dreams achieved Splashdown Wally www.sigmapi.org • Spring 2009
from the Grand Sage Those of you who know me
know that I’m not a doom-andgloom person by any means. In fact, I consider myself a “glass half full” person. It is for this reason that I hesitated a bit before choosing to begin this Grand Sage’s letter with a difficult topic that probably all of you, in one way or another, are dealing with on various levels in your own lives. Of course I’m referring to the economy and, specifically, the financial crisis that has dominated the news every day lately, and is impacting most of you either directly or indirectly.
Let’s face it, if you are an alumnus, you may have lost your job or have a family member, neighbor, or friend who has been impacted in some way. You may have seen your investments devalued dramatically. It may be much more difficult for you to pay the bills and you’re trying to weather the storm. To my undergraduate brothers, you may be affected in a different way. It may be one of your parents who is having financial difficulties, or worse. It’s possible that you are having more challenges finding part-time employment to subsidize the cost of your college education. Maybe it’s because I work and live in Michigan, a state that has felt the pinch more than arguably any other in the U.S. that prompted me to lead off with this topic. But it’s deeper than that. It’s about what we as Sigma Pi brothers have that equips each of us to manage our way through these tough times in ways that others may not be able to do as easily. We have a special gift: each other. In my own life, when times have been tough, I’ve almost always found it helpful and necessary to reach out to the Sigma Pi brothers who have been closest to me. At one end of the spectrum, my brothers have been there for me to rely on for a laugh, an enjoyable evening together, or just to support me with their good will and camaraderie. At the other end of that spectrum, when I found myself unexpectedly in a job search several years ago, I called on many of my brothers for networking opportunities, career advice, and other resources I would need to be able to find my way back into the workforce. You’ll recall my letter to you in the summer 2008 issue of the Emerald,
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when I shared the story of four of my chapter brothers, some of my dearest friends, making the trip with their families to Long Beach to be a part of my elevation to Grand Sage. In many ways, Sigma Pi has been my surrogate family over the past 35 years. It has been an important and special part of my life, and I know I can count on my brothers as they can count on me through thick and thin. Well, these are times that will test all of us. You have that same opportunity as part of our brotherhood to reach out for support, direction, someone to lean on, a business contact, or simply a laugh when a laugh can make your day easier. We do have a special bond that can help us weather these times together. In spite of the challenges I’ve referred to, Sigma Pi Fraternity is doing very well. In fact, by the end of the academic year, the Fraternity will have experienced many great events. We will have chartered five new chapters this year, including four since January including University of California - Santa Cruz, Bentley College, University of Maryland and Montclair State University. Again since January, the Fraternity will have seen a number of our chapters celebrate milestone anniversaries. Those chapters include West Chester University (25 years), University of Virginia (50 years), University of Missouri-St. Louis (40 years), Wayne State University (40 years), Monmouth University (40 years) and Seton Hall (40 years). In terms of major milestones, the granddaddy of them all was the 100 year anniversary celebrated last fall by our Phi Chapter at the University of Illinois. An article covering that milestone weekend can be found in this Emerald. In terms of major events, I would be remiss if I didn’t urge you to plan on joining me and the Grand Council at our upcoming Sigma Pi University, a biennial conference which will be held again on the beautiful campus of Vanderbilt University in Nashville. The conference is scheduled to be held from July 23 – 26 and promises to be a very worthwhile event focused on everything from brotherhood to professional and personal development. I truly hope you can carve out the time to join your brothers at this excellent conference.
I hope you enjoy this issue of the Emerald which focuses on space exploration. It is a topic that I’ve always found fascinating. I’m old enough (believe it or not) to recall the first time American astronauts landed on the moon. It was a new frontier, expanding our imaginations in terms of what “growth” may mean to us in the future. There was excitement because we were in new territory. In a smaller but similar way, Sigma Pi experiences excitement whenever we put a stake in the ground on a new campus and open new doors, changing our perspective of the future as a Fraternity. Sigma Pi Fraternity has played, and continues to play, a role in space exploration. Most prominently, our own Walter M. “Wally” Schirra was truly an American pioneer in manned space travel and was appropriately honored with a Founders Award in 1976. Although we lost Brother Schirra to the Adytum on High approximately two years ago, his legacy lives on through an annual event hosted by Honorable Mike Beebe, Governor of Arkansas and Honorary Chairman, and sponsored by the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation. A centerpiece of this event is the Walter M. Schirra Leadership Award, recognizing professional accomplishments and exemplifying of the ideals of the creed of Sigma Pi. I had the distinct honor of attending the second annual event, which was held in February, and participating in the awards presentation. This Emerald profiles that special night. My hat goes off to all involved in making that a first class event and one that I will never forget. Again, an indication that Sigma Pi is doing very well. It is a distinct honor and privilege to serve as your Grand Sage. Remember, even in difficult times, your fraternity continues to move in a positive direction “one small step” at a time! Fraternally,
George Hakim Grand Sage
Grand Sage Hakim
On the Cover:
Inspiring generations of Americans and Sigma Pi brothers like Paul W. Richards, the Apollo Space Program succeeded in taking mankind to heights never before attained. Apollo 15 mission photo courtesy of NASA.
Member, North-American Interfraternity Conference
Copyright © 2009 Sigma Pi Fraternity; Sigma Pi, ACE Project and the crest are trademarks of Sigma Pi, all rights reserved
In this issue Volume XCIII, Number 4 Spring 2009 Editorial Staff John Kitch (H, Purdue ’73) Editor Todd Shelton Managing Editor/Creative Director Mark S. Briscoe (AP, Arkansas State ’82) Business Manager communications committee John Kitch (H, Purdue ’73) Joseph V. Palazzolo (DB, Monmouth ’03) Bryce Carder (HU, UC - Irvine ’99) Clifford A. Wilke (DZ, Missouri - St. Louis ’81) Jonathan Drnjevic (BT, Valparaiso ’81) Jeffery Seay (HE, Florida State ’91) Jack Chenoweth (H, Purdue ’74) John Michelich (EG, Illinois Wesleyan ’75)
Sigma Pi Fraternity was founded at Vincennes University, Vincennes, Indiana, on February 26, 1897. Sigma Pi has chartered more than 215 chapters in North America and has initiated over 90,000 members since 1897. The founding fathers of the Fraternity are: Rolin Rosco James (1879 - 1953), William Raper Kennedy (1877 - 1944), James Thompson Kingsbury (1877 - 1950), George Martin Patterson (1877 - 1960) Emerald of Sigma Pi Fraternity (ISSN 1074-5289, USPS 011-013) has been published since 1911. Emerald is published quarterly by Sigma Pi Fraternity, P. O. Box 1897, Brentwood, Tennessee, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to SIGMA PI FRATERNITY, P. O. Box 1897, Brentwood, TN 37024. MEMBERS: When making an address change, please send your full name and chapter with both the old and new address to the Executive Office address below.
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Submission Deadlines: Winter December 10 Spring March 10 Summer May 10 Fall September 10
2 | Executive Office News 4 | News from Chapters
Submit Emerald news to: Sigma Pi Fraternity, Attention: Emerald P. O. Box 1897, Brentwood, TN 37024 Telephone: (615) 373-5728 Fax: (615) 373-8949 Email: emerald@sigmapi.org
24 | Campus Expansion 26 | News from Alumni 29 | Adytum on High
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Executive Office News Michael Contriva recognized as the 90,000th member of Sigma Pi Since our inception as Tau Phi Delta in 1897, we have seen sumerous changes within our organization but our principles have always been consistent. Our commitment to scholarship, leadership, service and the strong principal belief that men united in these values will not only make us better individuals, but make the world a better place to live. Michael Anthony Contrivo of Rho Chapter at North Carolina State is the 90,000th initiate of Sigma Pi Fraternity. “Your induction as our 90,000th initiate is a testament that these principles still ring true,” said Executive Director and Honorary Grand Sage Mark Briscoe. “Michael, I trust you will wear your badge with pride and honor and uphold the values that make Sigma Pi the premier men’s fraternity.” “Congratulations to you and Sigma Pi on this important milestone.”
L to R: Past Grand Sage Gary Tash. Michael Contrivo, Peter Barnes and Robert “Binky” Prichard (R, North Carolina State ’46) at Rho Chapter during the presentation of the special jeweled badge on Saturday, February 21, 2009.
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Executive Office News
100 years at U of Illinois by Kevin Daugherty Over 150 Phi Chapter alumni gathered October 10th and 11th, 2008, to celebrate 100 years of continuous brotherhood on the University of Illinois campus. Alumni were present from across the U. S. and even Bermuda. Spearheaded by Brother Jack Nowicki, the event was a tremendous success. Beginning with the centennial banquet on Friday evening, showcasing memorabilia from across the decades, brothers gathered for a social hour that spilled over into
the banquet. During the banquet, greetings were extended to the brothers gathered from Grand Sage George Hakim, Executive Director and Honorary Grand Sage Mark Briscoe, University of Illinois Greek Affairs Ashley Dye and Shawn Murphy of the Phi Chapter Alumni Association. Other distinguished Grand Council members in attendance were: John Michelich, Grand Fourth Counselor, and Craig Donnelly, Grand Herald.
The undergraduate chapter handed out awards and also announced their new sweetheart. In a surprise to many, previous sweetheart winners in attendance were all brought forward and serenaded. After a grand evening of story-telling and camaraderie, the evening concluded with traditional fraternity songs and ‘The Fireside Song.” The festivities didn’t end after being chased out of the banquet room as brothers reunited with brothers at various campus locales.
Saturday, October 11th marked the traditional University of Illinois Homecoming. Brothers gathered at the house for pregame festivities, and even though Minnesota upset the Illini, brothers returned to the house after the game for more festivities including a bar-be-cue and more reminiscing and storytelling throughout the evening. More information and photos can be found at the chapter website www.sigmapi-illini.com.
Orders are being taken for the CD containing 7 distinctive versions of the Sigma Pi Sweetheart Song. Over a year in the making, it represents the efforts of 3 Auburn Alpha Delta Brothers who recognized the need to perpetuate this beautiful fraternity treasure and to revive the tradition of honoring our sweethearts. The CD would provide many precious memories of college life and could make a great present to children or family to commemorate a grand fraternity tradition or just to own as a souvenir. The Seven Versions: piano, baritone solo, trumpeVguitar, country/western, barbershop, band with solo and Dixieland. CHAPTER BONUS PACKS. 10 CD’s for $150 with custom insert cover graphics for Sweetheart or Orchid Ball favorites. NAME: ADDRESS: CITY/STATE/ZIP CODE: PHONE: E-MAIL: YOUR SCHOOL/CHAPTER & YEAR:
NUMBER OF CDS: ____ BONUSPACKS: ____ (COST IS $16 PER CD, 10 CD BONUS PACKS $150)
AMOUNT ENCLOSED: $_________
MAKE CHECK TO: ALPHA DELTA 3 & mail to Carl Myatt, 1111 West Friendly Avenue, Greensboro, NC 27401 • for more info, call: 336-274-3554 or e-mail: cmyatt3363@aol.com
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Chapter News
Chapter reports are those submitted by deadlines listed on page 1.
Members of Trinity United Methodist Church showed their appreciation for Theta-Delta Chapter at TCNJ
Alabama Theta-Omicron Chapter On January 17, 2009 the Theta Omicron chapter established its first alumni corporation as well as its first housing corporation. The newly formed Crimson Tide Alumni Corporation will allow the chapter to continue its cooperation with alumni by creating stronger bonds of communication and brotherhood while increasing alumni involvement with the chapter. The housing corporation will allow the Theta Omicron chapter to upgrade and expand current living accommodations with the acquisition of a new chapter home. The brothers of the Theta Omicron chapter have tripled their living space while moving onto the major road of transit through campus. Arizona
Theta-Pi Chapter
Fall 2008 was a landmark semester for Theta-Pi at the University of Arizona. After an awesome rush, bids were given out to 46 boys in August, and 33 men can now consider themselves qualified Deltas after being initiated in December. This semester,
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Theta-Pi was crowned the champion of campus-wide intramural football, and took second place in intramural basketball. The chapter has also participated in numerous sorority philanthropy events such as Sigma Kappa’s Kick in the Grass soccer tournament and Delta Gamma’s First Down Football Tournament. Our two biggest events of the year, Homecoming and Family Weekend were both very successful and both brought back alumni and parents to again be part of the Theta-Pi Family. The Theta-Pi Chapter at the University of Arizona is positioned to be at the top of the Greek community here in Tucson for a very long time. Arizona State Beta-Kappa Chapter The Brothers of Beta Kappa chapter are ready to end the semester strong with an estimated pledge class of 32 initiates. On top of the solid fall rush class, Beta-Kappa has had much success in our efforts in sorority philanthropies. The chapter placed first in Gamma Phi Beta’s Crescent Classic benefiting Campfire USA, as well as Pi Beta Phi’s Arrowspike. Beta Kappa also
made strides in externally by placing 2nd in ASU’s Greek Community Service Week. Beta Kappa also showed our improvements and successes to the parents of the Beta Kappa brothers while partnering with our sister sorority Chi Omega. Finally, our chapter has high hopes to win our second consecutive homecoming promoting sustainable habits while increasing awareness for a sustainable future with a “Go Green” theme. The brothers of Beta Kappa chapter hit the ground running stronger than ever this spring semester. With a chapter boasting nearly 130 members, morale and participation have been at an all time high. Beta Kappa started the semester off right by taking home some annual Greek Awards. Sigma Pi took home awards for Excellence in Community Service, Gold Pillar status, and Sage Adrian Rodgers was named Junior of the Year. Finally to round out the night Beta Kappa was named Runner Up for Chapter of the Year. Beta Kappa enjoyed great success in our annual Sigma Pidol Philanthropy raising
$2000 for the Sam Spady Foundation. The chapter looks forward to finishing the school year off with another 15 initiates and a large graduating class. Arkansas State Alpha-Pi Chapter Its a time for change for the Alpha Pi Chapter at Arkansas State University. With their new house freshly completed the residents are starting to move in. It’s been a long road for this house. A lot of work and effort has been put into the house by all of the members in order to save on labor charges, but it’s not been all work and no play for the Alpha Pi Chapter. The annual Halloween Party was a hit, football game tailgates were great, and last, but certainly not least, a lot of brotherhood has taken place. All this work on the new house has brought our chapter closer together. With this new house has come a new Executive Council as well. All positions are now held by a new younger member; this is the youngest E.C we’ve ever had. It’s been a busy Spring 09’
for the Alpha Pi Chapter. With spring rush, Founders’ Day, and the start of a new annual philanthropy our chapter had little time for any other activities. PI WEEK is the start of a great tradition for Alpha Pi chapter. It’s a week long event that begins the week before Valentine’s Day. The philanthropy includes a drunk driving simulator, week long sales of roses, member auction, a powder puff football tourney, and a crush dance at the end of the week. All proceeds benefit the Sam Spady Foundation. Also this month was our local Founders’ Day. March 7, 2009 marked the 61st year of our chapter. All alumni were invited for a golf tournament, alumni meeting, and a banquet to conclude the evening. Before the banquet on our Founders’ Day the chapter had the Grand Opening for their newly acquired house on campus. Auburn
Alpha-Delta Chapter
This past semester proved itself to be more than productive for the brothers of the Alpha Delta chapter. We recently initiated 15
Chapter News new brothers, and our new rush chair, Steven Naylor, has already began preparing for the upcoming Spring Rush. The month of October brought a lot of change. The chapter elected its new Executive Council in addition to hosting its first fall formal in more than six years. The event was held at the Greystone Manor, the original chartering house of the Alpha Delta chapter. The month was finished with our Halloween costume party, and a visit from the brothers of the Eta Epsilon chapter at Florida State. This December we also celebrated our annual Christmas Cocktail preceded by an elegant prime-rib dinner, compliments of our chef, Mrs. Penny, and our house mother, Ms. Cathy. We extend our congratulations to graduating seniors Brett Wallet and Jonathan Young. The brothers of Alpha Delta are midway through another prolific semester. Our intramural soccer team had an undefeated season while both our volleyball and bowling teams brought home two championship titles. Spring rush brought us some great guys who are proving to be a very beneficial asset to both this brotherhood and the Auburn community. To date, the 2009 social scene has been one for the books. In February we held a Mardi Gras social with several sororities and hosted our first “Raveolution” which proved to be an unprecedented success story. Our Founders’ Day weekend began with a casino night, accompanied by an outstanding banquet, and concluded by our guest speaker, former NFL kicker, Al Del Greco. This March we hosted our 83rd annual Orchid Ball in New Orleans, which was phenomenal to say the least. Future plans involve hosting a talent show for the children of Project Uplift. Bridgewater State Eta-Eta Chapter Eta-Eta Chapter has continued to succeed in every way this semester. We have added to our numbers another six great brothers that are sure to be a great addition to the brotherhood.
As always, we continue to work Gillette Stadium as our active fundraiser. This semester’s Blood Drive proved to be another great success by raising 76 pints of blood. This semester we added a new social event called Jingle Ball that was a great success, attended by 27 alumni. Finally congratulations to the new e-board, who will surely do great things. This spring is looking like a great time for Eta Eta Chapter. Our rush went well with fourteen pledges in the Alpha Tau class, one of the largest groups in almost two years. In philanthropy, we’ve been raising money for the campus-wide Relay for Life, which should be a great event to attend. This year’s Sweetheart’s Dance, held at the Riviera, had an awesome turnout, with everyone happy by the end of the night. With many more events such as another Red Cross Blood Drive and our ACE Project on the way, Eta Eta couldn’t be better. Cal State – Dominguez Hills Eta-Iota Chapter As a chapter we are growing immensely with men of honor and respect. As of now we have 24 new brothers who are putting their foot forward and are working hard to better the chapter. One of our biggest projects this semester is Orchid Ball. All active brothers and alumni are eligible to assist, and reflect upon the year’s achievements. It is expected to be a big success. Cal State – Long Beach Beta-Omicron Chapter After hosting a very successful Convocation and winning the Grand Sage Award, the Beta Omicron chapter at CSULB has been working hard to maintain our high standard of excellence. We have recently received the Sport’s Cup from our school’s IFC, along with several other awards. No more than one month ago we finished yet another undefeated season, this time in football as we look forward to hopefully winning our second straight Sport’s Cup next fall. We proudly hosted another very successful Miss Greek
pageant that raised a large sum of money towards the Sam Spady Foundation. Our young, enthusiastic pledge class is approaching initiation soon, as a few of them have already committed to positions for next semester. We are looking forward to an outstanding Spring semester, with our newly elected executive counsel in charge, as well as IFC’s newest president, Sigma Pi’s Jason Zelt. After the fall semester has come to its final conclusion, the Beta Omicron chapter is constantly moving forward and progressing in a further positive direction. With an extremely successful fall rush semester, the chapter has grown with quality as well as integrity and pride. In regards to athletics, volleyball went well in addition to a championship football win. The relationship with our surrounding community continually thrives as our weekly homework club created to assist the elementary school across the street from the fraternity house has brought further respect and approval. Long Beach State’s homecoming had a great Sigma Pi turnout and the Fall 2008 pledge class was present and involved to help support their chapter. Sorority relations were kept strong with various exchanges and philanthropic events. Our community service beach clean up with Gamma Phi Beta in Huntington Beach, CA was fulfilling. We remain powerful and innovative on campus. Cal State – Sacramento Eta-Alpha Chapter Our chapter has been rapidly growing the past two years. We have grown from 25 active brothers in Fall 2007 to 48 active brothers. Starting off the school year strong, Eta Alpha currently has its largest spring pledge class of 12. The Eta Alpha Alumni recently got together with the active chapter for a weekend. The actives were able to take down the alumni in a traditional football game and still enjoy hearing the alumni reminisce. Our annual Sorority Superbowl
philanthropy benefiting the SAM Spady Foundation is quickly approaching. Eta Alpha’s Sorority Superbowl is one of the more popular philanthropy’s for the Sacramento State sororities. As our chapter grows we continue to show our strength on campus. In Fall 2008 we took first place in Delta Gamma’s Anchorsplash philanthropy, as well as third place this spring in Phi Sigma Sigma’s Rack Em’ Up philanthropy. Greek week is also approaching with the basketball event having already taken place on March 8th. Eta Alpha placed third in that event. This is a great start for our chapter and we know our success will continue and we will grow stronger as a chapter. California
Iota Chapter
The Iota Chapter of Sigma Pi at California is proud to report that we will be initiating 13 new members this week. This is the largest pledge class we have had since our re-charter in 2001 bringing our total membership to 46, well above the campus average of 34 members. This semester was very successful socially, hosting three sorority exchanges with Alpha Chi Omega, Delta Delta Delta and Sigma Kappa, as well as a co-ed intramural softball team with Sigma Kappa, and academically our chapter is doing very well with a 3.17 overall GPA. The Brothers also gave back to the community with strong participation in Cal Greek Week, a campus-wide Greek philanthropy project, and in the next few weeks to we will be commencing our second annual philanthropy Clothing Drive, which has been very successful in the past (we collected over 1000 articles of clothing). Iota chapter has had an excellent start to 2009. Brothers Kabir Seth and Alex van Zant were elected to President and VP of Internal Affairs of the Cal Interfraternity Council or IFC. We had a great rush and are proud to report Iota chapter will have the most members then we ever had
since our rechartering in 2001. We’ve had a successful semester so far with sorority exchanges, a brotherhood trip to Tahoe, and IM teams in softball, soccer, and basketball. 6 brothers attended and helped with the chartering of Sigma Pi Santa Cruz, and others serve as delegates in the student senate at Berkeley. We are looking forward to the rest of the semester. Philanthropy chair Joe Mazzella initiated a weeklong campaign to spread awareness about non-violence in memory of our brother Christopher Wooton. This will include renowned guest speakers, campus tabling, and a charity concert for the Ella Baker Foundation. California – Irvine Eta-Upsilon Chapter The year for the Eta Upsilon chapter has been a great stepping stone for the race to the top house, by first edging out other Irvine chapters in their amazing Fall Rush, bringing in around 30 men with innovative rush tools that the campus has never seen before. This created a snowball effect that was only the beginning of an eventful year. The Fall pledge class brought in many new leaders to the fraternity which trickled down to winter rush, bringing in the largest winter pledge class on campus with 15 men. The hard work of the senior members was influential to the success of the chapter, which was shown in all categories. Sorority relations were great with 6 exchanges, and philanthropy was mastered with a Sam Spady Event hosting hundreds of Greek and UCI students. The Eta Upsilon chapter has bested its competition and is only on its way up. California - Santa Barbara Alpha-Omicron Chapter This quarter has had its ups and downs for the Brothers of Alpha Omicron. We are becoming more involved and established within the Greek system each quarter. Our new pledge class is now awaiting its initiation and we are all proud of them. We completed our ACE project
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Chapter News by doing a beach clean up. Sadly our friend and brother, Sean Feliciano, passed away this quarter. Our hearts and prayers are with him. Otherwise we are moving forward in honor of our brotherhood with Sean and each other. California – Santa Cruz Colony The UC Santa Cruz colony has had a very successful beginning to our 20082009 school year. With our numbers tripling since last year we have been established and growing presence on campus. We have just initiated ten new Founding Fathers and plan on initiating 5-10 new potentials before our scheduled chartering ceremony on January 17. We had our first brotherhood retreat of the year to Lake Berryessa and have been active all quarter with fundraisers, socials, brotherhoods, and philanthropies, and are currently planning our Sam Spady and ACE projects for later in the year. Central Florida
Colony
We were colonized just months ago, on September 18th, 2008. Since then, we have accomplished so much as a colony. We have a proper chain of command in place, with all of our committees formed and functioning. We have also begun holding events and participating in events. We received first place for our participation in Alpha Epsilon Phi’s fall philanthropy event, as well as third place in Zeta Tau Alpha’s new member lip-sync event. We also received first in the Greek-wide tug of war event, received the top rating for being UCF’s “Healthiest” fraternity, and had a flag football season record of 9 and 1. The best is still to come however, and we have a lot to look forward to this Spring in our effort to charter by April of 2009. For its second semester, the Sigma Pi colony at the University of Central Florida has many accomplishments, while raising our numbers,
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and managing to place in multiple events. Spring rush alone brought in 16 new members and we’re still growing. We have shown a strong presence at UCF by winning third place in UCF’s Best Dance Crew and by making it to the finals in intramural soccer. Our goal of hosting two socials was accomplished by the end of February and there are more on the way. The colony is also in the beginning stages of hosting its first ACE and Sam Spady project. The colony’s first Founders’ Day was a great success as well, obtaining almost full attendance of the brothers. With these accomplishments under our belt it’s only a matter of time before we become a huge driving force on campus. Central Missouri Gamma-Gamma Chapter The spring semester is underway here at the University of Central Missouri and the men of GammaGamma are very busy. Our spring rush went very well and we were able to sign 5 men for the semester. Coming up later in March we are having a senior prom with the ladies of Sigma Sigma Sigma at the local veterans’ home. We are also working really hard for the upcoming Greek Week and hope to take home many awards. Colorado
Zeta-Delta Chapter
The conclusion of the fall semester at the Zeta Delta chapter has been a busy one. Our fall pledges recently finished their pledge semester and will be initiated in mid January. Overall, 34 men made it through the pledgeship, and we look forward to them becoming active members in our chapter. At the beginning of November our chapter also won numerous awards at the University of Colorado Greek Awards Ceremony. We won the “Chapter Excellence in Athletics” award, as well as the”Philanthropic Contribution” award. Our former Treasurer, Ryan Del Gizzi also took home the venerable “Greek Scholar of the Year” award. At the
end of the fall semester we can look back at a very distinguished year in terms of recruitment, recognition, and contribution. We look forward to next semester being just as successful. After a very successful Fall semester, the new Spring Psi Pledge class has just gone through the pinning ceremony and are well on their way through pledgeship. Our Spring pledge class consists of 15 men, including two University of Colorado football players. The makeup of our newest pledge class once again reiterates the fact that Sigma Pi continues to be the fraternity of choice for the best men at the University of Colorado. As Greek Week rolls around, we are well on our way toward defending last year’s title, and showing Sigma Pi’s strengths in all that it means to be part of a Greek organization. Cornell
Mu Chapter
The entire brotherhood came together to host Rush Week activities this January. We were able to exceed our own expectations and we are proud to announce a pledge class of 14 outstanding men. The work of the brotherhood was tremendous and will serve as a blueprint for future rush weeks to come. In addition to rush and pledging, the brotherhood has also excelled in service and philanthropy. Mu Chapter successfully partnered with sororities Alpha Phi, Sigma Delta Tau, and Kappa Alpha Theta, in hosting an Ithaca SPCA fundraiser, a Bowling tournament to benefit the FirstBook charity, and our annual car wash to benefit the American Cancer Society, respectively. Additionally, nearly the entire brotherhood came together for our 4th successful Tompkins County Highway Cleanup. Delaware
Iota-Beta Chapter
Our chapter has had a lot to report since chartering in October of 2007. Since chartering we have seen two pledge classes, which drew 7 and 13 new brothers
respectively. We also saw Brother Chris Tanglao win Chi Omega’s Mr. Fraternity competition. On top of that, the chapter raised over $700 to give to Chi Omega, which in turn went to the local Make a Wish Foundation. Last semester also saw our chapter have the second highest GPA on our campus, which was 3.17, and this semester started off nicely with the chapter cosponsoring a successful blood drive, as well as hosting our third annual Founders’ Day Dinner, which was attended by Grand Second Counselor Christopher Brown and Past Grand Sage John Williams, as well as the many brothers of our chapter. Detroit Mercy Gamma-Alpha Chapter Gamma Alpha chapter’s fall ‘08 semester has seen a great deal of accomplishment along with many big plans on the horizon. Several brothers represented the chapter overseas through study abroad programs in Poland and Italy. Gamma Alpha chapter is currently the largest fraternity on campus with 28 active brothers and expects another exciting semester with 12 great men currently involved in the education process. Gamma Alpha has been keeping its philanthropic record strong, Sigma Pi has been active in Gleaner’s Food Bank, Safety Street, Celebrate Spirit and has many more plans in the works for the rest of the year including its annual ACE Project. Through yet another successful annual alumni/active Bocce Ball fundraiser and a blast of a weekend working as a part of Cedar Point’s Scream Team, Gamma Alpha chapter’s fundraising division is more successful than ever. Drury
Epsilon-Rho Chapter
We the brothers of Epsilon Rho are really excited for the rest of this spring semester at Drury University. Our new members have taken some big steps since being initiated and have stepped up to become committee heads. We recently have focused on community service by helping the local
science center, cleaning our sponsored street (Benton St.) every two weeks. We have completely revamped our planning and approach to Sam Spady to make the event bigger and better than the previous years. Our chapter’s intramural basketball team has done well and has a chance to win the championship. We our looking forward to our upcoming Orchid Ball in April. It includes a week full of events leading up to the dance on that Saturday night. We are really excited for next semester and a new pledge class. East Carolina Eta-Kappa Chapter An exciting homecoming was brought to the Eta Kappa Chapter of Sigma Pi at East Carolina University during Fall 2008. Alumni from around the nation showed up to return to their fraternal roots and watch East Carolina play a winning home game. Spring 2009 brings plenty of new officers aboard, with Carlos Gomez as Sage, Adam Agee as Vice President, Ryan Strickland as Treasurer, Carleton Cabarrus as Secretary, Daniel King as Sergeant of Arms, and Peter Getty as Herald. Eta Kappa looks forward to the new management and hopes for the wonderful changes it shall bring forth. Eta-Kappa is also gearing up for East Carolina’s Greek Week, where East Carolina encourages all Greek Life Organizations to get together and participate in various competitions in order to bring the organizations closer together. Eastern Illinois Beta-Gamma Chapter As the semester comes to an end the brothers of Beta-Gamma say farewell to four exemplary graduating seniors. Good luck to you all in the real world and be sure to make time to visit your brothers here at EIU. As these four left, a promising pledge class of 17 became active. We are very proud to call these new members our brothers. Furthermore we finished the semester 270 points ahead in the intramural race. Our chapter is focused
Chapter News only on grades for the rest of the semester but as soon as we return from break Greek week and intramurals will be our main priority. Also conversations about tugs in the spring can be heard at anytime throughout our chapter house! The brothers at Beta Gamma are starting to prepare for upcoming Greek week. Both big and little men tuggers have been practicing with motivation from our chapters tugging tradition and anything less than first place will be a disappointment. Many of the brothers not tugging are in Airband and are preparing to perform in front of all the Greeks during Greek Week. We absolutely need a top placement in this event to win Greek Week and be one step closer to the triple crown. Other than that our basketball and soccer team are undefeated so far and both look like championship teams. The daily training and healthy competition is what really brings together the brothers here at Beta Gamma and every day we are out to prove that we are the best. Eastern Kentucky Epsilon-Lambda Chapter The Epsilon-Lambda Chapter at Eastern Kentucky is making new waves in leadership and recruitment. We are looking forward to our Alumni Golf Scramble this on April 18th. We just finished a new event this year called Sigma Pi’s Next
Top Model where we raised money to go towards Sam Spady and cards to pass out on campus. We had great turnout at our Sam Spady alcohol awareness movie. We have Greek Sing in a few weeks and are looking on winning the title once again. The brothers are finding new pride and meaning in the word brotherhood lately and are working hard on alumni relations and carrying on the name here at Eastern. Elon
Epsilon-Theta Chapter
The Epsilon Theta chapter has had a very philanthropic year so far, and we are looking forward to continuing our efforts in supporting our community. After initiating 4 new members, we kicked off the year with a successful highway cleanup. We have participated (and won) in several sororities’ philanthropy events, including AOPi Dodgeball, Phi Mu Frats At Bat, and Sigma Kappa Kick in the Grass. We also adopted a family with 10 children for Christmas Cheer of Alamance County, to whom we donated clothes, toys, and even Christmas Dinner. We also partnered with the Periclean Scholars and held a coat and blanket drive for refugees in Ghana and held a Thanksgiving ACE Project for the children of Elon’s faculty and staff. Finally, we had a successful homecoming weekend with over 60 alumni who came to visit! We have been having a
busy spring semester at Elon University. Our chapter has just accepted 16 new members in the spring 2009 class. Earlier this spring, we held a faculty and staff appreciation brunch to recognize all that make Elon University Possible. Our most recent ACE project has been to help out Elon’s grounds staff on campus with new landscaping projects including spreading pine straw, planting flowers and trees, and making a difference in the overall appearance of our campus. In addition to helping with landscaping our campus, we have kept up our tradition of cleaning up the nearby road that our chapter has adopted. Our chapter has continued to raise money for the Sam Spady Foundation by holding a silent auction for prize baskets. We are looking forward to an exciting semester with many more events planned. Embry-Riddle (FL) Zeta-Beta Chapter In a world where Sigma Pi Fraternity reigns supreme, proud brothers and pledges alike hold their heads high. Only a year ago I can recall hearing horror stories that Sigma Pi was unknown and unheard of on campus. This semester, with the inspiration of International and the will power to become something more, we have managed to become one of the most well known and admired fraternities at E-RAU. With
the addition of our new E.C. we have no doubt that the only direction we will move is up. I estimate this time next year: top standing in our own school and gold standard in the eyes of our fraternity. This semester included one ACE Project, five community service projects, four sorority socials, two intramural sports, and two brotherhood events. Ferris State Theta-Theta Chapter The Brothers of the ThetaTheta chapter are thrilled to bring another successful semester to a close. The Brothers have been keeping busy with philanthropic activities such as the Teeter-Totter-athon for the American Cancer Society and a book drive giving proceeds to the Sam Spady Foundation as well as many others. We look forward to welcoming our newest initiates showing them the way to fraternal advancement. Next semester is looking bright for our chapter here at Ferris State. The brothers of Theta Theta are looking forward to another completion of a great semester. Theta-Theta has had a troublesome time trying to find new recruits, but hasn’t let that detail get them down. We have again clinched the highest GPA for social fraternities on the Ferris State campus yet again. Our Fraternity basketball team won the intramural championship for the second consecutive time, and we are going to look for
the three-peat next season. Hopes are high for our Orchid Ball Formal at the Soaring Eagle Casino in Mt. Pleasant. The brothers of Theta-Theta still reign supreme around these parts, continuing to uphold the values and teachings of Sigma Pi. Fitchburg State Eta-Tau Chapter The Eta-Tau chapter of Sigma Pi raised over $1000 for Autism Speaks at our annual brotherhood auction. We also raised over $500 for Our Father’s house organization to benefit the homeless. We also have been doing a philanthropy event where we clean up the streets of Fitchburg. We gathered around 10 bags of trash just on one street. We are also having our 15th annual Orchid Ball on April 25th, 2008 in Boston, MA. The brothers from the EtaTau chapter scheduled a Sam Spady Event on March 25th. We are showing the movie in Ellis White auditorium. We are also have our ACE Project planned, we will be painting the curbs around the campus. The brothers are also planning a car smash to raise money for a local charity. This is our 15th year anniversary since we have been chartered. The brothers of Eta Tau Chapter are currently working hard on campus. We have a Sam Spady event where we are going to show the Sam Spady movie in Ellis White Theatre.
Brothers from Tau Chapter, Wisconsin-Madison, enjoying some quality outdoor time
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Chapter News We have booked our Ace Project we will be painting the curbs around campus. We are also doing a car smash fundraiser. We are having Greek Week and plan to win and keep our title. We finally have our 15th anniversary Orchid Ball and look forward to seeing a lot of alumni. Florida State Eta-Epsilon Chapter The Eta-Epsilon chapter continues to grow and progress. This semester we participated in Homecoming events paired with the ladies of Kappa Kappa Gamma and placed in three of the major homecoming competitions. We have been working on our newly acquired house on campus to ensure Sigma Pi stays permanently at FSU. One of our recent social events here on campus had great reviews. It was a Vikings and Schoolgirls themed party that was at the very uniquely decorated house. We also participated in many sorority philanthropies such as Kappa Classic golf tournament where we placed fifth over all, the inaugural Crescent Classic combat croquet tournament, and Delta Gamma’s coveted Anchor Splash. We recently initiated our pledge class who turned out to be a great group of guys that are sure to make Sigma Pi proud. That’s EtaEpsilon at the moment. Georgia
Alpha-Phi Chapter
These last few months have been great with AlphaPhi. We had our annual Orchid Ball in Charleston, SC. The attendance was great and everyone had a great time. Spring rush was also a success, with one of our largest spring pledge classes. Our Founder’s Day celebration took place in Downtown Athens with great representation from our recent alumni, as well as some new faces from our Alumni Club. Things are on the up and up for Alpha Phi. Georgia Tech
Colony
The Georgia Tech Colony of Sigma Pi is now an associate member of IFC. We’ve been
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| Spring 2009
continuously recruiting and growing all semester and are planning to Charter by the Spring or Fall. Our newly elected Executive Council and Chairmen are determined to lead us to success. This past semester, we hosted an end of the semester dinner to celebrate the progress we’ve had. As for athletics, we competed in multiple intramurals and had a tackle football game with another fraternity on campus. In the spring, we are going to raise money by helping the Cheersport event after a great outcome last year. We are also planning more brotherhood and social events, but focusing mainly on recruitment. We have come a long way since we first colonized and we cannot wait to be chartered and become official brothers. Grand Valley State Theta-Rho Chapter Theta Rho has reached great new heights during the fall semester. Thanks to our brotherhood chair we kept the tradition of date party alive at our alumni house. Our fall recruitment went well as we initiated 6 new brothers from our Theta pledge class. Our philanthropy chair raised over seven hundred dollars towards Sam Spady for ThetaRho’s annual date auction. Our Herald has produced a history book to help new members to understand the local history of the chapter. With community service Theta-Rho showed up in force to participate in Habitat for Humanity as part of a Greek community service event. We put on another successful dinner welcoming Phi Mu to Grand Valley’s campus. We look forward to what the future holds in store for our brotherhood. This new semester has started strongly. Our chapter of 44 men recruited a class of 17 new guys. NME is underway and they are planning on cleaning an inner-city school for their class project this spring. Grand Valley held their Greek Awards Banquet and we won the award for outstanding brotherhood. As the semester is coming to a close, we
are working on multiple community service and philanthropy projects. From selling boxes of doughnuts to getting involved with the local Special Olympics, we are investing ourselves into the community. At the end of the semester, Sigma Pi is teaming up with two other student organizations to do a mile “boxer” run on campus to raise money and awareness for rebuilding schools in war-torn northern Uganda. From our local community to across the globe, Theta Rho is a great example of what an amazing brotherhood is capable of achieving. Illinois
Phi Chapter
So far, Phi chapter has had an exciting and fulfilling fall semester. Our Philanthropy Chair, Andrew Johnson, provided our chapter with ample opportunities to participate in philanthropic activities. Our attendance at these events has been stellar as well. We had two teams compete in Alpha Omicron Pi Mud Olympics and one made it to the semi-finals. During an Alpha Phi kickball tournament, Phi chapter went undefeated and claimed victory in an exciting 1-0 battle. Our pledges did a great job this semester too. They organized a trip to visit Tau chapter at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Also, we initiated 11 committed pledges this fall. Phi chapter also celebrated its 100th anniversary at homecoming. The event could not have been more spectacular. That weekend, almost 300 brothers from all over the country gathered for an exciting and memorable weekend. Phi looks forward to another productive and memorable semester. We got off to a strong start this semester with rush. On February 18th we started are pledge semester by adding seven new pledges this semester, who are all great guys and we are really excited to see how they will improve our chapter in the years to come. Also we installed our new executive council and would like to congratulate Jack Brofman Sage, Jeff Schlueter Second
Counselor, Jason Didier Third Counselor, Tyler Steigerwald Fourth Counselor, Mickey Cronin First Counselor, and Matt Stablein Herald. Recently twelve of our members participated in a Polar Plunge philanthropy event to raise money for the Special Olympics. Where also very excited with other upcoming philanthropy events we will be taking part in. Recently we had our first ever semiformal, which we hope to make a tradition in years to come. Phi chapter is thrilled about how the semester has start and is excited about continuing to work to improve are chapter in the months to come. Illinois Wesleyan Epsilon-Gamma Chapter To begin, we’d like to congratulate six new brothers on their formal initiation: Myles Black, Brandon Carey, Chris Hammer, Max Johnson, Fletcher Keil, and Chris Miller. This fall, we held our annual Dad’s Day event in late October, with twenty father-son pairs bowling and grilling. Additionally, our philanthropy program has been very active. In September, we raised $1800 for cystic fibrosis research, breaking the campus record for dollars raised in a single event and surpassing every other fraternity’s semester total. For Thanksgiving, we conducted our 2nd annual Holiday Food Drive in the Bloomington community, benefitting local food pantries. This spring, brothers visited a nearby nursing home with the ladies of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority to share Valentine’s Day with the residents. Similarly, with the Sigma Kappa sorority, we visited the local pet shelter to complete odd jobs and play with the animals. Indiana
Beta Chapter
Fall 2008 has been an exciting semester for Beta chapter. The chapter was recently awarded the “Most Improved Chapter” at the University’s annual Greek Awards event, sponsored by the four governing
Greek organizations on campus. We are excited to initiate 26 new members who recently finished the Foundation of Membership program and are already positively representing Sigma Pi on campus. In addition, Beta chapter is excited to announce our first annual philanthropy, Tree For Troops, which takes place on December 12. Tree For Troops will help raise money and awareness for the Wounded Warrior Foundation, which helps rehabilitate soldiers who were injured while serving our country. In the future, we are hoping to not only make it an annual philantrophy for Beta chapter, but also seek other chapter involvement as it is a cause that all Sigma Pi men can rally behind to support. Beta chapter and its alumni had a great time recently as we celebrated our Founders’ Day on February 28. Also, Beta Chapter is currently working on organizing and improving two of our projects. Our A.C.E. project has been titled the “Atz Scholarship” and is in honor of Brian Atz, an alumnus who recently passed away. Also, we are currently working on bringing in the mother of Sam Spady to give an alcohol awareness speech, along with another guest speaker, later in the Spring. Indiana Tech Gamma-Kappa Chapter Many organizations today believe that the use of team work will allow them to produce better products and provide better services, faster, and at lower costs. Using a team work approach can give a boost to productivity. With that in mind the Gamma Kappa chapter has created new way of working together to get things done. We all come together on Wednesday and work on the house or help each other with homework. However to establish an effective team work is not something that comes easy. Although, the benefits of effective team work within an organization are very substantial, it takes a lot of hard work and dedication on the part of our Sage and
Chapter News Keene State
nearby alumni to develop, implement and maintain an effective team work. The house is starting to look really good, recently we initiated three neophytes from Spring 2008 and have another two from Fall 2008 going through with a long lost brother within the next couple months. We currently have three pledges going through pledging and have our annual alumni banquet on April 25th, which is shaping up very nicely. All the brothers have been very active lately with our coliseum events which help raise money for the house and helps support the local sports teams. We have our ACE project coming up in the next couple weeks and we are expecting a big turnout. The same goes for our Sam Spady project. Our house overall is looking very good and we have made a lot of improvements lately and expect to be back strong very soon. Iowa
Xi Chapter
Xi chapter had a very active semester. After gaining our largest pledge class, Xi has successfully initiated 22 new members into our brotherhood. We have also just recently installed our new Executive Council which we hope will provide great leadership to further advance the Chapter. We were also able to hold our first annual Alumni Weekend where we were able to hand out the first recipients of our Alumni awards for most active and most successful alumni. We look forward to our future Alumni events and hope to continuously keep close contact and keep our Alumni involved. We are looking forward to another successful semester as we hope to continually increase our membership. This has been an exciting time for the Xi Chapter. Following a fall semester where Xi doubled the house membership and elected new leaders for Executive Board, we have hit the ground running. Our active members are finding ways to contribute in their newly assigned chairs, in an effort to keep the momentum.
Zeta-Alpha Chapter, West Chester, raised $1,500 for the Police Athletic League
The Xi chapter’s initiative can best be seen through our accomplishments in our average GPA. We have raised the average GPA by .2 and have moved up the rankings to 6th at the University of Iowa. On the topic of community service, we recently visited a nursing home and passed out Valentine’s Day cards to senior citizens. Xi’s newest task is to locate permanent housing for after our lease has ended. We have begun searching as well as contacting alumni for assistance in this crucial transition to ensure a prosperous and long lasting history at Iowa. Johnson & Wales Eta-Omega Chapter We have had many recruitment events including a blind date cocktail party, hosting a football game on campus, holding a casino night, movie night, and laser tag event, resulting in the acceptance of 6 new pledges. We are currently in the process of pledging five very bright new members after giving out a total of six bids. We are currently in the process of scheduling socials with the girls soccer team, a social with Sigma Delta Tau, Heaven and Hell Social with Alpha Sigma Tau, and in the process of finding a date to do a social with Phi Sigma Sigma. We have also spent time fundraising resulting in
the opportunity to donate a fifty dollar gift card along with several other presents to the Adopt a Family Foundation. On the February 15 of 2009 the Eta-Omega Chapter of Sigma Pi welcomed the newest addition to our Fraternity, the Alpha Kappa Pledge Class. This pledge class consists of five brothers. These five young men we can now proudly call our Brothers here at Johnson and Wales. Immediately after their acceptance into our chapter, the students at Johnson and Wales were given several reading days to study for finals. In order to ensure that our Brothers would achieve the highest of grades our chapter decided that it would not be prudent to host any events during that seven day period. At the conclusion of finals students here at Johnson and Wales and our Brothers in the Eta-Omega Chapter were given a ten day spring break. With the beginning of the new trimester we are on our way to becoming the best fraternity on campus. Kansas State Iota-Alpha Chapter Congratulations to the our newly elected Executive Board: Jeff CampbellSage, Chris Meier- Second Counselor, Jon Wright- Third Counselor, Ian TomasicFourth Counselor, Josh Snyder- First Counselor, Matt
Hodge- Herald. Our Gamma Pledge Class has just finished their new member education and is on the verge of being initiated. We are excited to have our Delta Pledge Class moving in this spring to help build on the foundation that we have created. During the fall semester, we participated in many philanthropies, and we completed our ACE Project, which was to clean up Aggieville, our bar district, after the Homecoming Parade. In intramurals, we advanced to the semifinals in flag football and also made it to the playoffs in volleyball. This semester started off with officer transitions from last semester. We have installed all new chairs for the next two semesters. We have set up social functions with two other fraternities on campus as well as functions with two prominent sororities (Alpha Delta Pi, and Alpha Xi Delta). Our Chapter’s Chartering date is coming up on the 5th day of May. As well we have Mom’s weekend coming up on April 4th. There are 2 new members as well as our 4 holdovers from the fall class. Our Basketball team went into the playoffs until being defeated by Delta Upsilon. For spring break a lot of members of the house are going on trips to Colorado and Texas to further our brotherhood.
Colony
Currently this quarter we have been busy working on our recruitment. We have received our largest number of recruits in our fraternity’s history, with 15 new members. Along with recruitment, we have planned out our ACE Project and have started getting the dates finalized. We have planned to put on a dinner to give back to the UNICO staff, which is the custodial staff at Keene State College. Also, with being one of the newest colonies in Sigma Pi, we have been very busy working on our charter. Finally, we have just received order forms from Yankee Candle, which will be one of our major fundraising events. We are planning to have them completed within the next two weeks so we will keep you posted on well we do. We are very excited about becoming a colony of Sigma Pi and we will keep you posted on our progress. Kutztown
Eta-Pi Chapter
The Eta Pi chapter welcomed five new members last semester and look forward to the time that is going to be spent with them. In the fall we put on a haunted house for the community of Kutztown. Recently we have completed a trash clean up along side one of the local highways near the university. Our chapter also completed an alcohol awareness presentation for the entire Greek life and any of the students on campus. Everyone from our chapter was there and helped out in making it as successful as it could have been. The entire chapter would like to bid farewell to brothers Jason Mathias and Nik Lasso. Lawrence Tech Zeta-Omicron Chapter Over this last semester Zeta Omicron has done a lot of things. We went to Cedar Point the last two weekends in October. This was a fundraiser for the chapter but it also worked well as a brotherhood event. Each weekend we took 32 brothers
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Chapter News and stayed in the dorms at Cedar Point. The alumni pig roast was also a good event for the brothers as we all got together and were able to catch up with each other and our alumni. The brothers of Zeta Omicron have had a very successful fall semester, which is strongly carrying over into the spring. We held our first annual Halloween Party which was a huge success, with over 200 guests attending, with an exciting men and female costume contests. Over the winter break the chapter headed out to Traverse City for our winter retreat, were we rented a house on the lake and enjoyed 3 days of fraternal bonding. Heading into the spring, we have participated in campus visit days for the potential incoming freshmen, and look forward to our participation in the MS Societies Cycling Fundraiser. Other upcoming events include our annual faculty lunch in and taking the Greek Day Champion title for the second year in a row. Louisiana Tech Delta-Lambda Chapter After the fall rush the Delta Lambda chapter doubled its membership. With our larger chapter we have worked throughout the year to increase our presence on campus and supporting Louisiana Tech’s sports teams. In January we held our annual Winter Active and Alumni retreat and enjoyed seeing all of the Alumni that were able to make it. At the end of the Spring quarter we will be having our annual Alumni crawfish boil. We are looking forward to a strong spring rush and will use the ACE project and rush events to further establish a positive image and a strong presence of Sigma Pi at Louisiana Tech. Loyola - Chicago Beta-Chi Chapter The fall semester has come to a close for the brothers of Beta-Chi. This fall we brought in a great new pledge class and welcomed them as brothers. We have been solidifying our positive relationship with the local
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community, and the campus at large. Our library hours this fall have been the highest ever and we hope to continue increasing our commitment to academics in the Spring. The Beta-Chi chapter will be relocating to a larger house that can only be an asset to our rush process and our image to the campus as a whole. We look forward to our brotherhood retreat as well as our upcoming philanthropy projects. The brothers of Beta Chi have been keeping busy. Recently we worked together with the sisters of Kappa Kappa Gamma to support St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. We lent our support to St. Jude’s by stuffing letters for use with their extensive mailing list, as well as own alumni. The event was a great success. Beta Chi also celebrates our newly acquired house. A stone’s throw away from scenic Lake Michigan, it will be a great asset in attracting new brothers as well as being our new foundation stone on the Loyola campus. Speaking of attracting new brothers, our Rush process was a great success. Not only did our chapter benefit from a fresh crop of young men wanting to join Sigma Pi, but we were happy to see our older brothers become even more deeply involved in Greek Life. Miami (OH)
Eta-Phi Chapter
This past weekend at our Eta Phi Chapter at Miami University brothers took part in Moms’ Weekend. Events Included everything from a catered dinner at the house to a basket auction. Everyone had a great time showing our Sigma Pi moms what we are all about. In addition to this fun weekend, our new members participated in numerous philanthropic events. One of the events was a dance competition among all of the fraternity and sorority pledge classes on campus held by Delta Zeta. The event, held in our university’s basketball arena was a success and our pledges did great and had a good time. Another event was called Anchor Splash and was held by Delta Gamma,
and consisted of a variety of swimming challenges. Currently our chapter is also nearing the end of our pledging process and we have some great new members in the works. Michigan Alpha-Beta Chapter On November 8th, we had the biggest event in our history as a Sigma Pi association as we were officially chartered to become a nationally-recognized chapter of this Fraternity. We would like to thank Fred Salmu, Mike Grant, George Hakim, and Mark Briscoe for their supportive presence and thoughtful speeches at our chartering banquet. Our colony started a year and a half ago with only ten members and, by the time of our chartering date, we multiplied to include fifty dedicated and energetic young men. These next coming months will be particularly exciting for our chapter as we continue to establish ourselves on this great campus, set the precedence for a fellowship of future leaders, and embellish in the ideals of Sigma Pi. Michigan Tech Zeta-Epsilon Chapter Yet again, the Zeta Epsilon Chapter held their annual haunted house for the 22nd year straight. The brothers of Sigma Pi with a helping hand from neighboring sororities were able to raise approximately nine hundred dollars for the pigs in heat charity (a charity that places unfortunate families, who’s homes have caught fire, into motels and purchases food for them). A video of the haunted house can be viewed at www.youtube.com. Middle Tennessee State Theta-Omega Chapter The Fall 2008 Semester has been a particularly good one for the men of Theta-Omega. Thanks to extensive efforts during summer rush, our Gamma pledge class is our biggest ever. We have also continued to be a force on the athletic fields, winning Outdoor Soccer and placing third in Indoor Baseball. For our ACE Project, the brothers
cleaned the tailgating area after our Homecoming football game, and we co-hosted a drunk driving awareness event with our campus police department for our Sam Spady Project. We have continued to be a prominent group at MTSU, as our Sage Seth Howell was elected to the Homecoming Court. Recruitment for our Delta pledge class has already begun, and we expect to again get the best pledge class on campus. We have been working hard to establish ourselves as one of the top fraternities on campus. We have continued to build our name philanthropically with our ACE and Sam Spady Projects, as well as working with the local Boys and Girls Club. We have been very successful this year in sports, as we have placed first in soccer, and placed in the top three in both basketball and indoor soccer. We eagerly wait for our impressive Delta class to join us as brothers. We have continued to increase alumni activity from our chapter by hosting the first annual Alumni vs. Brothers football tournament. As the dawn of the next recruitment approaches, we have taken great measures to ensure we recruit one of the largest classes on campus, as well as a class ready to take the name of Sigma Pi to the top. Millersville Zeta-Gamma Chapter We had big plans and even bigger expectations coming into the new school year. Unfortunately, one of our plans was to get at least five new members into our fraternity. Our entire Greek Life on campus had an extremely hard time getting any new members and we ended up with zero. However, we did accomplish a volunteer blood drive with Sigma Phi Delta which was a huge success. We also had an alumni picnic where over thirty alumni gathered at a local country club to play golf, eat good food, catch up with older brothers, and get to know the new ones. We have big plans for the upcoming spring semester and we cannot wait to get
things started. Minnesota
Iota-Zeta Chapter
Iota-Zeta has just completed its first semester as a chapter. The year started with a successful Foam Party which raised money for the Sam Spady Foundation. Mid-semester we held a father’s weekend. This event was very successful and next semester we will hold a mother’s weekend as well. We just admitted six pledges into the fraternity. We also have just held elections for the upcoming year. We have many great ideas for the upcoming semester and hope to have a great pledge class. Our goal is to match and exceed the number of graduates we have in the upcoming semester. We would also like to get more involved in the Greek community here at UMN. Also, next semester we will be holding an Orchid Ball and hope to have great success for that. Missouri Gamma-Sigma Chapter This year at the Gamma Sigma chapter, we hosted the Province Archon retreat which went well and had a great turnout from the different chapters around Missouri. For our fall semester, we had a wonderful rush chair that did his job extremely well, recruiting 12 new members, with several more lined up for the spring semester. Our A team in football is doing very well this year, in the playoffs at the moment and hopefully winning 1st place in the future. We have started repairing and renovating the exterior of our house thanks to contributions from our alumni, and already the outside looks better than before. We won Alpha Xi Omega’s overall philanthropy, and also did well in Kappa Alpha Theta’s. Lastly, Gamma Sigma has Founder’s Day lined up in February, and promises to have a good turnout thanks to the efforts of our newly elected Alumni Chair. At the Gamma Sigma chapter, we just had our Founders’ Day, which brought a good amount of Alumni to a local bar, Harpo’s. They enjoyed
Chapter News themselves while we gave out our house awards, and Adam Tipton won Alumni of the Year. We also recently competed in Alpha Phi’s Rockin’ Red Dress Poker Tournament, where we lasted in the tournament for a good while before eventually being eliminated while still having a good time. Our pledge class size is the best we’ve had in years, having 7 for the spring, which is good for any size house on campus. They were inducted recently, to everyone’s elation, and the upcoming semester we’ll be expecting even more new members. We’ll be participating in Kappa Delta’s Wingman competition, and can’t wait to dig into those wings.
Make a Wish Philanthropy. With our “Through the Decades” routine. We also got 2nd in the Delta Gamma’s Anchor Splash. North Carolina State Rho Chapter
Missouri – St. Louis Delta-Zeta Chapter
The Theta Gamma Chapter, West Alabama, ACE Project was a UWA Campus Cleanup
Entering fall after a successful spring semester and an outstanding cumulative GPA well above the All-Men’s average at UMSL, the chapter was looking forward to another busy but successful semester. After closing out our fall recruitment with twelve new members puts our chapter heading into spring as a 40+ man chapter.
Ronald McDonald house once again by taking down the 20ft. Christmas tree and as well as the lights on the house. The chapter would like to also congratulate Sean Grove for graduating this past December with a degree in International Business. This semester we pledged in 3 new guys that are going to contribute a lot to our chapter.
There are already guys that have starting showing interest in coming through next semester. Our chapter has held many philanthropic events on campus including Toys for Tots, Baby It’s Cold Outside and Pack the Pantry. Our 40th Annual Orchid Ball is April 18th 2009. The Delta Zeta chapter holds a campus standing as the dominant student leaders among our fellow Greeks and our fellow students.
This semester has been a good one for the chapter of Eta-Mu. We presented a check for $1,500 for the Learning Center for them to provide the school with new and up to date software. Also we hosted Patty Spady to come to our school to speak on the importance of Alcohol Awareness. She was very welcomed to MSSU and we were very happy to meet her. Her video and story that she presented will hopefully make an impact on the student body and keep them aware of the danger of binge drinking as they go to Spring Break this semester.
Missouri Southern State Eta-Mu Chapter The Eta Mu chapter of Sigma Pi has been very active on campus and the community this semester! We had our Walk-a-thon and raised $2000 for the Learning Center, which will be used to buy new computer software. For our Sam Spady Project this semester we will be having Patty Spady come and lecture the student body on alcohol awareness. She will be attending MSSU March 9th the week before Spring Break at the annual Safe Spring Break. We helped with the
Missouri S&T Alpha-Iota Chapter Here at Alpha-Iota we just finished a semester packed full of adventure. We just celebrated our 75th anniversary and are working on new rush tactics. Philanthropy this semester has been a blast; our big project was working with a local elementary school, Truman Elementary, to help
rebuild their outdoor nature area. We’ve added nine great new members to our house, and hope to be getting a few more next semester. This Semester at AlphaIota has been an enjoyable one. We have been busy having a blast at the St. Pat’s celebrations, helping out the school with our ACE Project, and informing our fellow students about alcohol awareness. While we didn’t sign any new pledges this semester we are working on a new rush program that could looks promising. We have six great members graduating this semester. We would like to congratulate all the graduates this semester and wish them all the best of luck.
We ended up exceeding the goal and collected 60 pints of blood. We’ve also been doing some local work with the Sam Spady Project, which included presentations with high school students. Once again we’ve been able to be on top for highest GPA among the rest of the Greek organizations. Delta-Beta Chapter is having our Blood Drive on April 21st. We hope to beat our expected goal from last semester. We will also be having a fundraiser where we will have all the sororities play in a Powderpuff football tournament. Each team will be coached by the brothers of Sigma Pi. We will also be attending
Monmouth Delta-Beta Chapter
Morehead State Delta-Rho Chapter
We’ve had another successful semester. We had a very selective recruitment program and picked the best rushees that we saw fit to join our organization. We welcomed in four new brothers to our chapter this fall and look forward for more next semester.
The Delta Rho Chapter of Sigma Pi has participated in many different activities this fall, starting with our ACE Week. ACE Week consisted of a night we cleaned up Eagle Lake. We also had a Date Auction, and the proceeds went to Sunrise Foster Care. The Chief of Police at Morehead State University came and spoke about the dangers of alcoholism, and on the final night, there was a dinner for the dates from the date auction along with a carnival with fun and games for our Sober Sam project. We received an award for Most Original in the Chi Omega’s Chi-O Follies
Homecoming looked good for Sigma Pi Delta Beta chapter as we welcomed back alumni from the past 40 years. Many familiar faces showed up and some we haven’t seen in a long time. This semester’s blood drive went well. We had a goal of collecting 40 pints of blood.
This semester, the brothers of Rho chapter were proud to welcome sixteen new brothers into the fold. We look forward to witnessing them better the chapter through positions of responsibility and leadership in the upcoming years. In other news, the brothers have remained active in the community over the past few weeks, participating in the Adopt-a-Highway cleanup. The brothers also attended the Special Populations Dance, a dance for mentally and physically disabled youth. It was a great opportunity for the brotherhood, and we had a great time and an amazing experience. Finally, Rho chapter welcomed in a new Executive Council. Congratulations to Sage Peter Barnes, Second Counselor Barry Plemmons, Third Counselor Drew Thomas, Fourth Counselor John Horner, First Counselor Anderson Meadows, Herald Harrison Friedland, and Pledgemaster Andrew Hancock. Oakland
Zeta-Pi Chapter
Having some difficultly in the past year, the Zeta Pi chapter is making a comeback! This fall, we held our 14th Annual Pig Roast, which continues to be the largest on-campus event of the year. We’ve also started a new all-Greek softball event called Frostball that was held the first Saturday in November. The Relay for Life walk for cancer took place in March in which we raised more money than any other student/Greek organization on campus. We hold brotherhood events every 2-3 weeks and are including an increasing number of our supportive alumni. We’ve also taken an active role in the newly established Greek Council, which will improve inter-Greek relations as well as work to improve the overall image of Greeks on our campus. We anticipate a
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Chapter News very successful fall rush and are looking forward to the bright future ahead of us! The Zeta Pi chapter has been using the winter semester to get everything in order for the fall. We are going to explode this semester with the goal of a pledge class that will double the size of the chapter. Also, we are going to be participating in our local annual Relay for Life event, which the brothers have a blast with each year, with our traditional root beer pong fundraiser! Ohio Northern
Zeta Chapter
Zeta Chapter is growing with a new pledge class that started their pledging process in the fall and will soon be initiated as new members of Sigma Pi. While maintaining good scholarship the fraternity has been very active this year. There is a large emphasis on fixing up the Zeta chapter house. We had a brotherhood event where everyone participated in a house-wide cleaning. We volunteered at the Special Olympics for a philanthropy event and we will soon be hosting a faculty dinner where we cook and serve the food and present our previous and new chapter advisor an award. Also before Thanksgiving we had our semiformals which was a blast. Old Dominion Theta-Eta Chapter Theta Eta Chapter at Old Dominion University just initiated twenty new members into its fellowship. The new members made a presentation to the entire Greek community at Old Dominion University about Alcohol Awareness. Also, the chapter sponsored an event called “Party Politics,” an informational fundraiser to promote the upcoming November elections. Highstanding politicians made speeches for the candidates and a mock-election was held. This coming semester we are planning a fifteenman pledge class. Our committees have been revamped; and our new executive board is planning on building off the success of the previous one.
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| Spring 2009
Oregon State
Omega Chapter
Omega Chapter of Sigma Pi has had a productive fall term, rushing fifteen new members and initiating an additional three into the house. Recently the chapter held a barbecue event for our alumni on homecoming weekend. In the past week the chapter had held its annual Executive Council nominations, electing a new and inspired EC. This term started off with our annual executive council retreat to the beach where we met with alumni and brothers from the Iota Epsilon chapter. The next weekend was our Sunriver retreat where we had a good opportunity to build brotherhood and set chapter goals. We have had a busy term with philanthropy events and intramural sports. A couple of the events we participated in are, Kappa Delta’s Mock Rock, and Alpha Gamma’s Rodeo. We are proud of our intramural basketball team who was able to make it all the way to the championship game. Unfortunately we were unable to get the victory, but we put up a good fight. As this term is coming to an end we are looking forward to another exciting spring term. Pennsylvania
Delta Colony
We recently completed our Ace Project with the University of Pennsylvania Police and a mentoring program with which they are associated. We are very proud to announce the reestablishment of a university recognized Chapter House on campus. With the help of the International Headquarters and local alumni, we were able to generate enough capital to completely fund the initial leasing process. The colony seeks to charter by the end of this year and the acquisition of this property is definitely a big step towards this goal! With the recruitment season approaching quickly, we hope our success will be shared by all brothers across the nation during our chartering banquet which will hopefully be held in late spring.
Penn College Theta-Phi Chapter It has been another great fall semester at the Theta Phi chapter! We have helped raise over $6,100 dollars for the Williamsport Autism Conference/Walk and the chapter has produced over 170 hours of community service. Also we had our annual formal at a local winery with a slide show of memories this semester and awards were handed to those brothers who have expressed unique abilities within the brotherhood. Our brotherhood dinners were amazing, from the way each brother’s cooking skills came in hand. Future plans and events have been set, like the Greek blood drive and doing the autism awareness conference again, myself and every other brother would agree that this semester has given us a realization of the kind of relationship that we have with each other and still have that same relationship for future and past brothers. Another semester has passed for the brothers of the Theta-Phi chapter, and we stand strong. We look forward to our brotherhood events: a camping trip, casino night, and pong tournament, to name a few. For rush events we had a BBQ, bowling, billiards, dodge ball and more, which have produced men with the integrity and strength of mind to follow our brotherhood’s ideals. Our fundraising events consist of: a BBQ for students, alumni baseball t-shirt sales, and future events like Dorney or Hershey Park and community services like helping out a local church and Habitat for Humanity. Finally, we of the Theta Phi chapter would like to say thanks to Nick Frees for giving a speech in our recognition. If we are recognized, we can give and receive aid to the Greek counsel. We feel as a brotherhood we can better ourselves and the Penn College Greek life. Penn State
Theta Chapter
The fall semester at Theta
Chapter has been a stellar one. Fundraising efforts for Penn State’s student and Greek philanthropy, THON, are well underway, and we hope to surpass our last year’s total of $113,494. The brotherhood took first place with Kappa Alpha Theta sorority in the annual Greek Sing competition. The chairmen for Greek Sing, Brothers Mike Carite, Matt Nicolosi, and Kyle Karschner did a great job running all the subsequent events that led to our victory in this illustrious event. With our successes in the above events, along with a newly elected Executive Board, a high-quality pledge class of 16 gentlemen and the superb condition of the house with the newly donated carpets and furniture, Theta Chapter is looking forward to a positive 2009 and beyond. Things are going well at Theta chapter right now. The chapter is fully involved in our capital campaign, and have received news that we will soon begin a four year renovation plan that hopefully will be done by our 100th anniversary. We are proud to say that we were once again in the top 10 for GPA for all of the fraternities here at Penn State, currently number 7 with a 3.24 GPA. Theta would also like to thank John Frost for his recent visit and for the strong support. Penn State – Altoona Theta-Iota Chapter The men of Theta-Iota initiated 6 new members in fall of 2008. Since then we have been very active on campus. We hosted our annual on campus, Event of the Year award winning Super Bowl party, as well as contributed to Penn State Dance Marathon during their Extreme Dodgeball Tournament where we defeated a pool of 20 teams in a double elimination tournament in which we prevailed as the champions. Our campus held its annual Sex on Campus fair which is sponsored by the campus health and wellness center and promotes several sexual awareness topics.
With our motor in high gear, we are looking forward to our upcoming events. Bounce Marathon which benefits Easter Seals of Central PA is coming up in April and our annual Creek Clean-up ACE Project is scheduled for the first weekend in May. To end our year, we are planning to sponsor an on-campus slip n slide during Spring Fling week. Rhode Island Alpha-Upsilon Chapter This semester has been a busy one for our Rhode Island chapter. We participated in numerous philanthropy events including campus blood drives and a beach clean up. We also were invited to the Roger Williams Zoo to help clean up after the animals. Our semester has been filled with Gillette Stadium trips where we run a concession stand to raise money during Patriot games, concerts, and other events. Our chapter hosted its first annual alumni pig roast where actives and alumni were able to exchange stories about their time at Sigma Pi. We welcomed 9 new brothers to the chapter this fall. This month has been dedicated to work on Greek week that is coming up in about a month. As for events, this month we participated in our 3rd annual bowling event and had a great turnout. We also made it to the play-offs in the intramural basketball team. Rowan
Zeta-Chi Chapter
Here at the Zeta-Chi chapter at Rowan University, we recently completed selecting our new E-Board members. A number of our young guys have stepped up to hold various chair positions, which is very good to see. For the second year running, we are the Rowan University Fraternity League Indoor Soccer Champions. Alpha Epsilon Phi has asked us to participate in Greek Week with them in the upcoming semester, and the brotherhood is looking forward to the event. We also recently held a large Bar-B-Q with one of the sororities on
Chapter News campus and we had a huge turnout. In the future, we hope to hold a few more Bar B Q’s with hopes to get a large turnout of rushes for the next semester. Zeta Chi has had an exciting spring semester thus far. We currently have our largest pledge class in 4 years. With many graduating seniors this year, the new class will play a large part in our future progress. On another note, Zeta Chi has won the Intramural Fraternity Soccer League Championship for the second straight year, and hopes to win the 5-on-5 basketball tournament for the 2nd straight year as well. After our return from spring break, we will host a faculty car wash as an Ace project that has proved itself to be a huge success after a large turnout last year. The end of the semester looks promising, as we hope to initiate all of our new members. Salisbury
Theta-Xi Chapter
The Theta Xi chapter has had a very successful year, being the only fraternity on campus to be awarded A Chapter. This semester we have been participating with an organization called Surfrider helping to clean up our local beaches. We had our traditional camping trip to Assateague Island just prior to initiating our latest Kappa pledge class. We are looking forward to celebrating our five year anniversary in April. San Jose State Beta-Eta Chapter We had a very successful semester this fall and we initiated a total of eleven new members. Participation in fraternity events increased and we had good participation in other fraternity and sorority events. This spring we plan to rush hard and pull some where around ten additional pledges. We have many freshmen Junior Initiates who should be able to bring in additional pledges this spring. This spring should be another successful semester with a good focus on grades and events such as founders day and our basketball
Currently we’re nearing the end of classes and pledgeship for the Fall. The Gamma Pledge class returned a couple of days ago from experiencing a history tour at Alpha’s road rally and are looking forward to being initiated into the secrets and mysteries. Southern Tech Epsilon-Alpha Chapter
Omega Chapter brothers, Oregon State, clowning around during a Bar-B-Q for alumni during homecoming
tournament. We are currently planning out the semester schedule and it should be completed shortly. Two of our active members Mather Bales and Ivan Trujillo are graduating as of this semester. Santa Clara
Zeta-Eta Chapter
The brothers at the Zeta Eta chapter have had another great year so far. We initiated a total of 21 men. Over Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks, a total of 10 brothers and a few alumni went on immersion trips to build houses in Mexico. We also have dominated in Sorority philanthropy events, winning Alpha Phi’s Star Search and having teams place in the top three at Kappa Alpha Theta’s Dodgeball Tournament. We are currently planning ahead to the spring, organizing our MS Volleyball Tournament, Father-Son and Mother-Son weekends, and a brotherhood bowling league. Southern Arkansas Epsilon-Kappa Chapter The Epsilon Kappa Chapter of Sigma Pi at Southern Arkansas is having an excellent spring semester. After only having two pledges in the fall our recruitment has gone up a lot and we have acquired 15 really good guys for the spring semester. The brothers of Sigma Pi at SAU
have started getting more involved with the community and have gained over 125 hours of community service since January. We are looking forward to our ace project that should be coming up really soon. We are about to take our annual river trip and attend our Formal in the upcoming weeks and that should be a lot of fun. Southern Illinois - Edwardsville Delta-Omega Chapter Exciting things are happening at the Delta Omega chapter. We are preparing to initiate 15 new members and have high goals with the newly elected Executive Council. While our campus is transitioning to a Division 1 school, we are examining recruitment procedures in order to improve rush. Although Greek life tends to struggle at SIUE due to lack of housing, the brothers of Delta Omega topple the competition of other fraternities. During the end of October, our chapter hosted its first Haunted Trail fundraiser that raised nearly $1500 in two evenings. Winding down fall semester, the focus on finals is intensifying as brothers work together to boost our GPA over the other chapters on our campus for a second consecutive semester. As spring rush approaches, we look towards recruitment and
actively search our campus for worthy prospects. The Delta-Omega Chapter made over $2,000 at our last fundraiser, Take a Ride with Sigma Pi. This fundraiser is a yearly success, but it also provides students at SIUE a bus service to Mardi Gras in St. Louis by making sure they get back safely. Rush Week yielded eight new pledges, all of whom are exceptionally raising the bar for the chapter. We also initiated nine new brothers this semester, boosting our numbers and strengthening our brotherhood. We are taking active leadership roles in the Greek community, including two brothers who were recently elected to executive roles within Greek Council. Brother and Sage Tim Mims is the newlyelected Sergeant-at-Arms and Tony Mason continues to excel as Vice President, with the latter helping spearhead an All-Greek Ball for the entire Greek community. Southern Indiana Theta-Psi Chapter The men of Theta-Psi chapter have had a busy semester. We started the semester off with a bang, by hosting a hog roast as our ace project. Next, we hosted the organization’s Executive Directer Mark Briscoe as he gave a speech on Sam Spady to a mixed USI audience.
This semester has been great for our members. We have five pledges who show a great commitment to the fraternity and our ideals. Elections are coming up, and we have several active members with fresh ideas who really want to advance our image on campus running for council. Fundraising at the Georgia Dome has proven to be a lucrative and enjoyable means of getting money. We are planning to hold a dance to celebrate the selection of our sweetheart at some point in the coming weeks. In addition, our Founders’ Day celebration was very successful. We had several alumni who we hadn’t seen for a while show up, and we all had a good time watching videos from a camping trip we went on earlier in the semester. We are looking forward to next semester, in which we are expecting to have a pledge class that is even larger than our current selection. SUNY – Buffalo Epsilon-Omicron Chapter It was another successful semester for the brothers of the Epsilon Omicron chapter. The chapter successfully completed multiple philanthropy events, continuing a longstanding tradition of working hard to better the community. As next semester approaches rapidly, the chapter has spent a lot of time preparing the second half of the school year. Elections were held for new committee chairs for both Pledging and Spring Recruitment and the date has been set for our Thirtieth Annual Active/ Alumni Formal. The chapter has also made plans for our first ever ACE Project Charity Basketball Tournament which will take place in late Spring. With a busy semester ahead,
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Chapter News the brothers of Epsilon Omicron are looking forward to continued excellence at the University at Buffalo. The Epsilon Omicron chapter has kicked into gear. We have been very successful this year with our pledge program and are making successful strides in parallel to the Gold Standard. It is our 30th anniversary on the SUNY Buffalo campus this year. We are the oldest organization of our type on campus and we will continue to set standards while participating in events such as Relay for Life this semester. Many of our alumni will be attending our 30th Anniversary celebrations. It has been a very exciting and successful year for our chapter and we have big plans for next year. TCNJ
Theta-Delta Chapter
This has been another exciting semester for Theta Delta chapter. We remained highly involved on campus with programs of our own such as the Pi Sale and in other organization’s, both Greek and non-Greek, events such as AIDS Awareness Week. Our intramural team won the A-league championship in volleyball. Jason Taestch was featured in the campus newspaper’s editorial section multiple times for his witty and insightful writings on contemporary American politics. The Fraternity spearheaded a movement to create an IFC which is well underway and should be fully recognized sometime next semester. Many brotherhood events have gone on as well such as Thanksgiving dinner and our classic other events. From here we are looking forward to Spring Rush and continuing our tradition of brotherhood and excellence. This has been another stellar semester for ThetaDelta chapter. We are currently in the process of initiating 19 new members. They are a strong and diverse group that is highly involved on campus with groups like Varsity Football and Track and the singing group I-tunes. The chapter
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is very excited to participate in this year’s Greek Week with Kappa Delta Sorority. We have been happy to continue some on-campus Sigma Pi traditions like Cuts For Cancer, a philanthropy event co-sponsored with the campus American Cancer Society. Also this semester, we will hopefully be hosting a week long Sam Spady project for the campus community. Besides from all this we constantly have continued to strive to live like true Sigma Pi members and to make the most of our college experiences. Texas-San Antonio Iota-Delta Chapter Had a good semester with a good pledge class. We got 11 new guys, which bring us back to a healthy number of guys. We had a big change in our EC with almost every position filled by someone new. Planning for next semester is well under way. Toronto
Eta-Omicron Chapter
This semester we took our pledge class for a Big Brother/Little Brother dinner, which took place at the downtown Toronto Hooters. Furthermore, we initiated six new Brothers into the Fraternity, which seem to be one of the brightest pledge classes in recent memory. This semester we had the opportunity to host a social exchange with the girls from Delta Psi Delta sorority in Toronto. The event was a great success, and we already have plans for future events with Delta Psi Delta. We also had an informal social, and a great time, with the girls from Alpha Phi sorority. We hosted a big Superbowl party at our house complete with multiple screens and homemade chili! We also celebrated out chapter’s Founders’ Day with a big dinner that was attended by over twenty-five actives and alumni. During this period, we also organized our annual Alumni Wine and Cheese event, our annual Orchid Ball and our Sigma Pi Founders’ Day Korean BBQ lunch.
Towson
Eta-Nu Chapter
Eta-Nu is finishing up yet another outstanding semester. We just recently installed our new executive council and expect them to lead our chapter to continued success. Eta-Nu is also holding our annual TRL Invitational Basketball Tournament in an effort to bring together the Greek community and raise money for the Sam Spady Foundation. We’re also already in the works for setting up a great spring semester. We will be holding our ACE Project, competing for our 13th Greek Week title in 16 years, and having a strong rush. We look forward to seeing everyone at Midyear. Ursinus
Theta-Sigma Chapter
The Theta Sigma chapter here at Ursinus College is poised to expand in members next semester after a great rush season. We have participated in several community service projects such as cleaning up the house and yard of our fraternity mother Betty. We also sent many letters out to help raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. We have elected a new e-board which promises to be our strongest yet. Our intramural volleyball team has just won for the 4th year in a row. We are also in the process of asking the sisters of Sigma Sigma Sigma to be our sister sorority here on campus. The brothers of Theta Sigma chapter at Ursinus College have finished up a strong rushing season before we left for winter break. We are excited to begin the New Member Education process in a few weeks. Many brothers are about to begin participation in intramural sports such as basketball, field hockey, and dodgeball. Our fraternity grandmother, Betty, is doing well as we continue to visit her and help around the house. Valparaiso
Beta-Tau Chapter
The Beta Tau Chapter of Sigma Pi was proud to recruit 15 new members this Spring semester. We continue to hold various brotherhood
events such as brotherhood dinners every month. We are also currently working out details of our new house that will begin construction in the near future pending zoning approval from the city. Vincennes
Alpha Chapter
Alpha’s first semester has been an exciting one. We have had many community service events that have totaled over 200 hours. We have held a canned food drive, helped the elderly, and participated in a campus clean-up just to name a few. We also held a Thanksgiving dinner for the faculty and staff of the university that was a huge success. We are about to initiate 20 new men into the fraternity who bring a promise of new leadership to the chapter. Brother Dan Verhoeven is back from Iraq and plans to return to school next semester. We would like to wish everyone happy hollidays and good luck with your spring semester. The second semester has gone very good for the Alpha chapter. We were honored with the presence of the Grand Third Counselor Edward R. Levesque at our Founders’ Banquet celebrating the 112 year since the birth of Sigma Pi. 124 people were at the banquet and everyone had a great time. There were 3 scholarships given out that night, 2 of which were from the George Patterson Educational Fund, the Sage Covey Detmer and Zach Sarver each received checks for $750 dollars. Blake Hollins won the Ryan M. Donnoe Memorial Scholorship for $500 dollars. We have 10 people pledging in our spring class which allowed us to meet our quota of 32 initiates. We are currently leading all male fraternity’s in GPA at Vincennes, and intend to keep it that way. Virginia
Beta-Pi Chapter
The brotherhood of Beta Pi is glad to report the conclusion of a successful semester. During our Fall Rush, Beta Pi brought in five new Neophytes. We look forward to our main Spring Rush, where we hope
to bring in a New Generation of Leaders to join our chapter. We also look forward to many of our favorite events, which occur in the Spring Semester. We will host our Second Annual Surf and Turf, in the wake of its huge success last year. We also look forward to a University of Virginia tradition, the Foxfield Races. We look forward to having all of our Alumni return to Charlottesville for an important moment in Beta Pi history, our 50th Anniversary Celebration on April 3 and 4, 2009. Recently, our chapter participated in Comfort Zone, a community service project involving brothers working with multi-cultural organizations for Habitat for Humanity as well as local children’s camps. The next two months will be busy for Beta-Pi, Hoos N Sync philanthropy (co-hosted with Sigma Kappa Sorority) is a lip-syncing dance contest hosted to benefit Alzheimer’s research, which will take place April 10th. April 17th will be the 2nd Annual Surf N Turf, a outdoor live-music event with food. All proceeds from the event will go to Water for Wum, a water purification project benefiting a village in Cameroon. In other news, Beta-Pi boasts a 16 person Spring ‘09 pledge class following a successful rush. The fraternity’s 50th Anniversary will be celebrated on April 3rd with a formal dinner at Boar’s Head Inn, and reception at the chapter house. Wake Forest Alpha-Nu Chapter With the recent addition of three new members this fall, Alpha-Nu continues to grow and prosper. Maintaining a work-hard play-hard attitude, the preceding semester has seen a successful Sam Spady campaign informing the incoming freshman classes of the dangers of alcohol poisoning, a productive fundraiser for cancer research in the “Hit the Bricks for Brian Piccolo” race, the continued maintenance of AlphaNu’s prized (and highly
Chapter News popular) Reynolda Village trail, the transformation of the fraternity lounge into a haunted house for local Winston-Salem children, and an extremely entertaining Mountain Weekend in addition to numerous other social endeavors. With Finals arising and the year winding down, Alpha-Nu is looking forward to a strong rush and spring semester. Washington State
Colony
Since we have started the year with only three returning members, Washington State University colony has now accepted almost thirty new members. We have taken many different fraternity trips together such as: taken a hike on a nearby mountain trail where we plan to do philanthropy events at, a road trip to OSU to visit their chapter and many more. We plan to continue and excel on recruiting in order to charter hopefully by the end of the Spring or beginning of next Fall. We are all very excited on how Sigma Pi here barely survived with only a few head-strong individuals and now it has taken off running to become a chapter. Sigma Pi at WSU is growing stronger by the day and is looking forward to be one the best fraternity on campus. Wayne State Gamma-Omega Chapter The past few semesters have been kind of rough. Slowly but surely the chapter is getting back up to par. The chapter has participated in many events from winning the Homecoming Court to the President’s Cup. We also have Brother Jake Kinde as the Student Council President and Alumni Matthew Koss as the Law School rep. The chapter is in the process of Gamma Omega and Wayne State University adopting a precedent of Drug and Alcohol Awareness Week. West Alabama Theta-Gamma Chapter Theta Gamma chapter of Sigma Pi has had an exciting semester full of Academic and Intramural triumph. The flag football squad finished in the
top four of the men’s division and the co-ed team finished a close runner up. We are very excited to welcome four new initiates into the brotherhood, as well as saying goodbye to brother Ryan Reed who is graduating with a degree in Computer Information Systems. We have executed many philanthropy events including collecting over one hundred cans of food for the less fortunate for a thanksgiving dinner. We are looking forward to a strong spring semester guided by our newly elected Executive Council. The brothers in the Theta Gamma chapter of Sigma Pi have currently been involved in numerous amounts of philanthropy activities and community service. These activities include: Helping Nathan at the Coleman Center with his day care in York. Brothers planted 25 trees, cleaned soil, and spread mulch. We have also held our Adopt a Mile Cleanup, and participated at the Campus Day Care during a book fair they held. Finally, the ACE Project this semester was a UWA campus cleanup. West Chester Zeta-Alpha Chapter The men of Zeta Alpha had another great year as the largest fraternity at WCU. Our ACE project was an enormous success, incorporating Project Clothesline and a Take Back the Night rally. Both of these events help to raise awareness of sexual assault and violence against women. We also held our 14th Annual Sorority Showdown, which raised $1500 for the Police Athletic League. As of late Zeta Alpha has been very successful in the sports realm. We are currently two-time basketball and soccer champions, softball champions, and we placed 2nd in football. We have a strong presence on campus, as our current president is also the Vice President of SGA. We also have three brothers on the IFC executive board as well as numerous other brothers involved in organizations across campus that continue to put Sigma Pi in a good light.
West Virginia Tech Gamma-Xi Chapter We held a welcome back mixer at the start of the semester. Our chapter has held three pool tournaments. We did very well at the Greek Week games getting second place. Our second counselor won first place in the Miss Alpha Sigma Tau Pageant. We held our Orchid Ball at Hank’s Nest State Park. We constructed a fence around the front yard. We remodeled the back tool room and the study room. We purchesed a new stove, washer, and dryer. We attended Mid-Year in St. Louis. We went to Ryan’s for Founders’ Day. Western Illinois Epsilon-Zeta Chapter The brothers at Western Illinois have had an outstanding semester. We raised over 300 dollars in our inaugural date auction to support breast cancer. The brothers also came up with many ideas to improve this event for next year. The Sam Spady flag football tournament had a great outcome. We initiated nine great new members and the brothers are currently planning for rush next semester. The brothers of Epsilon-Zeta chapter are planning great events for alumni weekend and Founders’ Day and look forward to their success. We would like to thank our alumni for assisting with elections and their support throughout the semester. We look forward to a starting a new semester and will continue lifting as we climb! William Paterson Theta-Tau Chapter Greetings from Theta Tau! We’ve been quite busy this semester, and have a ton planned for the Spring. First off, we’d like to welcome our eight newest brothers from the Eta pledge class. These gentlemen are a great addition to our chapter. This past semester, we’ve crowned a new Sigma Pi Cutie Pi during our Sigma Pi Cutie Pi Pageant, which was held in conjunction with our annual Sam Spady Awareness project. We also handed out hot chocolate to the student body, and recently
participated in our 2nd Annual Breakfast with Santa community service event. We’ve got a week long ACE project lined up for the Spring, and have been diligently getting everything set for another successful semester. Wisconsin – Madison Tau Chapter The brothers of Tau Chapter just recently celebrated our most successful Founders’ Day event to date. We would like to thank all of our alumni for their overwhelming support and donations. Our new EC has big plans for rush next semester, and many of us are excited for what lies ahead. Last semester we graduated our last remaining founding father, Andrew Marsh. From all of us at Tau Chapter, we wish him the best of luck in his career. Wisconsin – Oshkosh Gamma-Mu Chapter Brother Derek Brokaw was driving to a job interview in Chilton, WI when his car was struck by a train moving full force. Because of the layout of the tracks and the height of surrounding fields, he didn’t see it coming until it was too late. His car was ripped in two and dragged 800ft. before finally becoming wedged under the rail of a bridge. Rescue workers found Derek pinned within the car. Miraculously he survived, with only breaks to non-weight bearing bones, an inner-ear injury, and lacerations. We are proud to report that, a few months, a pair of crutches, and many stitches later, Brother Brokaw has made a total recovery and has returned to his classes this semester. Wisconsin – Platteville Delta-Iota Chapter The Delta Iota Chapter has had a great Fall 2008 Semester. We started off the year presenting the Sam Spady alcohol awareness program to the entire freshman class. Recruitment went well with lots of interest in our various activities including a hog roast the third week of school, and we finished up the process by initiating five new brothers. The homecoming celebration
was a great success with a lot of alumni coming back to show their support. The brothers grouped together to build a float that proved to be a favorite in the competition. We have several philanthropy events coming up throughout the rest of the semester including a highway cleanup and shoveling snow for a local church and elderly residents in the neighborhood. Worcester Polytech Gamma-Iota Chapter Fall Terms are coming to a close and Gamma Iota Chapter will be able to start again in January for Spring classes with a pledge class of 12 men. Rush was successful and the incoming pledge class looks very promising. The sprinkler fund for the house is still in the works; however the House Manager has done an excellent job in repairing a portion of our recently condemned basement which is now open and able to occupy a maximum of 50 guests. The Gamma-Iota chapter has recently initiated 10 new members into the secrets and mysteries of Sigma Pi. With its new members, the brotherhood is looking forward to the spring, where it will host many events, including its annual spring alumni event, Clam Bake, the annual Formal Dance, Orchid Ball, and a host of other social and philanthropic events. Members of the Gamma Iota chapter are a diverse group of men. They are leaders on campus, with members on most major campus organizations. Sigma Pi is the most well represented Fraternity on the school’s Inter-Fraternity Council. The brotherhood has many athletes, both at the varsity and club levels. There are actors, directors, playwrights, and comedians. The brotherhood has many musicians. Members of the Gamma Iota chapter are responsible for starting Rho Beta Epsilon, a new Robotics Honor Fraternity, as well as holding office in other National Honor Fraternities.
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dreams
“Now it is time to take longer strides — time for a great new American enterprise — time for this nation to take a clearly leading role in space achievement, which in many ways may hold the key to our future on earth,” said President John F. Kennedy. In May 1961, President Kennedy announced the
goal of sending astronauts to the moon before the end of the decade. Coming just three weeks after Mercury astronaut Alan Shepard became the first American in space, Kennedy’s bold challenge set the nation on a journey unlike any before in human history. With his inspirational address to Congress, Kennedy set in motion an acceleration to the United States space program. Eight years of hard work by thousands of Americans came to fruition on July 20, 1969, when Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong stepped out of the lunar module and took “one small step” in the Sea of Tranquility, calling it “a giant leap for mankind.”
credits Sidebar information courtesy of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Photos courtesy of NASA, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (NASA-MSFC), NASA Kennedy Space Center (NASA-KSC) Background images from the Hubble Telescope: NASA, H. Ford (JHU), G. Illingworth (UCSC/LO), M.Clampin (STScI), G. Hartig (STScI), the ACS Science Team, and ESA
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In an elementary school in Dunmore, Pennsylvania, a young boy’s dream was born: to be an astronaut. “As long as I can remember my life’s ambition was to be an astronaut,” said Paul Richards (Beta Theta, Drexel ‘87). “I saw an Apollo launch when I was in kindergarten and that event sparked my dream. I had a poster of the Apollo Astronauts that I kept under my bed for safe keeping. I still have the poster today.” Paul W. Richards was born
May 20, 1964 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He grew up in Dunmore which is your typical working class town where everyone knows each other and the residents come from many ethnic backgrounds.
of his life. In his goodbye to his father, Paul made a promise: within two years, he would work for NASA; within five years, he would have his master’s degree; and within ten years, he would be an astronaut.
Paul graduated from Dunmore High School and went on to attend Drexel University where he began his studies in mechanical engineering—inspired by his constant interest in knowing how things worked.
“I started working at NASA within a year, had my masters within three years, and received the call to interview as an astronaut the ninth anniversary of my dad’s passing,” Paul remembers.
“As a kid I was always taking apart machines and putting them back together. I typically had some extra parts but usually fixed what I was working on.”
Paul was selected by NASA in April 1996, and reported to the Johnson Space Center in August 1996. He completed two years of training and evaluation, and qualified for flight assignment as a mission specialist.
While attending Drexel, Paul worked all his co-ops at the Philadelphia Naval Station and was exposed to the Navy. “I wanted a military career which would complement my NASA ambitions,” said Paul. “So I researched the Naval Reserves. I applied for one of ten direct commissions for Engineering Duty Officers and was commissioned in October of 1990.” During his senior year, Paul planned to interview at NASA, but family tragedy delayed his ambitions. The week of his scheduled interview his father became terminally ill and Paul went home to take care of his father during the last few weeks
“All aspects of training prepare you for spaceflight. NASA does such a great job of preparing you for any situation. Basically you want it to feel like you’ve been there before. Sometimes I cannot recall if an event happened in training or in orbit.” Paul was initially assigned to the Computer Branch working on software for the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station. He next served in the Astronaut Office Shuttle Operations Branch assigned to support Payload and General Support Computers and the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory. continued page 20 4
achieved by todd shelton
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NASA Mission STS-102 Mission: International Space Station Assembly Flight 5A.1 Space Shuttle: Discovery Launch Pad: 39B Launched: March 08, 2001, 6:42 a.m. EST Landing Site: Kennedy Space Center, Florida Landing: March 21, 2001, 2:31 a.m. EST Runway: 15 Rollout Distance: 11,405 feet Rollout Time: 84 seconds Revolution: 102 Mission Duration: 12 days, 19 hours, 49 minutes and 0 seconds Miles Traveled: 5.3 million Crew Members: Commander James Wetherbee; Pilot James Kelly; Mission Specialists Andrew S. W. Thomas and Paul Richards; Expedition One crew: Sergei K. Krikalev, William M. Shepherd and Yuri P. Gidzenko; Expedition Two crew, James S. Voss, Yury V. Usachev and Susan J. Helms
“I designed various mechanisms and electro-mechanical systems for satellites,” said Paul. “I became involved with the Hubble Space Telescope First Servicing Mission. I started re-designing a few astronaut tools that needed modifications. I ended up redesigning and inventing a collection of more than a dozen different tools that were used during the first servicing mission.” In winter of 2000, Paul attended Arctic Leadership and Followership Training. Also in attendance was Jim Wetherbee, who was to be the commander for NASA Space Shuttle mission STS-102. Wetherbee later selected Paul for the mission. March 8-21, 2001, STS-102 Discovery was the eighth shuttle mission to visit the International Space Station. Mission accomplishments included the delivery of the Expedition-2 crew and the contents of the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, the return to Earth of the Expedition-1 crew, as well as the return of Leonardo, the reusable cargo carrier built by the Italian Space Agency. During the mission, Paul performed a spacewalk or EVA(extravehicular activity) totaling six hours and 21 minutes. The total mission duration was 307 hours and 49 minutes. “We had only eight months to train for a mission that normally would need 18 months,” remembers Paul. “Additionally, there were only four shuttle crew members instead of the normal seven, so we had to double up on many responsibilities. By the end of the training we were working 10 to 12 hour days seven days a week. In other words, it was one of the best times of my life.” Paul found it hard to name a most exciting part of the space flight.
At the 215-foot level of the Fixed Service Structure, Launch Pad 39B, the STS-102 crew pose for a photograph. Standing, left to right, are Mission Specialist Susan Helms; Pilot James Kelly; Mission Specialists Andrew Thomas and Paul Richards; Commander James Wetherbee; and Mission Specialists Yury Usachev and James Voss. Voss, Helms and Usachev are the Expedition Two crew going to the International Space Station for their four-month rotation.
“Each aspect of flight has a “different” type of excitement,” Paul recounts. “The launch is very dynamic and awe inspiring. The spacewalk is where I felt most in my element, like I was meant to do that type of work.” When asked about fear, Paul
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Paul Richards works in the cargo bay of the Space Shuttle Discovery during the second of two scheduled STS-102 space walks.
recalled the advice he had received from several experienced astronauts: always stay a little scared. “With the incredible training it could be easy to forget how dangerous our mission really was, said Paul. “Keeping scared, and not wanting to cause the loss of the mission or any of my crew kept me motivated to avoid mistakes. When I did make a mistake, my commander taught me to admit it and work through it.” In February 2002, Paul left NASA to become an aerospace consultant. He also served on the board of directors for the Maryland Space Business Roundtable and currently serves on the board of advisors for Drexel University’s College of Engineering. In 2004, Paul returned to NASA as the Observatory Manager for the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite. “I missed building flight hardware and returned to
paul richards: I would say the biggest step is to have a dream and a plan to achieve it. It’s okay to change and evolve that plan and to take paths you didn’t expect. You can change your dream, as long as you again have a plan to achieve it. As I found, it is not the destination that matters but the journey.
sts-102 crew patch
NASA as a manager on the next generation of weather satellites, the Geostationary Environmental Operational Satellites Series R, or GOES-R for short, said Paul. Paul currently spends most of the rest of his time with his family: fiancée Jean Christianson, formerly from Chicago, Ill.; daughter Shannon, who will be 11 in April; and son Connor, who just turned 7. “My two children keep me extremely busy with dance recitals and Cub Scouts,” Paul exclaims. “Work, Naval Reserves, and building a new home fill up the rest of my time.”
Sigma Pi in his life Now a Founders’ Award recipient, Paul started at Drexel when he and his roommate Thad Kenney, who was also from Dunmore, formed tight friendships with a group of guys on his dorm floor. They all decided to pledge a fraternity. Because Sigma Pi was known as the “sports” fraternity at the time, it
was a good fit for the group. While active in Sigma Pi, Paul served as house manager for several years. He also served as steward. Paul recalls, “I eventually became the house cook as well, which started a trend for the next several years of “brother” cooks.” “My fondest memories are the brothers. It was a great experience to live in a house year round. Drexel is a five year co-op school and I lived there from freshman year until senior year.”
The central image on the STS-102 crew patch depicts the International Space Station (ISS) in the build configuration that it will have at the time of the arrival and docking of Discovery during the STS-102 mission, the first crew exchange flight to the Space Station. The station is shown along the direction of the flight as will be seen by the shuttle crew during their final approach and docking, the so-called V-bar approach.
When asked where the Creed of Sigma Pi fits into his daily life today, Paul’s answer came easily.
The names of the shuttle crew members are depicted in gold around the top of the patch, and surnames of the Expedition crew members being exchanged are shown in the lower banner. The three ribbons swirling up to and around the station signify the rotation of these ISS crew members. The number 2 is for the Expedition 2 crew who fly up to the station, and the number 1 is for the Expedition 1 crew who then return down to Earth. In conjunction with the face of the Lab module of the station, these Expedition numbers create the shuttle mission number 102.
“First I try to keep my life balanced physically, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. I strive every day to be the best version of myself. I often fail but always strive.”
Shown mated below the ISS is the Italian-built Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, Leonardo, that will fly for the first time on this flight, and which will be attached to the station by the shuttle crew during the docked phase of the mission. The flags of the countries that are the major contributors to this effort, the United States, Russia, and Italy are also shown in the lower part of the patch. The build-sequence number of this flight in the overall station assembly sequence, 5A.1, is captured by the constellations in the background.
Paul summed it up, “do the right thing even when nobody is looking.”
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Splashdown Pioneering astronaut Walter “Wally” Schirra, Jr. (AM, NJIT ’44) was the only man who flew in all three of America’s first human space projects – Mercury, Gemini and Apollo.
Schirra was one of America’s original seven astronauts, selected in 1959, and was commander of the first crew to fly into space aboard an Apollo capsule, Apollo 7, following the tragic launch pad fire that claimed the lives of the crew of Apollo 1. “As a Mercury astronaut, Wally was a member of the first group of astronauts to be selected, often referred to as the Original Seven,” NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said. Schirra’s first space flight was piloting the fifth Mercury mission on October 3, 1962, orbiting Earth six times in nine hours and 13 minutes. During the flight he took hundreds of photos of Earth and space phenomena. Schirra’s capsule, Sigma 7, splashed down only five miles from the recovery carrier. As commander of Gemini 6-A, which launched on December 15, 1965, Schirra flew with astronaut Tom Stafford on a mission that included the first rendezvous of two manned, maneuverable spacecraft. Gemini 6-A and Gemini 7 flew in formation for five hours, as close as one foot to one another. During his 11-day Apollo 7 flight, which began October 11, 1968, he and fellow crewmembers Walt Cunningham and Donn Eisele tested the Apollo systems and proved Apollo was ready to take astronauts to the moon. “We shared a common dream to test the limits of man’s imagination and daring,” Schirra wrote of America’s early astronauts. “Those early pioneering flights of Mercury, the performances of Gemini and the
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trips to the moon established us once and for all as what I like to call a space faring nation. Like England, Spain and Portugal crossing the seas in search of their nations’ greatness, so we reached for the skies and ennobled our nation.” Schirra retired from the Navy as a captain and from NASA in 1969 and became a commentator with CBS News. His enthusiasm and knowledge of the space program coupled with his charismatic on-the-air presence made him an even more widely known national and international figure. He complemented CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite and the two became a powerful spacecoverage team. Schirra worked for CBS from 1969 to 1975. He also engaged in a range of business activities and in 1979 formed his own consultant company, Schirra Enterprises. Schirra was born in Hackensack, New Jersey, on March 12, 1923. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1945, and from Naval Flight Training at Pensacola Naval Air Station, Florida, in 1947. After service as a carrier-based fighter pilot and operations officer, he attended the Naval Test Pilot School at Patuxent River, Maryland. During the Korean War he flew F-86 Sabres under an exchange program with the Air Force. Schirra’s military awards included the Navy Distinguished Service Medal, three Distinguished Flying Crosses, three Air Medals, two NASA Distinguished Service Medals, the NASA Exceptional Service Medal and the Philippines Legion of Honor. Schirra died in 2007 at age 84.
Wally
an appreciation When I was growing up,
every boy I knew wanted to be a professional baseball player or an astronaut. I remember watching the NASA rocket launches with my parents and Walter Cronkite’s calm commentary. My friends and I knew the names of the Mercury astronauts by heart. Wally Schirra was one of my heroes long before I ever heard of Sigma Pi. Knowing that he was my fraternity brother was special to me. When I took my children to see the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. earlier this year, I could point to Wally’s picture on the displays of space missions and say with pride “That astronaut is a Sigma Pi.” “Hero” is a word that has been cheapened by overuse in modern mass media and tarnished by many of those to whom it is applied. Too often, our heroes prove less than worthy of our admiration, with chemically assisted accomplishments, criminal offenses, or embarrassing personal conduct. We have Photos courtesy of NASA
Schirra looks out the rendezvous window in front of the commander’s station on the ninth day of the Apollo 7 mission
by Christopher R. Brown (reprinted from Spring 2007)
learned to “root for the uniform, not the player” to avoid having our heroes disappoint us. Founders’ Award winner Wally Schirra’s accomplishments as an astronaut were well documented after his passing on May 3, 2007. However, we, his Sigma Pi brothers, can learn much from the courage he displayed before he attained fame as an astronaut. Wally was so accomplished as a Navy fighter pilot that he was attached to an Air Force fighter squadron during the Korean War. (Since Korea was a land war, there were no naval battles fought from aircraft carriers.) Brother Schirra flew ninety combat missions during the Korean War. Each time he took off, his life was at risk. He was credited with shooting down two MIGs during those missions and was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal and the Distinguished Flying Cross. Following Korea, Wally’s aviation skills earned him a coveted spot as a test pilot. As described in Tom Wolfe’s book “The Right
Stuff,” Wally was testing the prototypes of the jets that would later be flown by the Navy and Marines during the Viet Nam era. This was a high risk assignment – a third of all test pilots could expect to be killed just doing their job. Wally, however, had proven so capable that he was in line to be promoted to commander of his own fighter squadron, and ultimately to the rank of admiral in the Navy. He was well on his way to the goal of a career Naval officer. So when NASA recruited him as one of its first astronauts for the Mercury program, Wally was facing considerable risk. Not only was he being asked to sit atop an unproven rocket that was as likely as not to explode, he was being asked to risk his military career advancement by volunteering for a civilian mission that might fail spectacularly and lose all Congressional funding. If that happened, by the time he got back to the Navy, his opportunity for advancement would likely be gone.
Nonetheless, Wally volunteered and, as Wolfe makes clear, as an older and more experienced officer, set the example for the other Mercury astronauts, who likely would not have risked their own military careers were it not for Wally’s leadership. Wally’s leadership and courage are traits that all Sigma Pi brothers should seek to attain. His influence on generations of men is undeniable. When fellow Founders’ Award winner brother Mike Beebe, newly elected governor of Arkansas, was told recently that he has been selected to receive the inaugural Schirra Leadership Award from the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation, his first response was “Do you think Wally will come to the ceremony?” Despite his courage, fame and leadership, Brother Schirra was always known to his Alpha-Mu brothers as “Splashdown Wally.” Wally was genuine, honest, a prankster, and to all accounts a Sigma Pi through and through. Though I never got the chance to meet him, I will miss him.
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Second Annual Walter M. Schirra The second annual Walter M. Schirra Leadership
Award Gala took place February 20th, 2009, at the Governor’s Mansion in Little Rock, Ark. The first Walter M. Schirra Leadership Award recipient, Governor Mike Beebe (AP, Arkansas State University ’68) welcomed 212 guests to his residence for the event once again. Attendees were treated to an open reception. They also shared a dinner with Governor Beebe, and honorees Tracy Lawrence and Major General Elder Granger, as well as the award presentation ceremony. The proceeds from this event, over $60,000, will help support as the Governor Mike Beebe Veteran’s Fund and the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation. In honor of Brother Beebe, with the support of the Beck Foundation and the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation, the Governor Mike Beebe Veteran’s Fund was established in June 2007. The purpose of this fund
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is to provide scholarships for wounded and disabled veterans who served our country in the War on Terror. This fund honors those who have served our country as well as the families who have lost a loved one in the service of our country.
10 Hits with 16 songs reaching the number one status. Brother Lawrence received this award for his many accomplishments, not
only in his music career, but for his philanthropic efforts and as a brother who exemplifies the ideals found in the Sigma Pi Creed.
This year’s gala honored two men with the Walter M. Schirra Leadership Award which is presented to a brother of Sigma Pi Fraternity, or someone worthy of the honor, who distinguishes himself through public service, philanthropy, leadership, character, and personal accomplishment. The first award of the evening was presented to Brother Tracy Lawrence (EK, Southern Arkansas University ’87). Brother Lawrence was recently awarded the Musical Event of the Year, his first Country Music Association Award, for “Find out Who Your Friends Are” with Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney. In addition, Lawrence has produced at least twenty Top
Governor Mike Beebe (right) welcomes Grand Sage George Hakim and Executive Director & Honorary Grand Sage Mark Briscoe to the Governor’s Mansion
Left: Governor Mike Beebe (forground, right) enters the Gala ballaroom; Above left: SPEF Chairman Tom Moore, SPEF CEO Richard Robinson, Schirra Award Recipient Tracy Lawrence, Grand Sage George Hakim; Above Right: SPEF CEO Richard Robinson, Schirra Award Recipient MG Elder Granger, SPEF Chairman Cliff Wilke
Leadership Award Gala The second recipient was Major General Elder Granger (Arkansas State ’76) a nonmember well deserving of this award. Major General Granger is the Deputy Director and Program Executive Officer of the TRICARE Management Activity, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense. He leads 1,800 staff members to carry out a $22.5 billion defense health program and has won numerous awards. MG Granger received this award for his many years of service to the US Army as well as his numerous accomplishments and philanthropic efforts.
by Josh Singleton
Buddy and Charlotte Beck receiving the Diamond Award from the Arkansas National Guard
The Sigma Pi Educational Foundation also recognized the Beck Family for their contributions to the Governor Mike Beebe Veteran’s Fund as its leading contributors. The Becks also received the Diamond Award in special recognition from the Arkansas National Guard for their continuing efforts to benefit veterans.
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Campus Expansion
Epsilon Re-colonizes at Ohio University by Will Wojcik On the afternoon of February 1st, 2009, the Epsilon chapter of Sigma Pi Fraternity was re-colonized with 42 men. The next night 7 more men were pinned, bringing the total membership to 49 and marking another successful colonization for the Expansion Department. Expansion consultants Joe Ruggieri (ZA, ’07) and Will Wojcik (IZ, ’08) were on campus recruiting for three weeks prior
to colonization and working with the interest group present on campus. The Executive Office would like to thank the following alumni for their help during the visit: James Rodgers (E, ’72) and Mike Ferrell (QX, ’06). This colonization marks over a year’s worth of effort to get back to Ohio University by the expansion department. After being contacted by future colony members Matt Johnson and Ryan
Napier, expansion staff began the process of receiving permission from Ohio University to come to campus and set up a colony. Matt and Ryan worked hard to stir up interest among their friends, and their efforts along with the work of past Director of Expansion Jim Divita (ZM, ’04) and Director of Expansion Nick Frees (QB, ’07) was finally rewarded with the Epsilon re-colonization. The re-colonization of Epsilon
adds to the rich story of one of Sigma Pi’s most important chapters historically. The chapter was open from 1910 till 1943, at which point it was pirated by another national fraternity, which led to laws against this practice within the North American Interfraternal Conference. Epsilon was also open from 1970-1982. If you are an alumnus who would like to get involved and help the young colony, please contact Director of Expansion Nick Frees.
Sigma Pi Colonizes at the University of Louisville by Joe Ruggieri On March 9th 2009
Senior Expansion Consultant, Joe Ruggieri (ZA, ’07) and Expansion Consultant, Will Wojcik (IZ, ’08) colonized our newest colony at the University of Louisville. Sigma Pi has never had a chapter or colony at the university before. The colonization marks our fifth active Sigma Pi group in the state of Louisville, Ky. The men of the group represent many different backgrounds as well as levels of involvement on campus. The men are eager to make Sigma Pi a leading organization on campus and have all the right pieces to do so.
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Words cannot be said enough to thank our Alumni who helped with the efforts and with our Colonization Ceremony. Steve Standiford (A, ’86) and Clay Young (Gamma-Upsilon ’94) will be the Co-Colony Directors and Eric Troutman (GU, ’98) will serve as Alumni Comptroller. Past Grand Sage and Founders’ Award recipient Dr. Robert Burns also attended the ceremony. All should be commended for their help and will provide great support for the colony. We appreciate all the other emails we received as well.
C h a p t e r C h a r t e r ing
Campus Expansion
Iota-Eta Charters at the University of California – Santa Cruz by Nick Frees
On Saturday, January 17, 2009, in Santa Cruz, CA, the 221st chapter of Sigma Pi Fraternity was installed at the University of California – Santa Cruz and serves as the twelfth active chapter in the state of California for our great Fraternity. The University of California – Santa Cruz chapter officially got its start in April of 2006 when Sigma Pi Fraternity colonized a group of men interested in starting a chapter. The men have had many trials and tribulations over the two and half years in which it took for the men to obtain chartering status. On the evening of the January 17th we brought 39 newly initiated members into our organization during this weekend and received the support of several surrounding chapters throughout the weekend’s events. I would like to thank the
brothers who traveled from our Iota chapter – University of California – Berkeley, Alpha-Omicron chapter at Santa Clara University and our Eta-Delta chapter at Cal Poly – San Louis Obispo to assist with the installation ceremony and be present at the banquet that evening. Sigma Pi Fraternity’s chartering at the University of California – Santa Cruz marked just the second fraternal organization to start a chapter at this beautiful institution that overlooks the Pacific Ocean. We will look forward to seeing what type of innovative things our Iota-Eta chapter can bring to the table being new to our organization and to a new Greek system. I would like to recognize the men below who took time out of their weekend to be a part of our chartering team. Letters of
congratulations can be sent to: Emmanual Mendoza, Sigma Pi Fraternity, 1156 High St. Santa Cruz, CA 95064. Additional Thanks: Tyler Stock (I, California ’11) Aaron Blumenthal (I, California ’08) Nicholas Shook (I, California ’10) Kyle Gaunt (HD, Cal Poly – SLO ’10) Nathan Taccini (HD, Cal Poly – SLO ’11) John McDonough (ZH, UC - Santa Clara ’09) Antonio Espinoza (I, California ’07) Chartering Team: Grand Sage: E. Andrew Morris (GU, Murray State ’70) Grand Second Counselor: Dan Castanho (EA, Cal State – Sacramento ’95) Grand Third Counselor: Matthew Steele (ZH, UC - Santa Clara ’09) Grand Fourth Counselor: Neil Bell (I, California ’10) Grand First Counselor: Scott Tucker (HD, Cal Poly – SLO ’11) Grand Herald: Mike Delach (HD,Cal Poly – SLO ’10)
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News from Alumni
Three Generations of Sigma Pi: (L to R) Alex J. Hills (A, Vincennes) was initiated Sept. 21, 2008. His grandfather is James L. Hills (AX, Maryland ’54), Past Executive Secretary of Sigma Pi, Honorary Grand Sage and Founders’ Award recipient. Alex’s great-grandfather is William G Hills (G, Ohio State ’25), Past Grand Herald and Honory Grand Herald.
Sigma Pi Alumni Club of Columbus The fourth annual Sigma Pi Golf Outing will be held August 7, 2009. Contact Wib Angles at wangles@columbus.rr.com or 614451-4116 for information. A Homecoming party is being planned for Saturday, October 24, 2009. Brother Rick Theiss and Bob Abel are in charge of planning and have rented the clubhouse at York Country Club for the evening. The Ohio State Alumni Band will be there plus a DJ. Jack Park will be there to autograph his latest book on Ohio State football. Food will be catered. There will be a cash bar. Party is open to any Sigma Pi and guests. Contact Bob Abe; (740-323-2268) or Rick Theiss(330-332-4041) for information. The Alumni Club has 175 members. If you wish to join, contact Eric Buddendeck at ericbuddis@hotmail.com. There are no dues. Contributions may be sent to Bob Abel at 7799 Hirst Road, Newark, OH 43056. Visit our website at www.sigmapicolumbus.
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com. Contact Eric for the needed password. Monthly meetings are held at the Buckeye Cafe on the firrst Tuesday of the month at 6 p.m. Any Sigma Pi is welcome.
Fifth Annual Reunion of Alpha-Nu Brothers In September 2008, 18 brothers of Alpha-Nu Chapter (Wake Forest) gathered at Myrtle Beach, SC for their annual reunion. Although a diversity of graduating classes were represented (1953-1960), all were united in the comradeship of brotherhood. The reunion started with a catered barbacue dinner at an oceanside cabana, followed by adjournment to the local home of one of the brothers for dancing and conversation. The following morning, the brothers and their wives and guests gathered for a buffet breakfast and a short business meeting to plan a 2009 reunion. During the day, most of the wives got together and went shopping, some of the men played
golf, and the rest congregated to reminisce about past college days. In the evening, a great meal was enjoyed at a private dining room adjacent to the motel where most stayed. The third day was more of a “do your own thing” day and that evening a farewell dinner was held at a local restaurant. These annual reunions have become a much anticipated event and each year brothers from long ago show up for the three days of nostalgic trips into the past and a renewal of friendships established through Sigma Pi membership. If other chapter brothers wish to initiate similar reunions, planning guidance can be obtained by emailing jlion@cableone.net.
Sigma Pi Club of Auburn The Sigma Pi Club of Auburn continues to serve as the focal point for Alpha-Delta alumni activities while providing needed support to the active chapter. This summer and fall have involved exciting alumni events and have resulted in worthwhile improvements for the fraternity house. Our annual Alumni
Barbeque during the Auburn vs. Tennessee football week-end was successful in reuniting members from as far back as the 50’s. Club President Bill McKnight, with brother Clifton McKnight, prepared and cooked ribs and chicken to feed approximately 30 alumni and all of the current chapter members, pledges, and their dates. Our Alumni Club has replaced air conditioners for some of the dorm rooms in the fraternity house, installed a new fire alarm sprinkler system which was approved by the University and the City of Auburn, and is in the process of installing new dining room doors. These enhancements follow a very gratifying achievement of retiring a long- term improvement loan last year. We are anticipating an active winter program and look forward to holding our annual Founder’s Day Banquet in February.
River City Alumni Association Last October, the River City Alumni Association and the
News from Alumni Active Eta Alpha Chapter from Sacramento State University held its annual Alumni/Active Softball game and BBQ. Everything went great and of course the Alumni won in a thrilling last inning victory! The Alumni and Actives plan to celebrate Founder’s Day in February with a BBQ and football game. The RCAA would also like to invite any Sigma Pi Alumni in good standing living in the greater Sacramento region to join the RCAA. We do not limit our alumni association to just Sacramento State graduates. If you have any questions, please email Mike (mjdambrosio@yahoo. com).
Gamma Upsilon Alumni It’s never too early to start planning for Summer Reunion 2009. That’s right it is just around the corner, so mark your calendars. It is scheduled for July 17-19 and more details will be coming via our e-mailed newsletters. In case you forget, Larry Granquist was our 2008 Summer Reunion Brotherhood Memorial Golf Tournament winner. If you are not receiving our e-mailed newsletters (containing information about calendar events and alumni updates), please send us an e-mail to Sigmapialumni@ hotmail.com and let us know, so we can get you added to our Yahoo Group Newsletter. We also have groups set up at Facebook. com and LinkedIn.com so be sure to get connected with us and use the power of networking to our advantage. Anyone interested in joining our Gamma Upsilon March Madness Basketball Bracket can also send an e-mail to Sigmapialumni@hotmail.com and join in on all the fun; it’s free to play, and you could a years worth of bragging rights. Go Racers!!
Alpha-Nu Reunion (L to R): first row- John Ratliff (’55), Bob Grissom (’58), Ronnie McLaurin (’57), Ted Russ (’55), Donald Canady (’56), John Horton (’57), Ray McLaurin (’60); second row- Jerry Drum (’57), John Bleeker (’53), Charlie Buchanan (’54), Phil Cook (’55), Bob Nesmith (’56); third row- Mitchell Rabil (’53), Steve Strawn (’57), Henry Hester (’55), Allen Harris (’53), Frank Davis (’55), George Mewborn (’58)
Alumni and undergraduates attending the Beta Chapter Sigma Pi Hall Of Fame event
Hall of Fame Event A Huge Success
‘43 James Elrod ‘47* Gene Newcombe ‘51 Don Willsey ‘51 Dale Craig ‘52* Ron David ‘58 Gilbert Mascher ‘67 Jerry Mutchler ‘69.
Over 75 alumni, undergraduates, and their guests gathered at the Indiana Memorial Union during Homecoming weekend to celebrate the inaugural Beta Chapter Sigma Pi Hall of Fame. We inducted 8 members into the Hall of Fame during the dinner and ceremony emceed by Bill McGinnis ‘69. The inductees were: Paul Hertenstein
There were Beta Chapter Sigma Pis representing 6 decades in attendance. Everyone gathered for cocktails and conversation in the reception area and this was then followed by a sit down dinner and the formal presentation of the Hall of Fame awards. It truly was a fantastic evening that all in
attendance will remember for a long time to come. It was the first true gathering and sharing opportunity of many generations of alumni and undergraduates in a very long time for this chapter. You can count on this event being held every year on the Friday of Homecoming weekend and plans are already being made for the 2009 event. “The evening was quite special and it was great to see many of the current house members present.
I only hope more alumni can join in the Sigma Pi enthusiasm, and it can be kept going.” – Gene Newcombe ‘51 “This honor means so much to me. First, it brings back the fond memories when I attended IU and became a part of Sigma Pi. Second, it gave me the opportunity to be with my brothers as we were 50 years ago. Thanks, Ray Heiman, Phil Willsey, Jerry Schaaf and Roger Robison for being a part of this ceremony. This meant so much to me. And
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News from Alumni in his fourth year as President of the Baton Rouge Police Reserve Officers Association. He donates about 275 hours per year in the Uniform Patrol division and as President of the Association, he is responsible for providing communication between the Association and the Department and coordinate training for the Reserve Officers in areas such as Defensive Tactics, Firearms Training, and keeping up with changes in the law and Departmental Policy. Jeremy Sarnovsky (ZP, Oakland ’01) is now the Manager of Information Systems and Technology Contracts at Georgetown University.
Georgia Alumni Club Annual Meeting at the Founder’s Day celebration at Alpha Phi Chapter at UGA on February 28, 2009
lastly, I hope this induction will continue to remind me to live up to the standards of our fraternity- Friendship, Leadership, Scholarship & Service.” – Ron David ‘58 “This an honor that equals or exceeds any other in my life. Being a part of this inaugural class with seven outstanding brothers is very special. The quality of the Hall of Fame event was exceptional. It exceeded my expectations and those of my guests. The entire weekend
about the event can be found at www.betachaptersigmapi.org.
Top Sigma Pi Bowlers Another big event for the fraternity at the November 2008 PBA tournament in Lake County, Indiana. Bill O’Neill, PBA Rookie of the Year in 2005-06, bowled against his little brother from Saginaw Valley State University, Anthony Lacaze. Anthony entered the tournament as an amateur, and against massive odds, not
career, also did well, but lost in the final to Walter Ray Williams, Jr., the winningest bowler in PBA history.
Alumni Updates Thomas M. Hall (HB, Southern Connecticut ’92) married Penny Kessler on October 26, 2008. His best man was his brother Robert Hall jr. (Delta Sigma Alpha) In attendance were his brothers Thomas Chartier (EA 94) and George P. Spencer (HB93). Tom is currently employed as a Senior Graphic Designer with United Rental.
Kyle Shashack (DZ, Missouri - St. Louis ’98) received certification from the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards in November 2008. He will also complete a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership from the University of South Florida in May of this year. Ryan Smith (HA, Cal-State Sacramento ’95), aka “Fonzi,” and his wife Natalie are the proud parents of a brand new Baby girl. Parkyr Ava Smith was born on November 25, 2008. She weighed 7 lbs and 8 ounces and she was 20 1/2 inches long. Ryan and Natalie also have a three year old son Nolan.
Chris Jay (QL, Radford ’05) has moved to Alexandria, Virginia to accept a position as a financial analyst.
Niagara Frontier Alumni Association helped out a needy family in the impoverished Snyder area of Buffalo, New York with renovations on their home. Pictured are Brother Russell Bonaventura (EO,’ 94), and Jack Goldberg (EO, ’98), Province Archon - Colorado - also participating but not pictured were brothers David Jackson, Dale McKim, and Michael Spadifina
was very well planned. Several times over the three days I was reminded what a wonderful and fortunate choice I made 43 years ago when I pledged Beta Chapter of Sigma Pi.” - Jerry Mutchler ‘69 Pictures and more information
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| Spring 2009
only made the TV finals, but was pitted against his big brother and best man in his wedding. He did himself proud, but had the good taste to let his big bro win the match. Bill, who was bowling on TV for the third time in his pro
Jonathan P. Lindberg (EQ, Elon ’01) recently joined the North Carolina State Board of Education staff in Raleigh, North Carolina as a member of the administration team for the Healthy Responsible Students Initiative. He is working with a Senior Policy Advisor to develop and implement numerous child obesity prevention pilot programs throughout North Carolina Public Schools. Brian “Ted” Miller (DL, Lousiana Tech ’81) was recently awarded the Reserve Officer of the Year Award by the Baton Rouge Police Department. He has been a Reserve Officer with the department for 12 years and is
Brian “Ted” Miller
Anthony Zurica (DM, Monmouth) )opened his own law practice in downtown Manhattan one year ago. The Law Office of Anthony Zurica represents clients from the New York region in the general practice of law. They have been growing steadily and are excited for all the new year has to offer. www.Zuricalaw.com.
Adytum on High Gifts in memory of a brother of Sigma Pi are accepted by the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation. Once a gift is received, a card of acknowledgement is sent to the donor and, if possible, a card announcing the memorial contribution is sent to the immediate family of the one remembered or person honored. Please contact the SPEF office (800) 332-1897, email: edfound@sigmapi.org Arkansas State - Alpha-Pi Kenneth K. Yarbrough ’49 Donald F. Seay ’56 Charles M. Moye ’65 William D. Mullen ’70 1/3/09 Auburn - Alpha-Delta Kennan G. Wood ’56 6/1997 Beloit - Alpha-Theta John E. Harth ’46 2/28/08 Robert S. Meyer ’38 1991 California - Iota Jon A. Rudbach ’59 8/10/08 California - Santa Barbara Alpha-Omicron Robert W. Stevens ’50 Leroy C. Hardy ’49 11/2/08 Cal State - Dominguez Hills - Eta-Iota Dennis D. Craft ’91 11/1/08 Drexel - Beta-Theta Clifford B. Trott ’56 9/23/88 Emory - Psi Andrew J. Glawson ’56 5/25/85 Fitchburg State - Eta-Tau Matthew A. Turgeon ’07 12/24/08 Franklin & Marshall - Nu Franklyn C. Hill ’46 6/21/08 Georgia - Alpha-Phi James C. Miller ’60 Donald B. King ’61 11/4/2008 Illinois - Phi Charles B. Hamilton ’56 11/4/06 Indiana - Beta Benjamin E. Briscoe ’44 Thomas C. English ’51 Bill E. Garland ’53 Robert C. Mardis ’48 8/15/07 Indiana State Univ - Gamma-Pi Richard L. Weitzel ’70 1/7/09 Iowa - Xi Frederick Potgieter ’21 10/1978 Kansas - Beta-Delta John E. Bayles ’58 1/2/03 Lock Haven - Beta-Omega Jed V. Minaya ’71 Loyola-Chicago - Beta-Chi James M. Cortino ’69 Lycoming - Beta-Lambda Thomas M. Aubrey ’57 9/2008 Mississippi - Beta-Mu Robert R. Regalbuto ’64
Missouri STL - Delta-Zeta Lawrence K. Gaddy ’77 MTSU - Theta-Omega Lloyd E. Brown 10/6/08 NJIT - Alpha-Mu George E. Leonard ’44 4/12/1998 Northern Illinois - Beta-Sigma Robert R. Virta ’68 Roger L. Branz ’61 Robert F. Papich ’63 8/5/08 Ohio - Epsilon James L. Palda ’30 Ohio Northern - Zeta John H. Rooney ’68 7/5/2000 Penn State - Theta William L. Faurot ’51 9/24/08 Purdue - Eta David W. Fites ’74 11/14/08 Edmund S. Mills ’16 Saint Lawrence - Alpah-Zeta Charles J. Parker ’37 11/27/08 Mark A. Johnson ’74 12/12/04 San Diego State - Alpha-Omega Robert E. Berry ’53 Shippensburg Univ PA Beta-Upsilon Ronald D. Fink ’64 Southern Utah - Delta-Xi Russell C. Perry ’73 9/2008 Temple - Kappa John K. Painter ’57 8/7/08 UCLA - Upsilon Eugene T. Lica ’43 1/20/09 University of Kansas - Beta-Delta Arnold F. Davidson ’49 University of Kentucky Epsilon-Beta William S. Sheridan ’77 1/25/09 Utah - Pi Wayne M. Snow ’44 1982 Virginia - Beta-Pi Christopher M. Griggs ’87 2008 Christopher T. Warden ’78 1/4/09 Wake Forest - Alpha-Nu Herbert M. Tyler ’63 William and Mary - Alpha-Eta James D. Leftwich ’42 10/15/08 William P. Murden Jr ’45 06/2008
A force for Long Beach Leroy C Hardy, 8l, passed away on November 2, 2008, of natural causes. Born in Welch, Oklahoma on March 29, l927, and raised in Lynwood, California, he served in the U.S. Navy for several years and then attended UC Santa Barbara where he joined the Alpha Omicron Chapter of Sigma PI. Following graduation he attended UCLA where he received his master’s and doctorate degrees in Political Science. The year 1949 was a memorable year for all Long Beach State students; it marked the humble founding of this fine institution with a beginning enrollment of 165 students. Also during this year the first fraternity at Long Beach State was founded. The then present members chose the Greek letters Tau Upsilon Rho as the name of the group. Tau Upsilon Rho grew rapidly. Numerous members of the fraternity were active in student government and held many campus offices. One of the advisers of this fraternity was Dr. Hardy, and under his tactful guidance, the group was encouraged to affiliate with a national fraternity. Through Dr. Hardy’s tireless efforts, the group chose and was accepted by Sigma Pi to become a Colony in the fall of l953. Tau Upsilon Rho thus became the second national fraternity on the campus. In l955 the Beta Omicron Chapter of Sigma Pi was chartered by Grand Sage Stedman Gould. Many hours of patient labor were put in by Dr. Hardy for the colony to achieve the status of a chartered chapter. Dr. Hardy taught political science for many years at CSULB and many more working for the state of California on reapportionment, being considered an expert on gerrymandering. After his retirement from the university, he continued to teach classes for the Senior University (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute), where he led classes focusing on current topics related to government and politics. In l960-61 he was chosen as the “Outstanding Professor the Year”. At the banquet where he received this award he expressed “that the greatest tribute the students could bestow upon a teacher was to put their education toward constructive ends after they leave college”. Dr Hardy was honored at the 50th Anniversary of Beta Omicron in 2005 and was one of the featured speakers. To those in attendance and to all the Beta Omicron alumni who knew him personally he will always be that “special brother” who has made a posiive impact on their lives.
Correction: Robert J. Zawada ’73 of Gamma-Iota at Worcester was listed in the last Adytum on High with an incorrect graduation year. We regret the error.
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* A monthly donation of just $84 is all it takes to become a member of the Brotherhood of the Golden Cross.
The Foundation
Development Update by Josh Singleton
The Sigma Pi Educational Foundation would like to thank all the brothers who have helped us in our endeavors over the last few months. Your support both financially and voluntary is greatly appreciated! All the help that you can provide will lead us to improving not only the Educational Foundation but also Sigma Pi as a whole. It was great meeting brothers in Orlando, Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey and North Carolina as we attempt to raise more awareness of the Educational Foundation’s purpose. In the upcoming months, we will be working on scheduling trips to Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Kentucky and North Carolina. If you are in these areas and would like to set up a time to meet, email jsingleton@sigmapi.org and better information can be worked out. We are also in the process of holding a special event in the Washington D.C. area in June of 2009, and planning the next event in Little Rock, AR for the fall of 2009. If you are interested in participating or attending either of these special events, please contact Richard Robinson at rrobinson@sigmapi.org. The Educational Foundation looks forward to meeting with more of our brothers from across the country in the future how your support may benefit our younger brothers. To learn more about what you can to do to support our Undergraduate brothers and you chapter, feel free to contact us at (800) 332-1897. We are also available to meet with your alumni group to discuss how utilizing the resources of the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation can benefit your chapter.
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The Foundation
The Chapter Endowment Fund Program by What is the most effective tool that a chapter can utilize to strengthen its financial position both today and tomorrow? Easy answer – it’s the Chapter Endowment Fund (CEF). The CEF Program was developed so that alumni and undergraduate brothers can make tax deductible gifts that support the long-term strength and improvement of their chapter. Many brothers capable of providing significant gifts to the fraternity have been reluctant to do so due to the uncertainty of whether or not the gift would be tax deductible for federal income tax purposes. The CEF Program may provide the solution to this dilemma. A chapter can establish its own Chapter Endowment Fund with the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation. All gifts to the Chapter Endowment Fund will be held by the Educational Foundation as restricted gifts for the benefit of that chapter only. These gifts may be deployed for the following educational purposes: 1. Scholarship awards to members of the chapter. 2. Educational grants to cover portions of travel and
accommodation expenses for chapter members to attend nationwide events such as the Mid-Year Leadership Conference, Convocation, and Sigma Pi University. 3. Grants for educational resources in the chapter house including desks, bookcases, books, computers, and software. CEF funds may also be used for the construction, renovation, and outfitting of educational areas of in the chapter house. 4. Loans to the chapter for housing which are required to bear interest at the prevailing rates charged by commercial lenders (or similar investments at the time the loans are made). Assets held by a Chapter Endowment Fund will be managed and invested in a professional manner by the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation. Gifts designated for a specific chapter will be used exclusively for educational purposes which are both in line with federal regulations, yet benefit the members of that chapter. Once a CEF reaches a principal balance of $25,000, both scholarships and grants may
Jim Jennings ’93
be advanced from the chapter’s fund. Upon establishing the CEF, an initial fundraising timeline will be created in consultation with the Educational Foundation staff and trustees. Typically, a fundraising timeline will range over a three to four year period. During this initial fundraising period the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation will work directly with a locally-established five member CEF board. The working relationship between the local CEF board and the Educational Foundation may include monthly conference calls, in-person visits, and consultation on fundraising events and marketing mailers to the membership of each chapter. Who can donate to a CEF? Anyone can donate to a Chapter Endowment Fund including alumni, undergraduates, friends, and members’ parents. In addition, many employers offer a matching program for employees making charitable donations. In addition, during the month of April 2009 the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation will be holding an open conference call with all parties that are interested in finding out more about the CEF Program. To sign-up to participate in the conference
call or to learn more about the CEF Program’s basic earnings and fee structures, contact Josh Singleton, Development Officer for the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation, at 1-800-332-1897 or jsingleton@sigmapi.org. Think about it. All chapters go through cycles of increased and diminished membership levels and cash flow. How does your current chapter weather the storm when they need a new roof, a new heating/cooling system, or even want to proactively plan construction of a new house or facilities? Does your chapter or alumni group have the time and resources to plan, collect, market, and administer these funds when time is of the essence? The Sigma Pi Educational Foundation has the financial advisory services, legal, and marketing team to help streamline your chapter’s cycle through consultation. The quicker your chapter starts its CEF, the faster the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation can work with the chapter to become more successful in strengthening the chapter. To start the ball rolling simply place a phone call or send an e-mail and we will personally consult with you to help your chapter achieve success.
| Spring 2009
Remember: Scholarships Are Available Since 2004, the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation has awarded over $135,000 in scholarships, fellowships, and grants to more than 100 undergraduate and graduate Sigma Pi students. This year, you could be the winner of an Educational Foundation award, too! Awards come in all different forms including chapterspecific scholarships, alumni fellowships, academic excellence scholarships, and enhancement grants. In the chapter-specific category scholarships usually focus on rewarding the hard work and dedication of our undergraduate members. For example, the John J. Merino, Jr. Scholarship is awarded to an undergraduate member of Eta-Upsilon Chapter who displays outstanding leadership potential. There is also the Gary B. Tash Scholarship which is awarded to an active, full-time undergraduate member of Beta-Pi Chapter with outstanding scholastic achievement, philanthropic and community involvement, and service to the chapter and/or the university. There are more than twenty chapter-specific scholarships available. Regional scholarships include awards such as the Paul W. Murdock Scholarship. This is an award created by bequest from Brother Murdock to reward a deserving Sigma Pi who was a resident of Illinois before attending college. The Sigma Pi Educational Foundation also awards the Walter H. Lemmond, Jr. Scholarship to an exemplary Sigma Pi residing in Rabun County, Georgia or to students
attending Emory University, and/or to members of Sigma Pi chapters in the states of Georgia or Alabama. If you fit into one of these categories, then you should consider applying to receive this scholarship. Along with chapter-specific and regional awards are the nationwide scholarships.
These scholarships can focus on leadership, service to the fraternity, academic excellence, community service, or any combination of these or similar qualities. For example, the Harold Jacobsen Scholarship recognizes the Sigma Pi most exemplifying academic excellence. Nominees must be a sophomore or junior
The Foundation
by Joe Palazzolo ‘03
at the time of application. There is also the recently created Dr. Jack C. Fields Scholarship which honors the memory of the Past Grand Sage. The recipient of this award will be an undergraduate or graduate student who has demonstrated extraordinary leadership on campus. For those members who excel at helping colonies grow, the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation awards the Frank E. Gray Scholarship for these efforts. This scholarship honors the Past Grand Third Counselor’s commitment to expansion and is awarded to a graduate or undergraduate contributing the most in a year to the growth and development of new Sigma Pi Chapters. If you are a colony member and you believe there is a brother at a local chapter who has provided extraordinary assistance in helping your colony move to chartering, why not submit that brother’s name for this award? The Sigma Pi Educational Foundation is currently accepting scholarship nominations. Individuals may apply for any scholarship they qualify for or they may be nominated by a third party. For example, a member may be nominated by his chapter, a local alumni club, a fellow undergraduate, or an alumnus of the Fraternity to name a few. With more than 30 scholarships available to support the dedicated work of our brothers across the nation, the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation welcomes your application to these programs. For more information on how to apply, contact Josh Singleton at 1-800-332-1897.
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The Foundation
FOUNDATION BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Moore
Wilke
Thomas A. Moore, Jr., Chairman (GR, Western Michigan ’69) Clifford A. Wilke, Chairman (DZ, Missouri at St. Louis ’81) R. Todd Miller Vice-Chairman of Administration (ET, Tennessee - Martin ’87)
Dear Brothers, It is hard to believe that winter is over and spring is upon us. We have just finished another successful Mid-Year Leadership Conference for the undergraduates and the spring semester is well underway. We are implementing our new strategic plan which is focused on taking the Educational Foundation to the next level and working closer with the Grand Chapter. WE BELIEVE that we are continuing to see challenges for all of us based on the realities of the stock market and the economy. Government bailouts may be helping the corporate world, but charitable foundations such as ours will have to work harder than ever to achieve worthy objectives such as providing more scholarships for active members to continue their college education in this tough economy. The Sigma Pi Educational Foundation is dedicated to increasing funding available for programs as detailed in the strategic plan. Speaking for the Educational Foundation Board of Trustees, we are dedicated to the challenge ahead. As we have said before, we are SIGMA PI, and we will make the experts wrong! Many of your employers have corporate matching programs – please think of how you can utilize this tool for your fraternity’s benefit and help further our mission. When you get the mailers from the Educational Foundation, take a moment to read what we are focusing on, and what we are accomplishing. Hopefully, after reading, you will want to support our goals. Also, it would be great to reconnect with your fraternity in 2009 by attending an event or volunteering to host an event. And please do not forget that we have established the e-mail address: email@sigmapi.org to allow you to send us your updated e-mail address and contact information. Our President and Chief Development Officer Richard Robinson is doing a great job working with many of you. He will be more than glad to show you how you can support you’re the Educational Foundation to take Sigma Pi Fraternity to the next level in 2009. He can be reached at (800) 332-1897.
Marc S. Saffren Vice-Chairman of Development (HL, New York - Albany ’92) Gary D. Dvorchak Vice-Chairman of Finance & Investments (X, Iowa ’86) Allen Yee Vice-Chairman of Legal (AF, Georgia ’99) G. Mason Cozart, Treasurer (EK, Southern Arkansas ’83) James T. Jennings, Secretary (GU, Murray State ’93) TRUSTEES Kevin D. Farmer (BN, S. Illinois - Carbondale ’95) John J. McCann (AN, NJIT ’83) John J. Merino (BO, Calif. State - Long Beach ’58) Joseph V. Palazzolo (DB, Monmouth ’03) Michael J. Simmons (EN, Calif. State - Fullerton ’87) George N. Hakim (GA, Detroit Mercy ’78) Larry P. Rovira (EN, Calif. State - Fullerton ’85) Paul W. Hansen, Advisor Trustee (BT, Valparaiso ’80)
President/Chief Development Officer Richard Robinson (ET, Tennessee – Martin ’87)
We look forward to a GREAT 2009!
FOUNDATION STAFF
WE BELIEVE that each of you can assist our efforts in support of the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation.
Development Officer Josh J. Singleton (QR, Grand Valley State ’07)
Sincerely and Fraternally,
Administrative Assistant Jennifer R. Wyatt ADMINSTRATIVE OFFICES
Thomas A. Moore, Jr. Chairman
Sigma Pi Educational Foundation Post Office Box 1897 Brentwood, TN 37024
Clifford A. Wilke Chairman
Tel: (615) 373-5728 Fax: (615) 373-8949 Email: edfound@sigmapi.org Website: www.sigmapi.org
Helping Our Fraternity Build “A New Generation of Leaders”
| Spring 2009
Sigma Pi Fraternity P. O. Box 1897 Brentwood, TN 37024
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Tracy Lawrence, Governor Mike Beebe and Major General Elder Granger · page 22 www.sigmapiedfund.org • Spring 2009