The Lions Roar Delta Eta Our Official Alumni Newsletter 2010 Vol‐4 The Alumni Newsletter of the Delta Eta Chapter of Beta Theta Pi and Beta Alpha Epsilon Dec 16, 2010
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In This Edition • • • • • • •
June 3 ‐4 2011: Relay for Life at Kettering Winter 2011 Initiation Date TBD Spring 2011 Alumni Golf Outing Date TBD
Fall 2011 Kettering Alumni Weekend September 9th‐ 11th
A Section Plans Chapter Installation Iron Chief Kamp Kai Adopt a Pet, Helping Our Old Home Interview with Thomas Creech Alumni Updates Graduating Brothers
A- Section Plans Chapter Installation, Looks to Future Isaac Meadows ∆Η #762
Coming out of the summer term with a restored charter, the A-section Kettering chapter is planning a strong future at Kettering University. The chapter installation is planned to coincide with the Winter 2011 initiation, so mark your calendars for March 12th. Recruitment, housing, and chapter development are three items that the current chapter leadership will be considering closely. Five men have accepted bids after the summer term, with two more still open. The high acceptance rate and relatively low number of bids extended are due to the chapter's new bid application, a simple form that potential members are asked to fill out after they've expressed an interest in joining the chapter. The application helps the chapter get a sense of who the potential member is, as well as gauging his real level of interest. A number of other men who have not yet filled out bid applications will be approached in the winter. Chapter housing is an issue that the chapter is preparing to address with both short and long term solutions. BAE is working with an architect to build a chapter house near campus as soon as next year, but the chapter is considering a different option in the meantime: group housing at Flint's downtown Riverfront Residence Hall. The two sections are working together to ensure that they can fill the terms of a rental agreement, which would stretch from Spring 2011 to Winter 2012.
1700 University Ave, Flint MI 48504
www.ketteringbetas.com
Finally, the A-section chapter is working to make itself the organization it wants to be for a long, successful future. From the first chapter semiformal to expanded member development offerings to decisions about chapter priorities and goals, Winter 2011 will be a term to remember.
Iron Chief Keith Boruta ∆Η #763 B-Outgoing VP This fall, the B-section brothers of Beta Theta Pi threw their biannual Iron Chief competition. While most may be mystified by the name, assuming it either to be a misspelling or something unexpected, its history lies in a mistake made last year. Last fall, during the inaugural Iron Chief competition, the founder of the competition, Keith Boruta (Senior III, Computer Science) mistakenly misspelled chef as chief. One of the chapter Advisors, Jason Roycht (Bosch Corporation), in jest emailed a picture of an Indian chief to the chapter. The picture and the name stuck, and to this day the competition stands as iron chief, even though it is an emulation of the TV cooking competition Iron Chef. In this year’s competition the format was changed and instead of one secret ingredient, two were given. The chapter was broken up into 5 teams, each of which would make one course of meal (2 appetizers, 2 entrees and 1 dessert). The secret ingredients were oranges and cherries. These uncommon ingredients challenged the creativity and skill of our budding chefs (or should I say chiefs). In the end, the dish that won the votes of the judges was an orange shrimp appetizer with cherry bacon and a cherry-honey barbeque sauce. In second place was a trio of dishes: cherry hamburgers with an orange mayo, Creole seasoned crab with a butter-orange sauce and toasted Italian bread with olive oil and an orange-cherry butter. Rounding out the top three was an orange-cherry bruschetta. In true Iron Chef style, Iron Chief was judged on creativity, presentation, taste and incorporation of the secret ingredients. In the end the brother judges felt the cherry bacon and cherry-honey barbeque sauce highlighted the dishes creativity. While the beautiful deep colors of the bacon and the bright colors of the orange shrimp made for a pleasing presentation. Additionally, the richness of the bacon and sauce were nicely balanced by the slight tang of the orange and the fresh and light flavor of the perfectly cooked shrimp. Finally, we felt the secret ingredients were really highlighted well by their choice of bacon and shrimp. The freshness and lightness of the shrimp complemented the orange, while the sweetness of the bacon worked well with the rich flavor profile of the cherries. We all look forward to this spring, when the next Iron Chief will be crowned.
Kamp Kai Keith Boruta ∆Η #763 B-Outgoing VP
During the second week of the fall term, the B-section brothers of Beta Theta Pi took a daylong retreat to chapter advisor Dave Hogan’s ranch in Lowell, MI. This retreat marked a turning of a new page in the history of the Delta Eta chapter at Kettering University. This weekend marked the beginning of the new leadership team. The first new leadership team beyond the founding father class. While the underclassmen have stepped into many roles within B-section Delta Eta, the president, VP, Pledge Ed and Public Relations are all still held by brothers who are in their last term at Kettering University. This meeting began with a refocusing on Beta’s core values and core purpose. Referencing and reflecting up on the sacred ritual, the younger brothers, along with the older undergraduates and alumni, have reaffirmed the B-section Delta Eta chapter’s goals and focus. Additionally, they’re seeking ways to take the chapter to the next level, by looking forward instead of staring backwards. To bring reality and action to these words, the brothers have also decided to move elections up 6 weeks all the way to the 3rd week of the term, allowing the new leadership team to have the majority of the term to transition with the old team. As this article is being written the process is under way and the brothers are preparing the chapter to forge ahead to tackle the next generation’s challenges and come off victorious in the daily trials of our college lives, knowing that the hard work endeavored upon will have lifelong benefits for themselves and others.
1700 University Ave, Flint MI 48504
www.ketteringbetas.com
“Getting together again" John Crimmins ∆Η #794 B-Incoming PR Chairman
On Saturday, October 23 , Beta Theta Pi, along with the sisters from Alpha Sigma Alpha, took a philanthropic trip back rd
in time into Delta Eta history. We took a trip to the Adopt-A-Pet animal shelter, the former site of the Delta Eta chapter house. We saw what remained of the rich history of the Delta Eta chapter in various forms; from the Beta Theta Pi grill in the back yard, to the ritual area in the woods behind the house. However, our purpose here was not to delve into Delta Eta history, but instead to help out Adopt-A-Pet. There were two main areas that the animal shelter needed help in when we arrived. The first involved cutting and moving several branches out of the woods in the back, and moving them to the edge of the forest to be taken away. The other area in need of assistance was cleaning off some of the kittens’ cages. Alpha Sigma Alpha decided to focus on cleaning the kitten’s cages while the Betas went to the woods to cut and move the branches. Over the next four hours, all of Beta cut, loaded, and moved numerous branches out of the woods. Most of us cleared the branches while two of us with chainsaws cut up the larges pieces that were too heavy to carry. Once the braches and logs were moved out into a clearing, we teamed up to push all of the branches back to the edge of the forest. After all of our hard work, we had lunch with the employees of Adopt-A-Pet and the sisters of Alpha Sigma Alpha. Shortly thereafter, we closed our community service event with a serenade for the employees and Alpha Sigma Alpha. Needless to say, the occasion proved to be a great success: two Greek organizations coming together in a display of commitment to the community.
Interview with Thomas Creech John Crimmins ∆Η #794 B-Incoming PR Chairman
On Thursday, November 18 , I had the pleasure of sitting down with Brother Creech, ∆Η #226. Brother Creech is now th
teaching a series of math courses at Kettering University and this offered us an ample amount of time for me to sit down and talk with him. As a chapter we wondered what life was like in Beta Theta Pi before we were there and I thought this would be an excellent opportunity to find this out. Below is the interview. John Crimmins: What drew you to Beta Theta Pi? Thomas Creech: I went around to different fraternity events with three of my friends from unit 34 when I was looking to rush. When deciding on which fraternity to join, all of us were looking to join an organization that we would all like. My now longtime friend John Phillips, from Speedway, IN, and I wanted to join Beta Theta Pi because we liked the level of maturity that they showed when doing anything. We liked how they acted as men so we decided that this was the right fraternity for all of us. The other wonderful thing that drew me to Beta was the friends that I could make. For example, I recently went to see John Phillips’s son get married. This just shows me that brothers aren’t just brothers for four years; they’re brothers for life. 1700 University Ave, Flint MI 48504
www.ketteringbetas.com
Another thing that drew me to Beta was the alumni that they had at the time. Back then the two guys that really influenced me were Dave Hogan and Denny Lewis. It wasn’t that these guys did something miraculous, they just made the experience something different from anything else; they made it something special. What was your pledging experience like? - My pledging experience helped me build really strong bonds with my pledge brothers. One of the things that really brought us together was our pledge project. For my pledge class, our pledge project was to make improvements on the house. The best part about this was not making the house better but the brotherhood that my pledge class built. The pledge project helped me and my pledge brothers mature as men. What was your most memorable experience of pledging? - My most memorable experience of pledging was when we kidnapped our pledge master Bobby Morella. We took him down to Speedway, IN and visited museums there. This was a great bonding experience for all of us and we learned lots of Beta lore from Bobby while in Speedway, IN. What was your first position as a member? - My first position as a member of Beta Theta Pi was treasurer for the chapter. As treasurer, I was in charge of paying the bills for housing related costs. I also had to make sure that we practiced standard accounting procedures such as keeping track of where money was going. The other interesting thing about being treasurer back then was everything was on paper. I didn’t have the luxury of having a computerized ledger. I think this was a valuable experience because it showed me how to run the financial part of a business. What was the largest amount of members in Beta during your four years? - During my four years at Kettering the amount of men fluctuated between 25-30 men. What was the size of your pledge class? - There were seven other men that pledged with me my pledge year. Six of us graduated from Kettering while two others transferred out of Kettering. I formed strong friendships with the men that I graduated with and I still hang out with them to this day. What helped you most in life through your beta experience? - The best part of being a Beta for me was the feeling of fraternal bond. I made friends back then that I am still my friends today. For me, fraternal bonds are a deeper level of friendship, a level of friendship that cannot be matched.
If any alumni are interested in having a one-on-one interview with a current member of the chapter please contact us at beta.deltaetaalumni@gmail.com. We would be glad to interview any of our alumni in order to learn a different perspective on Beta life at Kettering University.
1700 University Ave, Flint MI 48504
www.ketteringbetas.com
Our Alumni Dinner with our new initiates and Beta Sweetheart!
CONGRATULATIONS TO: Keith Boruta, Rob Brown, Scott Crimmins, Valentin Hernandez, Wyatt Paro, and Stanley Samuel, as they will be completing their Bachelors degree from Kettering University and joining the ranks of our fellow alumni. Best wishes from the fraternity brothers, may you make the world a better place. Thank you for all that you have done as a member of the fraternity and will continue to do.
Dave Hogan reunites with fellow brothers and their wives
1700 University Ave, Flint MI 48504
www.ketteringbetas.com
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Housing Questions? Hank Brockman BAE House Corp. (henrybrockman@gm.com) Or on our Collective Alumni email address at beta.deltaetaalumni@gmail.com 1700 University Ave, Flint MI 48504
www.ketteringbetas.com