SMOKE SIGNALS
Summer 2014
Smoke Signals
Summer 2014
A TEJAS FOUNDATION PUBLICATION -‐ TEJASALUMNI.ORG
IN THIS ISSUE
Staying Connected, Involved by John Feather, President – Tejas Foundation
Staying connected has been the cornerstone of the work that the Tejas Foundation has focused on in 2014. Read in this issue of Smoke Signals the various ways to stay connected with Tejas.
TejasAlumni.org
Earlier this year the Foundation launched its own website that allows you to keep your contact information updated, pay your dues, order merchandise, and keep up with your fellow alumni. Read more about this later in the newsletter.
Events around the country All throughout the year, Tejas gathers together to celebrate the Fires of Friendship. This Fall, those in the Dallas areas will gather for the annual Texas vs Oklahoma football game. Braves near our nation’s capitol, Washington D.C., will gather in October for BBQ. Houston area alumni gather monthly for lunch. All these events are posted on the website TejasAlumni.org
Facebook group
Tejas is also on Facebook. The group has now over 250 members which post real-‐time comments, pictures, and news. To join the Facebook group email: jfeather@giaging.org
90th Anniversary Reunion
60 years of the Tejas house
2600 Rio Grande continues to be the center of the Tejas Club. Read about the latest updates to this 110 year old wooden house.
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Next year, in 2015, will be the Tejas Club’s 90th Anniversary. Mark your calendars for September 5-‐6, 2015 and plan to join in Austin, Texas along with all the active Braves and alumni for a big Tejas reunion. Current Braves are involved in so many great things around The University community, such as Student Government, Texas 4000 (a charity bicycle ride from Austin to Anchorage supporting cancer research), Student Union, and many other campus organizations. Many alumni have left the 40 acres to be leaders and innovators around the world. Stay connected with the Tejas Club, Foundation, and your fellow Braves -‐ and share your news.
Decade groups
New “decade groups” help you stay in touch with Braves from your era.
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Xinesi Update by Kenton Wilson
The Tejas Club is enjoying a wonderful summer and is heading into a Fall semester full of excitement and hopeful expectations. The Fourth of July was vigorously celebrated with our annual party and the implementation of summer chores have left the house miraculously clean thanks to meticulous work by our House Manager, Levi Joseph. This past Spring semester we offered membership to ten young men; they all look forward to losing their “Newman” status the last week of August. Please join us for the th festivities at Steak Fry on the 29 and stay for an Alumni Tailgate the following day at the Tejas house as we prepare to start the football season with a win against the Mean Green of UNT. Keeping up the wonderful tradition of campus leadership, the Club can claim the current Student Government President, along with three of his five executive board members and the Speaker of the Assembly, the Undergraduate Business Council President, three Camp Texas executive members along with eight counselors, four
Texas Cowboys, two Silver Spurs, and three Archer Fellows for the 2014-‐15 school year. Additionally, Braves are involved in everything from the Texas Spacecraft Laboratory to the Ransom Notes (a capella group), to the national champion Texas Rock Climbing club team. Read about how three active braves are spending their summer on page 6.
In closing, I would like to thank Dr. John Feather, Judge Jim Arth, Steven Hardt, and all the rest of the alumni who invest so much of their time in Tejas. It is truly a blessing to have such a dedicated Foundation and helps inspire actives to remain involved long after graduation. May the fires of friendship forever burn.
60 years of the Tejas house by Steven Hardt, Tejas house committee chair
The Tejas house, in the heart of West Campus, illuminated with new column lights installed this Spring.
This year we celebrate 60 years of owning the Tejas house at 2600 Rio Grande. The building remains the center of the Tejas Club, housing around 20 braves every semester, hosting Thursday night coffees, nightly meal plans, and Monday night club meetings.
ongoing effort to update the electrical infrastructure of the house. This summer work has focused on reconstruction of a basement wall, and replacement of insulation and decking in the attic following the electrical work.
Maintaining this 110 year old historic wooden house keeps the House Committee busy. The Spring semester saw the removal of three trees from the yard and the installation of flood lights at the base of the columns. Other changes to the Tejas house included a new stove for the kitchen and the repair of the air conditioning and lawn sprinkler systems.
Upcoming projects include the repair of nd rd sheet rock throughout the 2 and 3 floor hallways, the re-‐surfacing of the porch cover on the south side of the house, and the painting of the exterior of the house.
nd New breakers and breaker boxes for the 2 and 3rd floors were installed as part of an
The time, effort, and money to maintain a house as delicate as ours is substantial. Your foundation dues and generous donations facilitate the ongoing maintenance. Thank you for your continued contributions.
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AROUND TEJAS
Clift Price shares UT stories
Clift Price, a 1942 grad, shares stories about UT around the start of World War II with Austin-‐area Tejas alumni.
New! Pay your dues online at TejasAlumni.org The Tejas Foundation has launched a brand new website that offers many great features. Each alumni was emailed in April login credentials for the website. This login lets you access all the member-‐only areas of the site including updating your profile and connecting with other braves. If you have misplaced or did not receive this email, please visit the login page on the site.
When you log-‐in to the new website, you have the ability to keep your information up-‐to-‐date by providing your latest address, email, biography, and work information. Share as much or little as you want. You will also have the option to decide which parts of your profile you want shared with other alumni or only privately shared with the Tejas Foundation.
Paying your dues
Registering for the site
Texas 4000
Tejas Braves Ross McGarity and Seth Sydner beginning their 4,000 mile bike ride to Alaska, raising money to fight Cancer. Find out more about Texas 4000 and track their ride at texas4000.org
FAST FACTS
97% of goal
As of July 15th, we have met 97% of our goal to have 200 dues paying Foundation members. If you haven’t paid your 2014 dues, please visit TejasAlumni.org to pay.
19%
Only 19% of Foundation Members are dues paying members.
TEJAS ALUMNI ON FACEBOOK Visit the Tejas Alumni Facebook page to stay up-‐to-‐date and share your current and past Tejas moments. TO JOIN THE FACEBOOK GROUP, EMAIL JFEATHER@GIAGING.ORG
Update your Tejas profile
Once you have logged into the site, you can check your membership status, and pay your annual dues by credit card. The Foundation has a goal of having at least 200 paying dues members in 2014. As of July 15th we are at 97% of our goal. Please pay your dues online and help us reach and exceed our 2014 goal. Your foundation dues go directly to supporting the needs and sustainability of Tejas.
Get in touch
Once you are registered on the site, you can search for braves who are in your area, connect with those who have similar interests, and more.
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Tejas Events – Fall 2014 The Braves of Tejas invite alumni to participate in all of these events this Fall. Please come by, greet old friends, meet the current Braves, and renew the fires of friendship. Friday, August 29 – Steak Fry in Austin (change from the usual Saturday schedule) Saturday, August 30 -‐ Alumni Tailgate in Austin (before the North Texas home game) Saturday, October 11 -‐ OU Weekend in Dallas Saturday, October 18 -‐ DC/East Coast Tejas Fall BBQ in Washington, DC Saturday, October 25 -‐ Tejas Foundation Fall Meeting 10:00-‐noon at the Club in Austin Friday-‐Saturday, November 7-‐8 -‐ Tejas Parent's Weekend Xinesi Kenton Wilson and the Braves also invite alumni to come by the house before or after any home game and also to the weekly Monday night Tejas meetings starting at 10:00 pm. More details will follow for all of these events, but please contact Kenton Wilson at Kenton.Wilson@utexas.edu or John Feather at jfeather@giaging.org for more information.
New Foundation board members The Tejas Foundation is proud to announce that it has added four new members to the Board:
Brad Dieringer of Austin (graduated 2000) Chris Fellows of Houston (2013) Jacob Guerra of Chicago (2008) Zach Richter of Austin (1998)
Four Board members have completed many years of devoted service and have been elected to the Council of Elders: Bob Robertson; Lee Hamilton; Reagan Simpson; and Austin Ligon. Current Board members Jim Arth, John Feather, Tim Ginn, and Zach Zbranek were re-‐elected for three year terms. We deeply appreciate the hard work of all of those who have served the Tejas Foundation over its 61 year history. Honors!
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Decade Groups
AROUND TEJAS
by Ed Elmore & Chris Fellows, Chairs of the Publicity Committee
To encourage former Braves to re-‐ kindle “the fires of friendship” and to attend the 90th Tejas Reunion on September 5-‐6, 2015, Foundation President John Feather appointed “mature” Brave Ed Elmore and recent graduate Chris Fellows to head the Decade Captain’s Committee. Each decade has a “Decade Captain” whose primary responsibility are the braves from that decade. Via email, “snail mail”, and/or contact by telephone or personal visit, the Decade Captains are asked to reach out to their fellow decade braves. Currently the Decade Captains are reaching out to request updated contact information in telephone calls or correspondence. Some have
already made contact by email and other correspondence. 1970’s Decade Captain, David Matlock, has actually stopped by the homes of several Tejas contemporaries to visit them in person. In the next several months, many Decade Steering Committees will be organized. Hopefully, a brave from every year in that decade will agree to service. Thus, when Braves see names of persons with whom they were in the Club, those braves will be encouraged to attend and reconnect at the 90th reunion. Contact your Decade Captain if you would like to serve on the Steering Committee.
Save the date: Sep 5-6, 2015
Join Braves from all around the world as we gather in Austin to celebrate 90 years of Fire & Friendship. Keep checking TejasAlumni.org for the latest reunion details.
Decade Captains 1940’s 1950’s 1960’s 1970’s 1980’s 1990’s 2000’s 2010’s
Jack Johnson
jackj51111@gmail.com
Jerry Gilmore
jerryrun.gilmore@gmail.com
Tom Behrman
tombehrman@att.net
David Matlock
dmatlock1970@gmail.com
John Shepperd
john.shepperd@wilsonelser.com
Doug Connolly
lonestardoug@gmail.com
Kyle Carpenter
kylecarp10@gmail.com
Louis Armendariz
louis.m.arm@gmail.com
Texas Independence Day 2014 th
Dr. Margaret C. Berry celebrating the 35 annual Texas Independence Day breakfast.
Bob Pees Croquet Tournament & Crawfish Boil
Braves enjoy crawfish on the lawn of the Tejas house in Austin.
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Tejas braves on summer break
Resuming a tradition carried out by many Braves before him, Chris Jordan has been participating in Shakespeare at Winedale, a program dedicated to bringing Shakespeare to life through performance. As a member of the forty-‐fourth summer class, Chris lives full-‐time in Round Top, preparing three of Shakespeare's plays -‐ The Taming of the Shrew, The Merry Wives of Windsor, and Troilus and Cressida, in preparation for public performances, which begin on July 17th. Throughout this, Chris spends his time studying and performing in the converted nineteenth-‐ century barn that is their theatre. Following the conclusion of these performances in the Winedale, Chris will be on tour throughout Texas and to Staunton, Virginia to perform at the American Shakespeare Center.
Chris Jordan
Ross McGarity is currently riding a bicycle from Austin to Anchorage, Alaska with his Texas 4000 teammates. This adventure began over a year ago when he began fundraising for cancer research and cancer support services. Ross has dedicated his ride to a former high school teacher, his grandmother, an aunt and an uncle, and his mother, all individuals that he has witnessed battle cancer. Tejas’s presence has been huge in the organization for the past few years, and this summer is no different. Both Ross and former Xinesi Seth Snyder are serving as Assistant Ride Directors for the Ozarks and Rockies routes, respectively. Next year, Braves Levi Joseph, Connor Hughes, and newman Jeffery Saeling will also don the Texas 4000 uniforms and begin their journey.
Ross McGarity
Along with three other Tejas members, Nosa Aimuyo is working for Texas Parents as a Family Orientation Student Leader. He emcees the opening session, introducing administrators, and welcoming over a thousand parents to the Forty Acres. Throughout the day, Nosa, Connor Hughes, Ethan Balsamo, and Trey Curran educate parents on the different resources that they can use to support their incoming Longhorns during their career at the University. These four young Braves have built an outstanding relationship with not only Texas Parents, but also the Office of the Dean of Students and are representing the Club extremely well.
Nosa Aimuyo
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Dues Paying Members As of July 15, 2014
Council Circle: $1000+
John Feather
Robert Wills
James Cowles Steven Hardt Robert Mims
Alex Cranberg J. Harrison Paul Navratil
James Arth Margaret Berry Harley Clark William Driscoll K. Hamilton Jeffrey Liaw Gregory Lucia C. Nance P. Price Mark Reidmiller Alan Seese J. Stancil Zachary Zbranek
Henry Baade John Brauss Thomas Bruns Kirk Chen Thomas Daly Danforth Dougherty M. Geiger Jack Johnson David Krueger Clayton Lindgren David Matlock David Mincberg Patrick Parker Bill Reagan Zachary Richter Dan Seilheimer James Shepperd Thomas Steck Nathan Wesely Joe Word
Totem Circle: $500 -‐ $999
Cal Chaney Daniel Hagan Stephen Jones George Richardson
Steven Crowell Jon Ivey Milam Pharo
Richard Baker John Bricker Richard Davis George Fleming R. Jones Christopher Lippincott Eric Mayo Trevor Pearlman Lacho Ramirez Ben Rosenberg Reagan Simpson Edwin Turner
Douglas Batson Kevin Brown Eduardo Diaz Robert Foster Joseph Krier Mark Long John Meneghetti Rudolph Peters William Ray Frank Rynd Angus Sladen Thomas Turner
William Bacon Lorence Bravenec Kayne Burk Paschel Church Britt Davis Travis Dunn E. Groppe James Key Logan Kunitz Andrew Linton Marchand McDougal Gus Nixon Larry Phillips Thomas Reavley Robert Robertson Edwin Seilheimer Joe Shull John Strasburger Jerry Whitten Erol Yayboke
Marvin Beck William Brookshire Bert Campbell James Clark David Dell’Osso Gary Ellison Eric Hagstette John King John Lay Clark Lord Travis Meitzen John Nyfeler Joe Powell Steven Rich William Rodriguez Craig Shaffer E. Smith Robert Trotter Thomas Williams William Young
Xinesi Circle: $250 -‐ $499
Arthur Allison Jeffrey Baumgarten Max Brown Farzin Dinyarian Thomas Hagan Dan Kubin Oscar Lopez John Menke Daniel Polter Charles Reeder Phillip Scott Richard Spears Ronnie Volkening $100 -‐ $249
Walter Allen Jerry Box Raymond Brown Brent Chaney James D. Cole Christopher Dodd Ed Elmore Dexter Hill Steve King Gary Lehmberg Tommy Mathis Samuel Millsap Patrick Palmer Tommy Raye John Richardson Trevor Rosen Kevin Shaw Edgar Smith William Vogt James Wilson
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Dues Paying Members As of July 15, 2014
$50 -‐ $99
Denton Anderson
Sean Barrett
Sagar Bhadra
Norayan Bhargav
Alexander Bourdeau
Derek Deas
Dustin Deas
Anthony Fazzio
Matt Gian
Stephen Gilstrap
Jacob Guerra
Tepera Holman
Sam Keyburn
Chris LeBlanc
Edward Lopez
Daniel McDonald
Adam Mardel
Robert McKee
Jason Munkatchy
Stephen Pugh
Max Rizzo
Jonathan Schwart
Robert Seilheimer
Jason Smith
Russell Thesing
Christopher Waggonner
Christopher Wayman
Michael Windle
$25 -‐ $49
Chris Fellows
Timothy Ginn
Russell Godfrey
Jared Hoaldridge
Clayton Huff
Shitij Jain
William Johnson
Colin Jones
Chris Klabunde
Patrick Lawlor
Nickolas Lebo
Gregory Lipscomb
Ryan Martinez
Mark Molaro
Abayomi Olufowoshe
Adam Reeder
Eric Verbit
Patrick White
Nick Zajicek
William Vining
Kenton Wilson
T he T ejas F oundation 2014 A lumni D ues Name: _____________________________________________ Tejas years:_________________ Home address: _________________________________________________________________ City: __________________________ State:___________________ Zip: __________________ Home phone: (_____) ________________________ Email:_____________________________ Work phone: (_____) ________________________
2014 Foundation Support: Dues categories:
Council Circle $1000 Totem Circle $500 Xinesi Circle $250 (10+ years since graduation) $100 (Between 5-10 years since graduation) $50 (Less than 5 years since graduation) $25
*Scholarship Contributions are made payable to the Tejas Educational Foundation and are Tax-Deductible. Foundation Dues are NOT Tax-Deductible.
Scholarship Contribution:
C. Thomas Behrman Scholarship Judge Harley Clark Scholarship Jim Fenner/Bob Dedman Scholarship George M. Fleming Scholarship Dean Byron Fullerton Scholarship Judge Royce Lamberth Scholarship Gregory E. Lucia Scholarship David L. Shull Memorial Scholarship
$____________ $____________ $____________ $____________ $____________ $____________ $____________ $____________
Tejas Foundation Endowment Contribution:
$____________
Total: $____________
Payment Information: Visa/MC information: Card Type: _________________________________ Card Number: _______________________________ CVV Code: ________________________________
Billing Address (if different from address above): __________________________________________ __________________________________________
Expiration Date:______________________________
Re www new On li .teja salu ne: mni .org Please return application and payment to:
Amount Due: _______________________________
The Tejas Foundation - P.O. Box 1448 - Cedar Park, TX 78630 www.tejasalumni.org - Fax: (800) 784-9034