BETA ETA
DATA
SUMMER 2009
PI KAPPA PHI FRATERNITY • FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY BETA ETA CHAPTER ALUMNI NEWSLETTER
A Touch that Lasts for Decades Beta Eta alums welcome back beloved cook Ceil Matthews
From left to right: Alums Tom Hogle ’57, Frank Kaney ’55, and Paul Nichols ’64 are pictured with the evening’s special guest, Ceil Matthews, and daughter, Cecelia Hawkins.
“[I] just wanted to take a moment to thank you again for the invite to a wonderful alumni gathering. My mom was elated and truly felt the love from all of you. Words cannot express how heart warm it made me feel to know that the Pi Kapps have not forgotten her. She holds dearly undying love for the Fraternity, and her experiences there have been among the many blessings bestowed upon her. May God bless each and every one of you and give you peace. Thanks again, keep in touch, and we will do the same.” —Cecelia Hawkins (Ceil’s daughter) For nearly 15 years, Celia Mae Matthews (“Ceil”), served as the de facto matriarch for the Beta Eta student chapter. Ceil’s maternal touch was honored and applauded by her “boys” at the Alumni Chapter’s Annual Meeting on February 21, 2009. Ceil served as the longtime cook for hundreds of Beta Eta men from approximately 1957 to 1972. Her tenure with Beta Eta ended when the chapter lost its house at the top of West College Avenue, at which point she was hired by Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority. During her time with Beta Eta, she guided, nurtured and disciplined the student members and had a lasting impact on many of them. Many alumni consider it no coincidence that Ceil was present for an amazing era of Beta Eta’s history. Jeff Niedenthal ’67 reflects fondly about his time with Ceil, “I learned more from Ceil about the world and how to interact with people from different backgrounds than anyone else. Those lessons helped me throughout my career and to this day still.” Ceil’s appearance at the annual meeting unfortunately arose from difficult circumstances. After leaving Pi Kapp’s employ, she continued
to work as Kappa Alpha Theta’s cook until nearly one year ago. Ceil had to leave her position with Theta due to health issues, including heart surgery. The Thetas continued Ceil’s salary for a year after she left work and continue to hold regular fundraisers to provide her financial assistance. One of the Thetas involved in this effort is the daughter of Beta Eta alumnus Paul Nichols ’64 and sister of Lee Nichols ’87. Paul learned of Ceil’s situation and the Theta efforts and he quickly mobilized a group of BH Tallahassee alumni to raise money for Ceil, including a mass email sent through the national headquarters with the assistance of Tom Atwood ’92. These efforts were communicated to the BHAC and it was quickly decided to invite Ceil and her daughter, Cecelia Hawkins, as special guests to the annual meeting reception and dinner. As of mid-February, Paul reported he had received approximately $1,000 in financial gifts, excluding any money that was sent directly to Ceil. Ceil told Paul that she received a generous gift from one BH alumnus which she used to pay off bills, causing her to cry with joy for several days. CONTINUED ON PAGE 3