FALL 2020
THE
George A Long Jr., Illinois Eta, 6/6/1939 #586
George A Long III, Indiana Alpha 1413
George A Long, Indiana Beta
#539 Theta,
C. Loy,
#332
Edward
10/19/1208
3/18/1937
Indiana Strawbridge,
Indiana
Robert
Theta, 4/5/1934 #504
Strawbridge,
Indiana
Theta, 4/19/1936
#531
Dallas Ryan
Long, Florida
Gamma,
4/22/2007
#1663
Russell
Strawbridge,
Indiana
Theta,
4/27/1947
#749
Herbert
Granville Moody
Jr. Illinois
Eta,
3/7/1914 #232
OHIO GAMMA GAZETTE Official Newsletter of the Ohio Gamma Chapter of Phi Delta Theta at Ohio University
REBIRTH: FORTY YEARS STRONG
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ome time in early 1979, Russ Neubert 1572 walked down the halls of Sargent Hall, knocking on doors and announcing he was going to start a fraternity. Russ’ brother Al Neubert 1449 had been a Phi at Ohio University at Russ wanted to bring Phi Delta Theta back to OU. As you may know, Phi Delta Theta was removed from campus in the early 1970s. Russ held a one-man rush in Baker Center and recruited eight other young men who formed the first pledge class of the new Phi Delta Theta. Starting a fraternity from the ground up is easier said than done. For the first couple of years, rush was held in Baker Center. Not having a house did not help with recruitment, but I think it did help us attract individuals that did not have an initial interest in the Greek system. We were not your typical fraternity and we attracted a diverse group of young men. Our weekly meeting was held in Baker Center and two local Phis, Dave Gerhart 1203 and Jim Ferguson 1321, served as our pledge trainers. There would be no Ohio Gamma without the devotion of these two brothers. Alumni support was initially not extraordinarily strong. There was a great deal of anger over losing the “Castle on the Hocking” and the demise of the chapter. However, in addition to Dave and Jim, there was some local support from brothers Al Carpenter 856 and Kenny Kerr 1790. I know that as chapter president, I am forever in debt to Brother Kerr for his wise counsel and advice. Continued on page 3
PRESERVING THE LEGACY OF OHIO GAMMA
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here are untold members who have given for years and in huge amounts. We owe our legacy to these gentlemen. We also owe them THEIR legacy. We have all had different experiences with Ohio Gamma since 1868 but think what your college experience would have been as whole without Phi Delta Theta at all. Brotherhood is for life. We all took the same oath; we are all members of a thing greater than the sum of its parts. Let us rally together again now, as a group, and safeguard our future at Ohio University. We’ll never have the “Castle on the Hocking” like in our glory days, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a place to go and share brotherhood, memories and stories. In the spring of 2006, I had heard that the chapter was folded. I made an appointment with the chapter president and vice president. At this meeting, they declared the Ohio Gamma dead as there was too much debt and apathy. I then called all the active members and offered them either alumni status or a chance to rebuild Ohio Gamma. I had six takers to rebuild. General Headquarters wanted to shut down the chapter, wait four years and reform as an emerging chapter. Ohio University Greek oversight was far less stringent then than now and yet would have closed us had we not been able to convince them we would build ourselves into a solid organization. The lone six members and I were the only voices against this. Continued on page 4
HOUSING AND CAPITAL CAMPAIGN UPDATE OFF TO A STRONG START BUT WE STILL NEED YOUR HELP
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t is hard to believe that it has been nearly eighteen months since we took the aggressive step to secure Ohio Gamma’s future at Ohio University by purchasing the chapter house at 28 N. College Street. Our desire to secure this prime property in the heart of Greek Row was a significant endeavor whose success was anything but certain. Purchasing a property for nearly a million dollars with next to zero assets at the height of the property market in Athens was no small feat. Rarely do houses that fit our specific needs and wants come available. The stars aligned with 28 North College, especially when the seller gave us a favorable APR at 4.25 percent, a forty-year note, and split the down payment into four more-manageable payments. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for the house corporation to obtain a traditional mortgage. We have thus far raised approximately $85,000 from our alumni that has been used to fund two contractual annual principal payments totaling $75,000. Alumni donations are only going towards the principal at this point. Our monthly payments, taxes, and insurance have been funded exclusively by member rents since we took ownership. We now face two future $25,000 payments on February 1, 2021, and February 1, 2022. Due to past donations, we are about $10,000 of the way there. On February 1, 2023, we will need to make the balloon payment to the seller for the balance. We estimate that balance to be $825,000 based on the two additional down payments and monthly mortgage payments. This will not be a significant enough loan to value ratio to obtain a bank loan for the balance without additional financial assistance. The climate at Ohio University in general, and Greek Life in particular, has changed dramatically in just the last eighteen months. Those changes have not been favorable to our housing project and include: • A dramatic decrease in university enrollment has led to job reductions at OU and will eventually lead to a greater supply of housing in the area relative to demand. That is likely to decrease market rents as well as property values.
ABOUT US
The Ohio Gamma Phi is published two times per year by the Ohio Gamma Chapter of Phi Delta Theta at Ohio University for alumni and parents. ©Copyright 2020 Ohio Gamma. All rights reserved. Send news, address updates and photos to: Ohio Gamma Chapter of Phi Delta Theta 2 South Campus Avenue, Oxford, Ohio 45056 STAY UP-TO-DATE /groups/ohiogamma/ /ouphidelt @phideltou linkedin.com/groups/95210 CHAPTER ADVISORY BOARD Christopher Quolke, Chairman Mahn Yousef, Financial Adviser William Truax, Phikeia Education Adviser Andrew Carf, Recruitment Adviser 2
The Ohio Gamma Gazette » Fall 2020
Kyle Myers, Academic Adviser Tyler White, Alumni Relations Adviser CHAPTER OFFICERS Ryan Dawson, President Maxwell Anthony, Vice President Joseph Cunningham, Treasurer Aaron Hladky, Recruitment Chairman Nicholas J. Burson, Phikeia Educator Nathaniel Merten, Scholarship Chairman Tyler Ardizzone, Risk Management Chairman Jacob Royse, Alumni Secretary Wesley Brewer, House Manager Beauford Uqdah, Philanthropy Chairman Paul James Kroh, Public Relations/Webmaster Lee Kermos, Warden HOUSE CORPORATION BOARD Scott Long, President Shannon Arnett Brian Bastock, Vice Jeff Condon President/Treasurer Zach Graman
• The temporary suspension by the university of all recognized fraternities in the fall of 2019 after multiple allegations of hazing against some member fraternities. This presented a challenge to recruitment and fraternity life. Thankfully, our chapter was the first to gain reinstatement due to their sound leadership and anti-hazing culture. • The onset of COVID-19 and the closing of on-campus classes in the spring of 2020. Uncertainty around whether university life will return to normal continues to make recruitment and fraternity life a challenge. New guidelines on housing are likely to lead to “de-densification” of the chapter house resulting in lower rental income. • The resetting of our property taxes commensurate with the sale price of our property by Athens County. Although we disputed the sale price as the market value due to the unique nature of our transaction, the board of revision sided with the complainant. Our taxes will nearly double from their current $8,300 per year. This increase raises our cash flow break-even point from 9.6 to 10.9 members living in the house Despite the challenging headwinds, our project remains viable. The chapter leadership recruited heavily when they could and stressed the importance of house occupancy. The house corporation learned in May that we had eleven signed leases next term, including one at higher rates for a deluxe room. This brings our rental equivalent to 11.5 which is above our breakeven point. At a breakeven of eleven, this is below our legal occupancy of fourteen, but perhaps a “new normal” in the COVID world. This occupancy rate will allow the chapter to fund the monthly operation of the house. The chapter and house corporation have also done a fine job of maintaining the property and providing a great deal of sweat equity. Through organized work parties, cleanups, and painting, we have taken a small number of dollars and stretched them in making the house something we can be proud of. We as alumni now need to do our part. While we have met the first two down payment challenges, the $85,000 raised is not nearly enough at this point in our four-year campaign to guarantee our success. We are eighteen months through a forty-eight-month campaign to raise a total of $400,000. We will be at a critical project decision point come early 2021 when another $25,000 down payment is due on February 1, which will bring our total investment to $100,000, and will make us fully committed. Before making that commitment, we must have confidence that the project will be successful. That requires the raising of at least $300,000 over the next two and a half years. This allows for an acceptable loan-to-value ratio after the owner financing period ends to obtain conventional financing. Factored into that is also some inevitable property value degradation due to declining university enrollment and its effect on the Athens market. Our choice in my mind is quite clear. Either make the full commitment of $300,000 that puts us on the path to sustainable ownership. Or we can choose not to make any further commitments and Continued on page 6 Ohio Gamma
PRESIDENT’S LETTER OVERCOMING TOUGH CHALLENGES IN THE FALL AND SPRING
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y name is Ryan Dawson and I am the 2020 president of Ohio Gamma. Although I have not gotten the chance to meet many of you, I am looking forward to the opportunity when it is safe to be together again. The hardships we have faced this year have not discouraged me and I am still extremely grateful to be serving our chapter in this role. The 2019–20 school year was one filled with unique challenges starting with IFC-wide hazing allegations in the fall and the quick onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring. These challenges were overcome by learning new ways to interact with one another as well as shifting chapter operations to a fully virtual format. The brothers of Ohio Gamma met these challenges head-on and made the most out of the cards we were dealt with. In the fall all fraternities on campus were shut down for an indefinite amount of time due to widespread hazing allegations. During this time, our Fraternity was restricted from spending time with each other and doing anything that could be considered an organized event. The month that we were on suspension was extremely difficult for all of our members because we felt that the university had taken away our right to friendship and brotherhood. Luckily for us, we received no hazing allegations and were the first fraternity cleared from suspension. Our no hazing policy and effective risk management strategies helped us accomplish being the first fraternity reinstated. During the pandemic, we used video calling platforms such as Zoom to stay connected while separated by distance. We quickly moved our weekly meetings to a virtual setting to ensure that everyone remained engaged. During our weekly chapter meetings, we were able to check in on each other to make sure that everyone was staying healthy and doing well at home. The operations of our executive board were also moved to a virtual format and allowed us to plan the remaining activities for the rest of the semester. Additionally, it was common to have Zoom chats going throughout the week where brothers could do homework
together or simply sit and chat. Given these challenges, Ohio Gamma was able to celebrate quite a few accomplishments throughout the spring semester. After all of our classes were moved to a virtual format, our members took the opportunity to excel in their schoolwork. Due to the hard work of every Ohio Gamma member and the leadership of our Scholarship Chairman Nate Merten 2079, we were able to celebrate getting the second highest GPA out of the other fifteen IFC organizations on campus. This was a much-needed win for us because it brought our cumulative GPA from twelfth on campus in the fall, to ninth in the spring. I am optimistic that regardless of the format for classes in the coming semester we will continue to see improvement in our academics. Additionally, with the help of our Philanthropy Chairman Beauford Uqdah 2093, we were able to organize a virtual ALS ice bucket challenge to support the LiveLikeLou Foundation. For those not familiar, the LiveLikeLou Foundation was founded by Brother Neil Alexander, Pittsburgh. During the time Neil battled against the ALS disease, he was determined to leave ALS better than he found it. All money raised by the Foundation benefits ALS families directly and goes towards further research to look for a cure. Our virtual fundraiser was accomplished by posting donation pages on our social media accounts. Based on the number of donations we received, we responded by dumping the appropriate amount of ice water on ourselves. By the end of our weeklong virtual event, we were able to celebrate raising and donating over $800 to the Foundation! Also, we were awarded the Outstanding New Member and Orientation Award by the office for Greek Life. We accomplished this by keeping all of the new members who accepted bids in the fall and spring. During the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was difficult to keep our spring Phikeias engaged, however they continued their education process and are set to be initiated at the start of the fall semester. This was no small feat and we are proud of this achievement. Because of the chapter’s efforts and the efforts of
Recruitment Chairman Aaron Hladky 2085, we are proud to announce that we will have eleven brothers living in the house next year. Looking forward to next year, we are planning to continue our best practices to navigate the difficult semester that awaits us. One of the biggest challenges coming our way is how to do recruitment and Phikeia education online. To be as prepared as possible we have created two different plans. The primary plan assumes that chapter operations will run as normal, allowing us to do in-person activities. The second plan is more challenging, but it will utilize various tools that we already have in place to create an engaging virtual format. These tools include online console gaming to build relationships with prospective new members and online watch parties of our favorite movies. For Phikeia education we are planning to use the same software that the university uses to post class information. This will allow our Phikeias to log on and see all of the assignments and readings that they Continued on page 6 REBIRTH: FORTY YEARS STRONG: continued from page 1
Despite some of the hardships, there were many great times. Our first event with a sorority was a “semi-formal” with the Chi-Os. We rented a semi-trailer (hence semi-formal) and held the event in a church parking lot on Mill Street, and by all accounts, everyone had a good time. To raise funds, we used to show movies in Morton Center. For whatever reason, Texas Chain Saw Massacre was popular in those days. Who can forget riding in the back of Pop’s van for the annual Mohican River canoe trip? By the time the 1980s rolled around, the chapter had grown to twenty-six brothers, we had a house at 50 East State Street and on November 7, 1980, we initiated into The Bond of Phi Delta Theta. Since then there have been some lean times and many good times. Our success has been, and will always be, in the quality of the young men who join Ohio Gamma. Yours in the Bond, Michael Summers 1573 The Ohio Gamma Gazette » Fall 2020
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PRESERVING THE LEGACY OF OHIO GAMMA: continued from page 1
We felt that a break of any time length would be the death of the chapter. Though the chapter came back strong in 1980, this was not a pattern we wanted to establish. Our charter’s continuity was paramount. We also felt that a shutdown, however temporary, would be the final straw for our own alumni. Our problems with alumni support began in the late 1960s and early 1970s. There were many elements that caused our demise in 1975, some we are still discovering today. When we lost the Castle on the Hocking, we also lost a huge group of alumni who vowed they would never again support Ohio Gamma. The repercussion from the loss of that house was so powerful that, even now, fifty years later, resentment is still felt. John Lusa 955 suggested we form an alumni society and he did the legwork for which became the Ohio Gamma Alumni Club at Ohio University. The purpose was to increase alumni awareness and communication within the organization. We are a dues-paying organization within the Fraternity. What makes us different than most current Phi Delt alumni clubs and past Ohio Gamma clubs is that even though we are a stand-alone organization, our purpose was created largely for the support of the active chapter. Direct hands-on support of the active chapter is essential to sustained success. With the formation of the alumni club as our over-arching command structure, we decided that we would have to do things differently than all things previously tried. History taught us that we must find new answers to our problems otherwise we would not find new solutions. The chapter has only had a handful of nine-man pledge classes since 1980, and only twice in the double digits. Of course, we do not want numbers for the sake of numbers, that is what led us to our 2006 crash. However, building slowly, with everyone committed to the brotherhood, doing fundraising, 4
The Ohio Gamma Gazette » Fall 2020
philanthropies, recruitment and social events, there will be no loss of brotherhood. We set goals to keep track of our progress. Some easily attained and others much more difficult. Some were short-term and others many years away. All involved solid chapter management and increased alumni relations. Gradually, we achieved the goals we set for ourselves. We have tried very hard to be openly transparent with each and every major decision and to involve as many brothers as possible, both active member and alumnus. A house was always on our minds when we restarted in 2006. In the early days we dared not whisper of a house for fear that the dream would blow away. We knew that it would be a long process and that there were many and large hurdles before us. Balancing the needs of the students and the expectations of the alumni is a daunting chore. Trust between active members and alumni has never been strong and yet, every single alumnus knows what it is like to have been an undergraduate. And the students need to look ahead at what they will want from an active chapter when they are alumni. We spend between one and four years as an u active member and the rest of our lives as an alumnus. A few years ago, we began discussing permanent chapter housing for Ohio Gamma. A house is the one main tangible thing that links our past and present. Maintaining one structure as “home-base” from generation to generation links us stronger than any other actual familial tie. We set some parameters, learning from history and attempting to predict the future, that we felt would increase our success. We wanted a house that would hold about 15 percent of our membership goal of seventy-five, so elven to twelve tenants plus a proctor suite. We also wanted a timeless location, preferably with other Greek houses. As we began garnering support from the alumni, we put out feelers to see what was available in the market. Response from alumni was highly favorable and we felt we had the support to continue our search. It did not take very long to discover that 28 North College was available for rent and since it met our criteria, we moved in. Discussions with the landlord revealed that we could purchase this house from him with favorable terms to us and that he would hold the mortgage note. We moved forward and signed the agreement because we believed we had the financial backing of the alumni. Each of us were asked to join because those who went before us saw our character, credibility and the desire “to transmit the Fraternity not only, not less, but greater than it was transmitted Ohio Gamma
HOUSE CORPORATION AND CAMPAIGN DONORS We are grateful to the following members who have generously donated to the house corporation. Shannon Arnett Brian Bastock Dennis Bender Shawn Caldwell Jeffrey Condon Scott Curtner Bruce Dacre Tom Dickson Tim Flannagan Marz Garcia Howard Gorrell Paul Haring Paul Hollowell Ken Juergens Kenny Kerr Scott Long John Lusa Larry McArthur Steve Montgomery
Jim Napier Russell Neubert Mike Peffer Jerry Peppers Maurice Ralston Ray Randall Larry Reader David Reese John Schmidt Dan Semsel Tom Shoemaker Clewell Smith Mike Summers John Todhunter Merrill Wheeler David Whitcare Gary White Robert Wilson Roland Winzer
GET SOCIAL Looking to connect with fellow Phis, especially Ohio Gamma alumni? Request to join our Facebook group.
JOIN GROUP: /groups/ohiogamma/ to me.” We have gotten closer and continue to improve each day, but the goals remain. I challenge each of you who has a contrary vision to trust that we are on the right path. Why is this effort different than any of the other intelligent, well-intentioned attempts to create sustainability at Ohio University for Ohio Gamma? There are several reasons, the most prominent being that we had the benefit of our history to guide us. Unfortunately, most of those lessons came in a “what-not-to-do” fashion, but they were heedful lessons, nonetheless. Alumni support is key to long-term success. It may seem that we are constantly asking for money, but it has really been one long ask. We are trying to instill in the younger men a culture of giving so that we always have protection and if large sums are needed, we can cover those expenses by many and not a few. We are perilously close to the edge of success, please help achieve the goal we all share of creating long-term sustainable housing for Ohio Gamma. This is our legacy.
REFER A PHI! Know any young men who would be great Phis? Refer them here: phideltatheta.org/join/refer-someone/. Then, send them to our Greatest U recruitment campaign: futurephidelt.org.
Yours in the Bond, Scott Long #1742 House Corporation President The Ohio Gamma Gazette » Fall 2020
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PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #248 DAYTON, OH
CAMPAIGN UPDATE: continued from page 2
Ohio Gamma Chapter of Phi Delta Theta 2 South Campus Avenue Oxford, Ohio 45056 Address Service Requested
perhaps lose our already committed $75,000. Gentlemen, we are so close to having a sustainable forever-home for Ohio Gamma. Ohio Gamma lives forever in our hearts and minds, but the house stands as a monument to our shared experience, binding the past with the future. It is our legacy. Please do not let this golden opportunity falter and be a lost cause like so many efforts before. The market and the situation have certainly not been favorable to us. But we remain committed to the long-term housing needs of Ohio Gamma. This property fits Ohio Gamma’s needs. But it will not be realized without the generous and broad-based support of our alumni. Our chapter has done its part and continues to shine under very difficult circumstances. But they cannot make this project successful on their own. It is now up to us. We have spent the last forty years looking for a permanent location at Ohio University. We have no reason to look further. The house at 28 N. College Street can be the perpetual site for Ohio Gamma for decades to come. We ask that Ohio Gamma’s alumni donate so we can reach our remaining $300,000 fundraising goal. Without your financial assistance, Ohio Gamma will no longer have a house that we, as alumni, can call our own. Yours in the Bond,
PRESIDENT’S LETTER: continued from page 3
have due in the coming weeks. We are hoping that this will reinforce the idea that learning the history and values of our Fraternity is just as important as any other class. In small groups, we will also plan fun activities to make sure that we are all connecting and getting to know the true character of every new member. To close, the year was full of surprises with the Fraternity shut down in the fall and the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring. However, the state of our chapter has not faltered due to the hard work and perseverance of our brothers. The road ahead of us will be difficult to navigate, but I know in my heart that all of our active members are up to the task. The
next semester may not be exactly as we envisioned it, but it will provide us room to grow and try new things. We are committed to the housing project and fully realize the importance our role plays in the overall success of this mission. We comprehend the significance of securing Ohio Gamma’s legacy at Ohio University. We are looking forward to being together again in the near future! Yours in the Bond, Ryan Dawson 2082 Chapter President phideltoupresident@gmail.com
Brian Bastock 1657 Campaign Chairman Bbastock33@gmail.com 440-212-3153
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