[Distinguished Fijis]
2021 William A. Martin III
Distinguished Fiji Award The Archons established the Distinguished Fiji Award in 1964. It is presented annually to no more than six graduate brothers who shall be deserving of recognition for their faithful and unselfish service to Phi Gamma Delta or their special contribution to mankind and society at large. The award was renamed the William A. Martin III Distinguished Fiji Award in 2019, upon Bill's retirement as Executive Director. To date, 467 Phi Gams have been honored with the Distinguished Fiji Award.
Christopher B. Burke (Purdue 1977) Brother Burke is the founder and CEO of Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd. (CBBEL), a consulting engineering and surveying firm with $100 million in annual revenue based in Rosemont, Illinois. He also created The Burke Group, a consortium of engineering consulting companies with more than 400 employees in offices across Illinois and Indiana. Chris earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and Ph.D. in civil engineering from Purdue, as well as receiving an Honorary Doctorate. Earlier this year, he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest professional distinctions an engineer can achieve. He also has served as a professor of engineering practice at the University of Illinois Chicago for 20 years. In service to his alma mater, he has chaired the President’s Council, the Civil Engineering Advisory Council, and the Ever True capital campaign that raised over $2.5 billion. He also has served the Lambda Iota Chapter at Purdue as House Corporation President for six years.
Paul H. Macklin (Western Ontario 1967) Brother Macklin was twice elected to the Parliament of Canada, first in 2000, and served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General and on numerous parliamentary committees. In addition to practicing law for almost 50 years, he has owned and managed several businesses, including a construction firm in his hometown of Cobourg, Ontario. His extensive civic involvement includes leadership roles with the Northumberland 46
THE PHI GAMMA DELTA|FALL 2021
County United Way, Northumberland Hills Hospital, Rotary International, West Northumberland Economic Development Council, the United Church of Canada, and Durham College. Paul has been honored with the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal and the Diamond Jubilee Medal and as a Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary International. He was a colony founder at Western Ontario in 1965 and a charter member of the Lambda Omega Chapter in 1968. More recently, he served as Rechartering Committee Chairman when Lambda Omega was rechartered in 2011.
Gordon J. Smith (Iowa State 1961)
Brother Smith’s lifetime of support to the Alpha Iota Chapter at Iowa State includes 11 years on the House Corporation and two terms as House Corporation President. He was also instrumental in the founding of the Delta Iota Chapter at Drake University in Des Moines in the early 1990s and later served the Chapter as Purple Legionnaire. Gordon’s professional career in financial services spanned over 40 years, beginning with Merrill Lynch, and included leading the Des Moines office of securities broker-dealer A. G. Edwards & Sons. He has served on the vestries of two Episcopal churches in the Des Moines area, Saint Luke’s and Saint Timothy’s, and is a longtime supporter of the Des Moines Zoo, the Des Moines Art Center, and Whiterock Conservancy. With a special interest in history and preservation, in 2017 Gordon made a major gift to the West Des Moines Historical Society, a portion of which funded improvements to the Jordan House, a historic home in West Des Moines that served as a stopover on the Underground www.phigam.org
