Pi Kappa Phi Tau Tales http://www.pkp.org
Mar. 27 , 2005
Spring Issue 1
th
INSIDE:
From the Gavel… Ryan Castile, Archon of Tau Chapter
Archon’ s Report Mid-Year Conference Push America Fundraising Cycling Events Rose Ball 2005 Parent’ s Weekend Pi Kapp Athletics Alumni Updates Pig Pickin’ coming up
This year, there is a lot of excitement running throughout the house. After initiating 12 new men in the fall, we currently have 5 men pledging this spring. We are currently ranked in first place in the race for the President’ s Cup, which is given to the top Fraternity in Intramural sports. After a slightly lower amount of people living in the house in the fall, our house size has increased dramatically for the spring and should be close to full next fall to continue our recruitment success in the fall. In our continuing effort to help PUSH America, we have increased our already strong showing at the national cycling events. This year, two brothers are participating in the Journey of Hope while one JOH alumni is riding Gear Up Florida. Our Alumni Golf Tournament for PUSH is on April 15th, so if you’ re a fan of golfing (or even if you have an 36 handicap like me),
Chapter Officers: Archon Ryan Castile T-1186 president@pkp.org Vice-Archon Justin Gerber T-1192 vicepresident@pkp.org Treasurer Will Armfield T-1201 treasurer@pkp.org Secretary Michael Katzman T-1213 secretary@pkp.org Warden Matt Holt T- 1227 warden@pkp.org Historian Joe Young T-1214 historian@pkp.org Chaplain Patrick Buckley T-1215 chaplain@pkp.org
there is no better way to have a good time and donate money to a worthy cause like PUSH, than the Golf Tournament. Already this semester we’ ve had two very successful PUSH events. During the first very cold week in January, the brothers held our annual scaffold sit and raised close to $400. Just
recently the brothers’ hosted our First-Annual Date Auction where brothers were auctioned off to various sorority ladies for a date on Valentine’ s Day. This event also raised more than $400.
Special thanks to Justin Gerber T-1192 and Matt Seaman T1195 for putting on these events and making them successful. Already the brothers are getting ready for the annual Greek Week competition. Last year we finished 1st place in Greek Week, and look forward to repeating our performance. At any rate, Tau Chapter already has over 60 brothers now, and if all goes well with the current pledge class, we’ ll be close to 70 brothers in the fall. Things are looking up for us, but we’ re missing one thing. That thing is you, our alumni. Come back to Raleigh, if only for a short while. There is so much we want to talk to you about and we hope that you want to talk to us. I look forward to talking to each and every one of you if you can make it to Pig Pickin’ . If not, you can always e-mail me at president@pkp.org and I will get back to you with any questions you may have. Look forward to seeing you in April!
Brothers Visit Mid-Year Conference By Will Armfield II T-1201, Treasurer On January 7th-9th, 2005 the Tau chapter visited the national headquarters for our annual conference. Mid-Year Leadership Conference is an officer training event that promotes ‘ choice.’ Officers decide the educational tracks they will follow in the areas that interest them most. The curriculum, which features “ The 7 Objectives of Chapter Excellence,”is designed to instill strong leadership at the core of every chapter. We had ten brothers attend the conference this time.
This is a large number for any chapter and had one of the largest representations at the event. We talked with nearby chapters about doing events with each other to have a better combined event. We are looking to work with our chapter at East Carolina to have a large outdoor concert to benefit Push America. For updates about the event contact our philanthropy chair, Matt Seaman T-1195 at push@pkp.org . We were also able to find new ways to tweak the operation of our chapter so it runs smoother.
Push America Fundraising Going Strong By Matt Seaman T-1195, Philanthropy Chair Tau Chapter’ s fundraising for Push America has started out strong for the Spring 2005 semester. From January 19th to the 21st we had a Scaffold Sit in the brickyard on campus to help raise money for Push America. We were aiming for about $150 or so, considering there were also students raising money for the Tsunami Relief Efforts at the same time. We surpassed our goal by over $240 and our final total for this semester’ s Scaffold Sit ended at a little over $390, so we were very pleased with the results. A big thank you goes out to Crowder Construction Co. for allowing us to use one of their paint scaffolds (so we could sit
in below freezing temperatures in the rain, sleet, and snow). Tau Chapter also held another fundraising event in which we auctioned off our brothers to the sororities on campus, and some girls from Peace and Meredith Colleges. The brothers and their new-found dates went out on Valentine’ s Day at a local restaurant for dinner. We are also planning something completely different for the semester, and upcoming semesters for Push America fundraising. Through Food Lion, we can obtain some very easy money. Every time a registered MVP Card is scanned at Food Lion,
Push America will receive a certain percentage of the individual's spending. If you would like to help contribute in this way, we would need your MVP Card number, which is on the back of the card. We will then register the number with Food Lion, and help gain funds for Push America. You can contact me via e-mail if you wish to participate. As always, we still will be having the Alumni Weekend golf tournament for Tau Chapter, in which all the proceeds go towards Push America. This is another great way to help out our Push America fundraising efforts.
Tau Participants in Cycling Events By Dan Franklin T-1194, Journey of Hope Crew Member
Journey of Hope: Ryan Patrick T-1207 Dan Franklin T-1194 (Crew Member)
Gear Up Florida: Matt Seaman T-1195
After a strong showing for the last several years in Push America’ s national events, the men of Tau Chapter are back at it. This summer, Brothers Dan Franklin (T-1194) and Ryan Patrick (T-1207) will be participating in the Journey of Hope, where they will be cycling across the country to benefit people with disabilities.
In addition, Brother Matt Seaman (T-1195), who rode the Journey of Hope last summer, will be participating in Gear Up Florida, a two-week ride across Florida, focusing primarily on interaction with people with disabilities. The Tau Chapter is proud to participate in Push America’ s team events,
and we hope to continue our strong tradition of support for our national philanthropy. If you would like more information, or would like to contribute to Push America on behalf of this year’ s cyclists, please send mail to: Attn: Push America Cyclists 2401 Fraternity Ct. Raleigh, NC 27606
Rose Ball 2005 –Hilton Head Island By Scott Butner T-1164 As many of you probably remember, Rose Ball is the highlight of the year for the Tau Chapter. This year’ s formal was no exception. The Hilton Head Marriott Beach and Golf Resort was the site for this year’ s festivities and played as an exceptional host for the events. Along with the ocean front views and excellent weather, Hilton Head offered an excellent shopping experience
with great attractions. The hotel was peaceful and tranquil while also providing a fun atmosphere for the weekend. The highlight of the weekend was the formal dinner and awards ceremony on Saturday night. Senior of the year was awarded to David Woods, who served as warden last semester and is graduating with a degree in Psychology and English Education in May.
Junior Justin Gerber was awarded brother of the year. Justin participated in the Journey of Hope 2004 and is the current Vice Archon. Zach Johnson was voted pledge of the year and athlete of the year was given to Andrew Gordon. In keeping with tradition, the evening ended with the brothers serenading this year’ s Rose Queen, Lucy Hall.
Parent’ s Weekend with Buddy Lee By Will Armfield T-1201, Treasurer Upcoming Events: Friday, April 15th, 2005 Alumni Golf Tournament @ Crooked Creek Golf Club Shotgun Start: 1:30 PM Young Alumni Event @ Playmakers Time: 9:00PM
Saturday, April 16th, 2005 Pig Pickin’@ the House Food served at 1:00 PM
On Saturday, November 6th, 2004 the Tau chapter of Pi Kappa Phi held our annual Parent’ s Weekend Tailgate. In years past, the brothers have welcomed their parents to the chapter house to see the place where their child has enjoyed his free time during his college career. They are also treated to barbeque cooked by our brothers at our own tailgate before the football game. This year we wanted to take it to the next level. After we sent out last semester’ s Tau Tales, we got a call from Lee Jeans Co. One of the Tau alumni, Gordon Harton, is the CEO of Lee Jeans, a part of the VF Corporation. He knew we were going to be at the football game and that his company was sending “ Buddy Lee On Tour” to our campus. He got in touch with the people directly in charge of the events to be held at various campuses across the nation. He told them to call our chapter and see if they could host our tailgate.
We were definitely excited about it, and started working out the details. In a few weeks we had come to a conclusion that we could have two pigs and all the fixings to go along with the barbeque paid for by Lee.
We were also able to get a pingpong table, two couches, a nice banner for the chapter, $400 donated to the chapter, and lots of merchandise for the chapter including a pair of jeans for every brother in the fraternity, all paid for by Lee Jeans.
In light of the fact that the event would not have been possible without our alumnus Gordon Harton, we wanted to show our appreciation to him for his support. So, the chapter presented him with an N.C. State logo football with the autographs of the chapter brothers on it so he would remember how much we appreciated it. He flew in for the event and the football game against Georgia Tech. He was accompanied by his wife and two children. We also want to thank brothers, Dan Merritt T1164 and Justin Gerber T-1192 for staying up all night to make sure the pig turned out great. We look forward to doing more events with Gordon in the future and ask that if any alumni are interested in helping us out we would be more than happy to work with you. In the near future, the main goal of the chapter is to fix our current housing situation, and any help, monetary or not, would be most appreciated.
Pi Kapps Look to Repeat as Intramural Champs By Mark Magierski T-1218, Athletics Chair The start of the fall semester of 2004 here at NC State signaled the beginning of intramural competition. Now being half way finished with the ’ 05 spring semester, Pi Kapp’ s have brought home some championships and strong finishes. Last year, the Pi Kapps won the coveted President’ s Cup—the trophy for winning fraternity intramurals—and emerged as Greek Week Champions as well. With the performance of our athletes this year, a repeat of the President’ s Cup looks in reach. In volleyball, The “ Volleyballerz” devastated their opponents and finished their season as undefeated champions. The 6-man team beat rival
Pi Kappa Alpha in the championship game. As for soccer, our team also captured the championship beating Theta Chi marking an undefeated season. Our skillful play of brothers young and old came together to make one solid squad. With these championships under our belts, we solidified a spot at the top of the rankings in fraternity intramurals. To help increase our points, we took home the win for the annual fraternity “ Turkey Trot” , which is a 2.5mile cross-country race around campus. Our team consisted of five brothers where brother David Blackley placed number one overall. These events marked the end of a great fall semester, but meant
a start to the coming spring semester, which has been productive so far. Our basketball team proved to its opponents they wanted to settle some unfinished business after losing in the semifinals last year. After being undefeated in conference play, they rolled through the playoffs and beat rival Pi Kappa Alpha for the championship. Another major sport win for us Pi Kapp’ s made the President’ s Cup even closer. The athletes of the Tau chapter have showed the perseverance, teamwork, and confidence of champions and with the support of the rest of the brotherhood winning has been even more enjoyable. Good luck to us Pi Kapp’ s for the remainder of the semester.
Alumni Updates By Joe Young T-1214 Chapter Historian If you have any updates about alumni that you would like everyone to hear about please email historian@pkp.org If you have any pictures from when you were here, please email the Historian at historian@pkp.org and we will find a way to get them if they aren’ t available electronically.
Brother Jamie Vernon T-1007 Brother Vernon recently got engaged to his girlfriend, Cara DeFrank. They will be having the wedding next year in either May or September in Washington, D.C. Brother Daniel Rothrock T-1149 Brother Rothrock was engaged to Abigail Eaton on December, 29th, 2003. They plan to get married in the Grand Caymans on October 5th, 2005. Brother Rob Schabinger T-1132 Brother Schabinger got engaged to Diane Green on July 24th, 2004. They are planning on getting married August 6th, 2005.
Brother Dan Merritt T-1165 On August 8th, 2004, Dan proposed to Lizzie Worden at Gaston Lake. They are happily engaged and the wedding is planned for June 11th, 2005 in High Point, NC. Brother Brad Tomlin T-1166 Brother Tomlin was engaged to Meredith Stroud on December 17th, 2004, and they will be married on September 17th, 2005 at Uwharrie Point. Brother Matthew Frazier T-1170 Brother Frazier was engaged to Melissa Katzman on October 28th, 2004, and they will be married on October 1st, 2005.
Pig Pickin’is here Again By Joe Young T-1214 Tau Chapter Historian For information about Pig Pickin’or the Golf Tournament please email historian@pkp.org
This year if you would like to play in the golf tournament we are going to be playing at Crooked Creek Golf Club. It will be a Captain’ s Choice format with some prizes for the winners. It should be a fun time and we look forward to it. The cost will be $50 with all of the proceeds going to Push America. Also there will be a cheaters bonus
for $15.00 which includes mulligans, a paint stick, and one throw from anywhere on the course. For tee time reservations or questions, please call Joe Young at (704) 472-6867 or email him at historian@pkp.org . Following the golf tourney there will be a young alumni event at Playmakers Sports Bar here in Raleigh beginning at 9:00pm.
Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity Tau Chapter 2401 W. Fraternity Ct. Raleigh, NC 27606 (919) 512-2269
We will be having our traditional Pig Pickin’the day after the golf tournament on Saturday April 16th, 2005. This year we will be having the event at the Tau house. We will have a band on the back deck, and plenty of cooked pig and beverages to go around as it is the tradition here at Pi Kappa Phi. We look forward to seeing you there.
Postage Here
Greetings From the Tau Chapter