop, but I actively stay in touch with the IFC president about issues I see throughout the Greek Community and often offer my advice on what we as a community can do to fix things. I am always in constant contact with alumni and Drexel Faculty to discuss with them how they can help the undergraduates make our time a more pleasurable experience. 3. Give an example of one of your greatest accomplishments and how you achieved it. Coming into college, I wasn’t really sure the career path I wanted to head down. After fall term of my sophomore year, I decided to make the jump from business to mechanical engineering, and then go onto law school to eventually study patent law. Since making the switch, I have taken 20 credits with 6-7 classes every term, and also taking classes on co-op to make sure that I am able to graduate on time. I take the LSAT in June and then start applying to law school in October. The accomplishment would be making the switch and succeeding and being able to watch all of the goals I set 2 years ago fall into place. (cont. on page 8)
(cont. from page 7)
About Vince: Vince has served as Historian, Philanthropy chair, and Ritual Chair for Pi Kappa Phi. On campus he belongs to The American Medical Students Association, and Phi Delta Epsilon Medical Fraternity Students Association. He has volunteered at The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in the Emergency Department, Cardiac ICU, the Oncology floor, Post-surgery floor, and on the Bariatrics/Transplant floor. He was also on the Dean’s List from March 2015 to the present. Vince answered the application questions this way: 1. Please describe your service to the Chapter and the Greek Community at Drexel? My biggest accomplishment in the chapter so far is reinstating a schedule system for our chapter’s weekly volunteering activity, STARS, during which we play sports games with disabled children at a local community center in North Philadelphia every Friday from 6-8pm. When I took over as philanthropy chair in September of 2016, I noticed that nobody in our chapter took our weekly volunteering seriously. I implemented a system in which brothers were scheduled to go on certain weeks and were only allowed to miss it if they had an unavoidable circumstance (such as co-op). I’ve scheduled several fundraisers at restaurants such as Chipotle, Wahoo’s, and Blaze Pizza to benefit the Ability Experience national fund and plan to run for the position of Archon for Fall/Winter of next year. 3. Give an example of one of your greatest accomplishments and how you achieved it. One of my greatest achievements is receiving a 4.0 for multiple quarters here at Drexel. I started off my academic career here pretty roughly, achieving low 3’s in my first two terms. I was 8
kind of lackadaisical about my academic duties and was fine with being average. It was only in the spring term of my freshman year that I lit a fire under myself and decided to be greater than average. I began to go to my professor’s office hours, recording lectures with my professors’ permission, and being proactive in my assignments and studies. I used this positive change to also begin going to the gym more often and building an overall more organized schedule for myself. It was in this spring quarter that I really found my way here at Drexel, and it all started with my personal decision to be greater than average, something that I strive to do every day. I achieved a 4.0 that term, something I had never done before in school, and haven’t looked back since.
Getting Together at This Summer’s Convention in Chicago At Breakfast - O.J. Pacheco, Matt Rynzcak, Pat Felstedt, Rick Berk, Lauri Sheppard, Keith Sheppard, Joe Betesh, Tony Noce, Dylan Spain, Noah Kraus
After Supreme Chapter - Pat Felstedt, Tony Noce, Rick Berk, Dylan Spain, O. J. Pacheco, Matt Rynzcak, Keith Sheppard, Joe Betesh
At the railing - Chicago in the background O.J. Pacheco, Joe Betesh, Matt Rynzcak, Dylan Spain, and Pat Felstedt.
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