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FIELD NOTES
ALPHA THETA CHAPTER Maryland Commitment to Our Purpose
INTERNAL GREATNESS AS
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an organization requires a commitment to our Purpose. We, the brothers of Alpha Gamma Rho’s Alpha Theta Chapter from the University of Maryland, recognize this and strive to hold it in highest regard. Our commitment to service and involvement in communal and philanthropic events are what make our brothers outstanding citizens, students, and representatives of Alpha Gamma Rho. This past year, our chapter has supported and contributed significantly to the chapter's philanthropy cause: suicide prevention. In doing so, we raised upwards of $5,500 for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) and for Ms. Wanda Gryszkiewicz, mother of Gary “Mitch” Gryskiewicz who took his life in the summer of 2014 while a member of the Alpha Theta Chapter. The Chapter holds the Alpha Gamma Rhodeo each spring, welcoming all University students and College Park residents to participate in mechanical bull riding and barbecue with brothers. As a chapter, we hold Mitch-APalooza prior to a campus-wide AFSP Walk Out of Darkness to remember and celebrate Mitch's life. His family as well as many others attend, and brothers are educated on the implications of suicide and the importance of support and prevention. Mitch adds to our passion to raise awareness and support prevention of suicide. Further, we nurture and support Mitch’s mother, known to us as Momma Wanda, in her outreach efforts which include presentations on suicide and prevention, given at various schools throughout the state of Maryland.
The Alpha Theta Chapter further commits ourselves to solidarity in our immediate community through efforts to serve and contribute to local organizations. Our brothers volunteer one to two times a month at St. Andrews Episcopal Church at their Loaves and Fishes Program, a meal service for those who are less fortunate living in and around College Park. There is certainly no scarcity of willing volunteers among our brothers, and because of this, we remain in excellent standing among our surrounding community. Alpha Theta Chapter recently participated in sending care packages to deployed United States Troops through the Terps for Service Members organization on campus and were able to collectively produce a significant number of items for donation. Our chapter’s value for commitment to Purpose is strong, and we are especially proud to have received an Honorable Mention for the Outstanding Community Service and Philanthropic Efforts Award from Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity in 2019. We can attribute such recognitions and successes to the collective efforts and passion of our brothers, and this achievement of our chapter has been celebrated as a testament to the pride we, as brothers, invest in our Fraternity, our community, and ourselves in pursuit to Make Better Men.
ALPHA KAPPA CHAPTER
Tennessee
2019 IFC Chapter of the Year
This past fall, the brothers of Alpha Kappa Chapter partnered with the women of Alpha Chi Omega Sorority, winning homecoming for the third straight year. The victory came as the result of consistent top finishes in events such as Smokey’s Howl cheer competition and the large float competition.
This Spring at the annual Greek awards, the Chapter had the privilege of winning two awards. Noble Ruler, Leo Spadafino, won the 2019 Interfraternity Council Emerging Leader of the Year award, and past Noble Ruler, Chase Williams, accepted the 2019 IFC Chapter of the Year Award. The award was earned due to a quarter of the brothers making the dean's list, raising money through the philanthropic events Water Wars and Winner Winner Chicken Dinner, and being involved throughout campus. There are four brothers serving as UT Ambassadors, four more as Herbert College of Agriculture Ambassadors including the organization president, and three brothers on the All Campus Events Board among others.
RHO CHAPTER
Colorado State Rho Chapter Takes Four Awards from Greek Awards Banquet
In February, Colorado State University Fraternity and Sorority Life hosted their Annual Awards Banquet. Rho Chapter was honored with four awards for their outstanding achievements in the year of 2019. Chapter Adviser John DeBerard was awarded Advisor of the Year. John has been the Chapter Adviser for just over a year, and, during that time, he has made countless impacts on the brothers of Rho Chapter. John is always looking for ways to better the men of Rho Chapter. Additionally, Brother Samuel Scheibler was awarded Scholar of the Year. Sam is an active member on campus in addition to continuing to keep his academics the highest of his priorities. Rho Chapter was also awarded Excellence in Intake Recruitment and Retention. In the fall of 2019, Rho Chapter initiated 17 new members, the largest class by some margin in many years. And, just this spring, Rho Chapter initiated nine new members, bringing the chapter total to 40 brothers. Finally, Rho Chapter was awarded Excellence in Chapter Management. The brothers of Rho Chapter have been actively making sure the chapter is ran in the most efficient and most beneficial ways that it can be. The brothers of Rho Chapter would like to congratulate and thank our Adviser, John DeBerard, for all he does and his commitment to our success. In addition, they would like to congratulate Brother Samuel Scheibler on his excellence and dedication to his academic success.
ALPHA ETA Georgia Charitable Efforts Foster the Spirit of Philanthropy
The brothers of Alpha Eta Chapter are well known on campus for their charitable spirit. Alpha Eta’s annual canned food drive, Night in the Cold, brought in over 700 pounds of canned goods which are donated to the Food Bank of North East Georgia. Brother Jared Pringle made the delivery and said his “truck was over fl owing” due to the weight. Sigma Kappa Sorority donated 900 cans, winning the food drive, and the sisters joined Alpha Eta Chapter for a night of s’mores around a bonfi re.
Two brothers hosted a booth at Extra Special People at UGA’s fall festival which benefi ts those with disabilities by raising awareness, donating to families, and creating unique opportunities. The brothers spent the day hanging out with the
kids where they picked pumpkins and gave out treats. This spring, Alpha Eta’s UGA Miracle team raised $6,934 for the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. They also cooked for UGA Miracle’s Dance Marathon, which is a twentyfour-hour event with local food, entertainment, and activities for the community. The largest meal at the event was Alpha Eta’s signature BBQ which Brother Brantley Swindell said, “[they] fed between 1,000 and 1,700 people”. After UGA Miracle accounted for the brothers’ contributions to Dance Marathon, the fi gure was updated to $8,034. The brothers of Alpha Eta Chapters' charitable e orts these last two semesters foster the spirit of philanthropy in members both old and new.
ALPHA ZETA CHAPTER Kansas State
Homecoming Champions raise money for CF raise money for CF
The Alpha Zeta Chapter at Kansas State University has had an amazing start to the school year. Alpha has had an amazing start to the school year. Alpha Zeta Chapter and our partner Alpha Xi Delta Zeta Chapter and our partner Alpha Xi Delta sorority were named the Homecoming Champions, sorority were named the Homecoming Champions, Brother Tel Wittmer fi nished his term as Male Brother Tel Wittmer fi nished his term as Male Student Ambassador has been elected to serve Student Ambassador has been elected to serve as the Student Body President of Kansas State. Also being elected to the College of Agriculture Student Senate were brothers Michael Dowd and Kris Wagner. We held our annual philanthropy, SellaFella, where over $8,000 was raised to donate to the Cystic Fibrosis foundation in honor of brother David Sewell.
ETA CHAPTER Iowa State
Celebrating those who support the Chapter
In the Spring of 2019, the Eta Chapter of Alpha Gamma Rho held its fi rst Women’s Appreciation Dinner to celebrate International Women’s Day. Members were able to invite any woman who has made a positive impact on their lives. These women included housemothers of various fraternities and sororities, faculty from the College of Agriculture and the Sorority and Fraternity Engagement o ce, and of course, our wonderful Housemother, Mom Diane. Eta Chapter has also planned their 2nd annual event for March 9th, 2020.
In the Fall of 2020, Eta Chapter also hosted its 1st Faculty Appreciation Dinner. Men were again asked to invite their various professors throughout the entire university, with over 40 faculty and sta attending, along with over 100 more people that included collegiate and alumni members. This is not only a great way for Eta Chapter to show our appreciativeness to these wonderful and amazing people we are blessed to know and see every day, but also help show the positivity and benefi ts that can be reaped benefi ts that can be reaped at a professional and at a professional and social fraternity such as social fraternity such as Alpha Gamma Rho. Alpha Gamma Rho.
ALPHA LAMBDA New Mexico State AGR Rho Week
The Alpha Lambda Chapter at New Mexico State University hosted their fi rst-ever Ag Rho Week to raise money for the Mule Deer Foundation of New Mexico. The Mule Deer Foundation (MDF) is the only conservation organization, dedicated to ensuring the conservation of Mule Deer, Blacktailed deer, and their habitat. MDF supports education regarding responsible wildlife management, regulated hunting, and recruitment and retention of youth in shooting sports.
Brothers Kody Oliver and Jerry Tuttle pursued an idea the chapter brainstormed earlier in the year. The chapter wanted to host an Ag Olympics inspired event consisting of multiple events throughout the week. Beginning with their annual Corn Hole Classic, the week consisted of a Rodeo Clown competition, a trivia night on campus, and a fi nale to Rho Week.
After a successful week of events, the chapter ended the week with their fi rst annual Rho Week. The day consisted of Tug-of-War, Sack Relay, Human Wheel-Barrow Race Relay, a spontaneous event, and a Create-a-Dance portion. The chapter drew in a spectating crowd of alumni, the Associate Dean of Students, our Chapter Adviser, and community members for this event. The winners of the overall week were Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity and Alpha Xi Delta sorority and received decorated NMSU themed coolers, painted by our Sweetheart Carleigh Obenshain and Haylie Walters.
The chapter had such a fun-fi lled week and couldn’t thank the teams who participated enough for their support. Jason Quintana, Noble Ruler of Alpha Lambda Chapter stated, “This week of events was a huge success for our chapter and community. In the coming years, I hope to see this event continue to grow and see continued support from the Greek Life community and other organizations on campus. I am very proud of the hard work our members put into Ag Rho Week and the dedication they have shown to our philanthropy. NMSU truly does support each other no matter the letters and we are lucky to be a part of that. After a successful week, we are happy to say we were able to raise approximately $1,400 for the Mule Deer Foundation of New Mexico.”
The Alpha Lambda Chapter is happy to support the Mule Deer Foundation of New Mexico by hosting philanthropy events, and are looking forward to bringing back an even bigger and better Ag Rho Week next year.
