The Emerald, Fall 2011

Service and Reflection 4

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Volume XCVI, Number 1 Fall 2011 Editorial Staff John Kitch (H, Purdue ’73) Editor Brian C. Alley (A, Vincennes ’03) Associate Editor Todd Shelton Managing Editor/Creative Director Mark S. Briscoe (AP, Arkansas State ’82) Business Manager communications committee John Kitch (H, Purdue ’73) Brian C. Alley (A, Vincennes ’03) Joseph V. Palazzolo (DB, Monmouth ’03) Jonathan Drnjevic (BT, Valparaiso ’81) Jeffery Seay (HE, Florida State ’91) Jack Chenoweth (H, Purdue ’74) John Michelich (EG, Illinois Wesleyan ’75)

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Sigma Pi Fraternity was founded at Vincennes University, Vincennes, Indiana, on February 26, 1897. Sigma Pi has chartered more than 215 chapters in North America and has initiated over 90,000 members since 1897. The founding fathers of the Fraternity are: Rolin Rosco James (1879 1953), William Raper Kennedy (1877 - 1944), James Thompson Kingsbury (1877 - 1950), George Martin Patterson (1877 - 1960) Emerald of Sigma Pi Fraternity (ISSN 1074-5289, USPS 011-013) has been published since 1911. Emerald is published three times a year

by Sigma Pi Fraternity, P. O. Box 1897, Brentwood, Tennessee, and additional mailing offices.

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POSTMASTER: Send address changes to SIGMA PI FRATERNITY, P. O. Box 1897, Brentwood, TN 37024.

MEMBERS: When making an address change, please send your full name and chapter with both the old and new address to the Executive Office address below.

Submission Deadlines: Spring February 10 Summer May 10 Fall September 10

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Zeta-Eta Chapter

Submit Emerald news to: Sigma Pi Fraternity, Attention: Emerald P. O. Box 1897, Brentwood, TN 37024 Telephone: (615) 373-5728 Fax: (615) 373-8949 Email: emerald@sigmapi.org

departments Fall2011

2 | International Digest 21 | The Foundation 23 | Alumni Notebook 28 | Adytum on High

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Member, North-American Interfraternity Conference

12 | Chapter Reports

17 Copyright © 2011 Sigma Pi Fraternity; Sigma Pi, ACE Project and the crest are trademarks of Sigma Pi, all rights reserved.

from the Grand Sage First

there was the blizzard last December 26 that dumped nearly three feet of snow on us and shut down the state for several days. Then in the space of a week this August we experienced an earthquake and the first hurricane to come ashore in New Jersey in 108 years. With each of these events I received calls or e-mails from brothers across North America just checking to make sure my family and I were all right.

Several also asked whether we were expecting a plague of frogs next, but I pointed out that we had been experiencing that since MTV began filming Snooki, the Situation, and the rest of the idiotic “Jersey Shore” shoobie* gang a few years ago.

The concern expressed by my brothers reminded me that although we come from many chapters, we are of one brotherhood. We look out for each other, support each other, and share both the triumphs and the defeats that are a part of all of our lives. We are, truly, “united in brotherhood.”

September brought a much more welcome event to New Jersey – the re-colonization of my home chapter, Gamma-Eta, at Rutgers University. 45 men worked under our expansion staff to bring Sigma Pi back to New Jersey’s largest university, and I was privileged to preside at their pledging and colonization ceremony.

In July, more than 250 of our brothers came together in Nashville for Sigma Pi University and experienced a revamped curriculum that was designed much more toward personal and career development than past SPUs. Although the heat and humidity were challenging, our brothers had the opportunity to experience a wide variety of classes that will better prepare them as campus and chapter leaders, and more importantly, for life after college. We were also visited by brother Jeff Arnett (ET, TennesseeMartin ’89), the 7th Master Distiller of Jack Daniels’, who shared his life experience in attaining this point in his career, as well as how the Fraternity influenced his life.

significantly larger pledge classes than last year, and credit the facilitators of those sessions for teaching them how to improve their rush. The Expansion Department is busy too, with visits scheduled to re-colonize our dormant chapters at the University of Kansas and the University of Washington. We also anticipate chartering several of our existing colonies this year.

Our headquarters staff is also hard at work on a variety of initiatives to benefit both our undergraduate and alumni brothers.

We have a new scholarship program on the website to assist undergraduates in improving their academics, and at Convocation we will have an impressive new trophy to recognize the chapter with the best GPA during the Biennium. For alumni, our website is being enhanced to allow brothers with similar interests to connect, share information and ideas, or to organize events.

Grand Sage Christopher R. Brown

The new database system installed at headquarters over the summer not only makes our staff more efficient by replacing 20 year old technology, it gives our members the ability to update their personal information, contact lost brothers, post information on events, and e-mail both undergraduate and alumni brothers, all through the mySigmaPi portal. This will improve our communication with our brothers, and their communication with each other.

Finally, the Grand Council is in the process of initiating a blog site to better distribute information to our brothers, as well as providing a forum for them to ask questions, share news, and offer suggestions. In the meantime, I will continue to spread news about our chapters through Facebook (Christopher R. Brown) and Twitter (GrandSage).

Sigma Pi is executing and advancing, working to improve the fraternity experience for all of our members. As we support each other, Sigma Pi will only become stronger.

Fraternally,

Many of our Province Archons have already conducted province workshops this Fall, furthering the education and training of our chapters. The Executive Office will support this initiative and ensure that every chapter has the opportunity to attend a province workshop this year, and our staff will lead the workshops in provinces where we do not have a Province Archon.

The Fraternity is seeing the result of the recruiting sessions that were a part of the Mid-Year Leadership Conference and Sigma Pi University. Many of our chapters are reporting

* Shoobie (n.) a southern New Jersey colloquialism used as a pejorative for a discourteous, embarrassing and/or annoying summer tourist. See also: “Benny.”

To increase the information available to as many brothers as possible, Grand Sage Brown is posting reminders and Sigma Pi news to Facebook (Christopher R. Brown) and Twitter (GrandSage). “Friend” or “Follow” him to keep up with Sigma Pi. sigmapi.ORG • mysigmapi.com

sigmapi

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International Digest Mark Briscoe serves a leader among fraternities Mark S. Briscoe, Executive Director and Honorary Grand Sage of Sigma Pi Fraternity, was elected as President of the Board of Directors of the Fraternal Information & Programming Group (FIPG) at its annual meeting held on July 9, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois.

Under the bylaws of the FIPG, Briscoe will serve a two-year term ending in 2013.

“I have always been a fond supporter of FIPG, because I believe strongly in its mission to provide sound guidance to our members,” said Executive Director Mark S. Briscoe.

The Fraternity Executives Association (FEA) also announced that Briscoe will serve as the organization’s Secretary-Treasurer.

Briscoe is entering his third year of service on the FEA Board of Directors. 

New recruitment publication complete This fall, the Executive Office completed production of a new recruitment booklet to replace the previous magazine. The new booklet has updated information about the Fraternity and includes pocket folders that can hold additional information about the local chapter/colony.

The booklets will be used by the Expansion staff and are also available to chapters. 

mySigmaPi introduced We are excited to announce a new addition to SigmaPi.org which provides your on-line access to the brotherhood…mySigmaPi! An innovative, efficiency-enabling tool that networks our membership, mySigmaPi is a chapter’s communication portal and all brothers’ go-to place for Sigma Pi resources.

Alumni and undergraduate members alike have access to mySigmaPi, where they can manage their personal contact information, update privacy settings and view Sigma Pi resources housed in the mySigmaPi Resource Center. The interface uses drag-and-drop technology, so that each brother can customize the Dashboard and put front-and-center the items that are most important and relevant to him. Add favorite links, RSS feeds, calendar events and respond to polls, link your mySigmaPi account with your Facebook account (allowing you to sign-in with your Facebook credentials), search for any Sigma Pi Chapter or brother – and much more. Need to update your mailing address or employer information, register for an upcoming event or access monthly officer reports? It’s all in mySigmaPi! Additionally, for active chapters, mySigmaPi will network your membership, will be your chapter’s communication portal and will make your leadership and your chapter even more productive.

And members with chapters using OmegaFi’s Vault

Billing and Collections have mass text messaging capabilities and can now give their parents/ guardians access to their OmegaFi account, so that they can view your chapter bill - and, more importantly, pay it!

Visit mySigmaPi.com today to take a look at the attractive, customized graphics and awesome new functionality and let us know what you think.

To see the new mySigmaPi, log-in at sigmapi. org or mysigmapi.com. Undergraduate members simply use their existing OmegaFi username and password (obtained from OmegaFi or your chapter leadership), and alumni members can quickly receive log-in credentials by clicking the “Sign In” button (then, register for access) at SigmaPi. org and confirming their membership by providing their chapter name and one other piece of verifiable information about themselves. The core technology used in mySigmaPi will allow us to build even more unique and useful tools in the future for officers, volunteers, members and parents, so be sure to check in often to see what’s new.

An informative mySigmaPi packet was sent to each chapter and volunteer. If you have any questions regarding mySigmaPi, please contact Brian Alley at the Executive Office. Log in today and let us know what you think by voting on the new poll, “What do you think of mySigmaPi?” 

Fall2011

Sweetheart Song available on CD

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Get the latest news at:

sigmapi.org

A group of alumni have completed a collection of seven versions of the Sigma Pi Sweetheart Song. They have made it available, including sheet music, on CD for just $16.

To purchase or learn more information, contact Carl Myatt at cmyatt3363@aol.com or (336) 274-3554. 

International Digest

Housing Committee convenes to assist chapters

by Rudy Basaldua (QW, Middle Tennessee State)

On Saturday, October 22, 2011 the newly formed Housing Committee convened at our International Headquarters in Brentwood Tennessee. Members of the committee included: Committee Chairman, Mark Reed (AF, Georgia ’69); Grand Sage, Chris Brown (GH, Rutgers ’81); Addam Arrington (AD, Auburn ’93); and myself, Rudy Basaldua the undergraduate representative.

Executive Director Mark Briscoe and Assistant Executive Director Brian Alley were also in attendance as non-voting members of the committee.

During our meeting, several important questions had to be answered. First and foremost, what kind of budget does the Housing Committee have to work with?

Second, what new resources are available that can help benefit our chapters at the local level? Finally, what can we do other than just giving money, to help each of our colony and chapter homes be the best they can be on their respective campuses?

Since the Housing Committee seemed to have faded away a few years ago, due to matters outside our control, it was up to us, the gentlemen of the newly reinstated Housing Committee to essentially start from scratch.

With only a small amount of extra funds to allocate to our chapters and colonies in need, the financial assistance will not be as a given as a “handout” or “freebee.” Chapters and colonies in need should begin to look at the money as a hand-up. Since no other financial institution can offer the same amount of service in the time-line that we ourselves have ironed out, the basis for our financial assistance will be small one-year loans, with an interest rate of 10 percent. The one-year loans would be paid back through direct deposit. This will help to ensure the Housing Committee has a sufficient amount of funds in which to help future chapters and colonies expand or improve their current housing conditions. We as a committee assume that if a chapter or colony is willing to ask for help, the chapter or colony should be willing and able to work hard enough to make the one-year payback deadline. The required paperwork for these loans can be found on our new website,

mySigmaPi, in the Resource Center. Once filled out and returned online, the loans can then be processed over a day or two, and if approved the chapter can have its allocated loan amount in as little as 48 hours.

Next, we moved onto discussing a new resource we have just recently began implementing internationally. This new product is a branch of the OmegaFi system, and is found at mySigmaPi. With its easy to use login, it offers an easily modifiable dashboard system. With your account summary, calendar, local and international Sigma Pi news feed, chapter rosters, and alumni/member databanks this new tool packs quite the punch. Information ranges from international documents and officer manuals to those at the local level, such as chapter bylaws and constitutions.

Additional key access will be granted to each of our chapters’ local officers, so that they can operate more efficiently when sending our calendar reminders or mass chapter messages that we as local chapters have to send.

Finally, we had to decide how we could help each of our 130 plus chapters and colonies, without necessarily committing a monetary gift. One of the topics discussed was initiating an International House Clean-Up Day every year. This would include alumni as well as brother involvement at the local level. We would also like to start a monthly or annual checklist for our colony and chapter house managers. This would help to ensure fire alarms and extinguishers are up to date.

In doing so, it would help lower the risk of accidents or the prevention of further damages when a crisis arises.

In conclusion we as the Housing Committee hope we can begin to grow our relationship with the many chapters and colonies of Sigma Pi, building a relationship in which we can begin to be looked at as an asset and one that is willing to lend a helping hand. With the many great points such as our new loan policy, the implementation of mySigmaPi, and our house manager checklists. The Housing Committee hopes that this is the foundation of a long and successful relationship. 

Get active in the Northwest The Pacific Northwest Province continues to grow and offer opportunities for brothers living in Oregon and Washington. Over half of the brothers in the Northwest are transplants from the rest of the nation and we are working hard to provide Sigma Pi activities that include everyone.

The Cascade Alumni Club is hosting social/networking events throughout the year, including happy hours in Portland, a golf outing, and tailgaters in Corvallis and Eugene. The alumni club is looking for more ways to get all brothers in Oregon and SW Washington involved.

In conjunction with the expansion effort at University of Washington, we will be starting an alumni club for all brothers living in Washington. Look for social events to be held in the Seattle area soon.

The Chapters at Oregon State, Oregon and Washington State are excelling. Their numbers are strong and they have all received many awards including top 25 chapters nationally and top ACE Project nationally. Each of them now have housing corporations, and we hope to have educational foundations started by the end of the school year.

Each chapter holds a formal dinner every Monday night and one of the easiest ways to get involved is to join them for dinner and share your experiences!

All of the dates and locations for events can be found on the Province web site at SigmaPiNW.org. There you can sign up for updates via email, Facebook and Twitter.

The site also lists contact information for all of the alumni and active groups in the area. Please contact Province Archon, Ian Itschner, at PNWPA@SigmaPi.org with any questions. 

sigmapi.ORG • mysigmapi.com

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I believe in Sigma Pi, a Fellowship of kindred minds, united in Brotherhood to advance Truth and Justice, to promote Scholarship, to encourage Chivalry, to diffuse Culture, and to develop Character, in the Service of God and Man; and I will strive to make real the Fraternity’s ideals in my own daily life.

Service and Reflection A Chronicle of my life in Ghana

Fall2011

by Guillermo Moratorio (ZZ, Florida ’08)

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Sigma Pi Feature

The United States trains its students well in the art of being successful. We are trained on how to organize our time, how to study for exams, and how to meet deadlines. We learn which appointments to keep, and which to blow off. We are taught ways to negotiate salaries, and how to “nail that interview”. In the fall of 2008 I had a moment of reflection on my training and its results.

During my stay at the University of Florida I was president of two organizations, the Institute of Industrial Engineers, and Sage of the Zeta Zeta chapter of Sigma Pi; I held four engineering internships with the likes of Intel and Disney; I was awarded the UF Four Year Scholar award, and the IFC Greek Scholar award; and I still managed to attend all of our fraternity’s social functions. I became very good at the “work hard, play hard” view on life, but as graduation was approaching and my job opportunities started materializing in my mind as long-term corporate commitments, I hesitated. I became concerned that maybe I was blindly following a single track of “westernized” success, while missing out on some of the simpler things that actually contribute to a person’s overall happiness.

In June 2009 I joined the Peace Corps and flew to Ghana with the hopes of getting a twoyear dose of the “life” side on the work/life balance.

I was placed in a small town in the Northern Region of Ghana called Diare. Diare has about 12,000 people, electricity in some parts of the town, and no running water. While most people have a basic understanding of English,

the main language spoken there is Dagbani.

The landscape in the north is that of a grassy savannah dotted with gnarled-looking Shea Nut trees. My school, Diare Junior High School, has about 120 students, and I was responsible for teaching the students Math and ICT (computer class).

A typical day for me consisted of waking up around 6:00-6:30 in the morning. I stopped setting an alarm after the first few months.

The songbirds, goats, sheep, and roosters made sure to communicate that whether or not I was ready, the world was waking up around me. That slow transition from sleep to consciousness, one level at a time, was a beautiful contrast to the jarring “bucket of cold water” feel of an alarm buzz.

Next came “bath time”. I would get a bucket from my house, go to the back of the compound where our rain-collection system was, and fill the bucket for my bath water. I became very good at staying clean using only a bucket of water, a small cup to pour the water with, and a bar of soap.

At 7:30 every morning the students had morning assembly. They would recite the national pledge, as well as their national anthem God Bless Our Homeland Ghana.

After this, classes would begin. A Ghanaian child’s education suffers from attacks on many fronts: many teachers don’t accept postings to rural schools, and so many schools are understaffed; teachers that do accept postings usually want to spend the weekends in larger cities, so they usually show up to school on Tuesday and leave on Thursday afternoons;

and since most of these rural communities are farming communities, any time it’s time to sow or harvest crops the child is sent to the family farm instead of school. As a result of all of these things, the disparity between where the Ghana Education System syllabus says these children should be, and where they are, is quite huge. Probably the most tangible evidence of this is their English skills. So many of my classes were spent talking slowly and with very simple vocabulary, while trying to teach complex math topics of which they did not even possess a basic understanding.

(At one point I deviated off of the syllabus completely, for an entire term, to teach the kids elementary school topics. There was just no way they could do linear algebraic equations if they did not know their timestables, or how to add and subtract negative numbers.)

I don’t know if it was the heat (it gets well over 100⁰F there in the hot season and we didn’t have ceiling fans, much less air conditioning), or the exhaustion of communicating in “Ghanaian English”, but by the time school closed at 2:00, it was time for

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a nap. I usually slept until about 3:00 or 4:00 and then rode my bicycle 2km into town.

My best friend at site, Bubu, is also a teacher at Diare JHS. Every day after school closes he sets up a stand in town where he sells credits for pay-as-you-go cell phones. His stand is located right in front of one of our town’s many mosques, and most of the friendships I made at site came from speaking in Dagbani to people as they came and went from their prayers. I knew nothing about Islam before I moved to Ghana, and the beauty of the call to prayer; the way everyone stopped what they were doing and headed towards the mosque, happily greeting as they passed, became one of my favorite parts of my service. I would usually sit at Bubu’s stand for a few hours and

the bats would take off and fly over my head as I greeted my friends on their way into the mosque.

At about 7:30 I would ride to the main station in town and greet my “fufu lady”. Fufu is a traditional Ghanaian dish which consists of yams or cassava pounded into a doughlike ball, and served with a spicy soup. It’s delicious. I ate Fufu at my site nearly every night, and greeting my fufu lady as she prepared her stand for the night’s sales became a ritual for me. Before I ended my service she even taught me how to pound the fufu. I can’t remember the last time I was so happy.

By 8:30 I usually started riding back to my house. On some cloudless nights I would forget

vacation. Then we take our slice of time that remains and use that time to live. In Diare, their life is their life. Work just happens to be something that happens during that time. The idea of enjoying every day, every moment, not just putting up with most days to celebrate the “special” days, is incredible. Vacations are great, travel is amazing, but that shouldn’t be all you have to look forward to. You should enjoy the job you do every day. If you hate it, get another one.

So that’s the plan. I’m going to start a small business when I move back to the States, and have a main goal in my company’s mission be that my employees actually enjoy working for me. Work is work, you can’t get around that, but it should be as enjoyable, and rewarding as possible. And the funny thing is, it’s not a conflicting idea with that of the western capitalistic view. Successful businesses everywhere prove the secret that Ghanaians are hiding. People who enjoy their jobs work harder, and make the company more money.

It’s easier said than done, but it’s worth a shot, and I’m excited to try.

I taught some kids in Ghana how to do long division. The people in my town taught me to reevaluate my definition of success. The Peace Corps was an experience that I will never forget, and I’d encourage anyone who’s interested to take that leap, and learn a bit about themselves. 

Fall2011

work on my Dagbani. I’d try out new phrases and words, and get laughed at quite often.

Ghanaians love to laugh. And it’s important to keep in mind that they’re hardly ever laughing at you. They’re laughing with you; you just haven’t gotten the joke yet. And if you don’t think it’s funny? Then you need to lighten up. It’s a liberating moment when you come to the realization “They’re not insulting my intelligence or my capability… I just sound ridiculous when I try to pronounce this word.

I really do. It’s actually kind-of funny.”

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At about 6:30 the Weaver Birds in the huge tree across from Bubu’s stand would start to get loud in their yells to end the day. They would enter their self-made houses and, like shift work, the bats would wake up. Hanging upside-down from the same tree that the birds had been working in all day, the bats would begin to stretch and flap their wings. Right at dusk, during the night’s first call to prayer,

to watch the road because I was so distracted by the billions of stars in the ink-black sky.

I’d never seen a night sky in Florida like the ones I saw in Diare. Most nights I was asleep before 9:00. I had no TV, Radio, or Internet, so I usually read for a while, or played some songs on my guitar. I taught myself to play guitar in Ghana. I’d always wanted to in the US, but never had the time.

I finished my Peace Corps service about a week ago, and I’m now preparing to head back to the States. When I reflect back on the two years I spent in Ghana I pull out a few key observations that I hope to never forget. The people in my village never took vacations. The concept was just absurd. They worked with, and around, their friends every day, and each day they enjoyed their lives. Why would they need to go somewhere different and look at some statue instead? There’s something powerful in that. In the US we count-down until 5 o’clock, or Friday, or our next big

Ghana, a country on the West Coast of Africa, is one of the most thriving democracies on the continent. It has often been referred to as an “island of peace” in one of the most chaotic regions on earth. It shares boundaries with Togo to the east, la Cote d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north and the Gulf of Guinea, to the south. A recent discovery of oil in the Gulf of Guinea could make Ghana an important oil producer and exporter in the next few years.

The country’s economy is dominated by agriculture, which employs about 40 percent of the working population. Ghana is one of the leading exporters of cocoa in the world. It is also a significant exporter of commodities such as gold and lumber. A country covering an area of 238,500 square kilometres, Ghana has an estimated population of 22 million, drawn from more than one hundred ethnic groups - each with its own unique language.

English, however, is the official language, a legacy of British colonial rule.

In 1957, Ghana (formerly known as the Gold Coast) became the first country in subSaharan Africa to gain independence.

Chapter Chartering

T h e Univ e r si t y :

Beta-Mu Chapter returns to Ole Miss

by Will Wojcik On the afternoon of April 2, 2011, Sigma Pi Fraternity officially revived the dormant BetaMu chapter at the University of Mississippi.

When it chartered The University of Mississippi on February 24, 1844, the Mississippi Legislature laid the foundation for public higher education in the state. In all, more than 100 programs of study today offer superior academic experiences that provide each graduate with the background necessary for a lifetime of scholastic, social and professional growth. Strengthening and expanding the academic experience are the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College, Croft Institute for International Studies, Lott Leadership Institute and Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation.

C h a r t e r ing T e a m :

This represents a significant event for Sigma Pi as it claims another foothold in the SEC and reopened a dormant chapter that has history on campus dating back to the 50’s.

The Founding Fathers of the revived BetaMu chapter represent some of the best and brightest students that Ole Miss has to offer, and currently hold the 2nd highest GPA on campus.

Originally colonized on October 7th, 2009 by expansion consultants Joe Ruggieri (ZA, ’07) and Roy Hillman (IE, ’09), the colony faced an uphill climb the whole way in an extremely competitive Greek community. They weathered the storm, however, and earned

their reputation on campus as gentlemen.

Next fall, they plan on moving into a fraternity house on campus that was Sigma Pi’s former house in the late 80’s and are looking for a large fall new member class to pair with the returning Founding Fathers.

I would like to personally thank the local advisors who have been working with the new chapter since day one: Leo Lazarus (BM, ’89) and John Mulkey (BM, ’89). Both men not only acted in advisory roles for the colony, but managed to raise over $4,000 dollars to be given out as scholarships for Beta-Mu undergraduates. Without their behind-thescenes work from the outset, Beta-Mu would not have chartered. Congratulations to the new Founding Fathers can be sent to betamu@ sigmapi.org. 

Grand Sage: Chris Brown (GH, ’81) Grand Second Counselor: Mark Briscoe (AP, ’82) Grand Third Counselor: Ricky Marshall (AP, ’92) Grand Fourth Counselor: Leo Lazarus (BM, ’89) Grand First Counselor: Jason Dix (EO, ’96) Grand Herald: Jim Wisherd (AF, ’93)

sigmapi.ORG • mysigmapi.com

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Chapter Chartering

Gamma Re-Charters at The Ohio State University

T h e Univ e r si t y :

by Will Wojcik

Fall2011

On the afternoon of April 30, 2011, Sigma Pi Fraternity’s Gamma chapter at The Ohio State University officially returned to campus.

The new Founding Fathers were joined by numerous Gamma alumni from every era from the 50’s to the 90’s in ushering our third oldest chapter back into existence. Colonized back in the spring of 2007, the members of Gamma faced an uphill climb to chartering in a highly competitive Greek community. They fought through a colony re-organization in 2009 and persevered in a community of 34 other IFC fraternities to earn their place and have been rewarded with their charter. The Gamma chapter boasts a beautiful house, a highly involved membership base, and a group of dedicated and supportive alumni.

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Gamma chapter was officially established at The Ohio State University on June 6, 1908, from a local organization, Phi Kappa Phi. The first initiate was Winford Matoon who later went on to serve as a national officer of the fraternity. The next year, in 1909 Gamma hosted the very first Convocation. Gamma chapter is also where the Patterson episode took place. As a freshman at Ohio State, Patterson wanted to become a member of Sigma Pi Society of Illinois College; however, the society had no intentions of expanding so it was impossible for him to join. Determined, Patterson decided to create his own national fraternity and name it Sigma Pi. Shortly

after he heard of an exemplary Greek letter organization at Vincennes, he contacted them with the proposal of consolidating and becoming a chapter of Sigma Pi. The idea was well received and after some convincing Tau Phi Delta became the Alpha chapter of Sigma Pi. Patterson was soon found out and expelled from the fraternity.

After the Founding Fathers were initiated, a banquet was held that night. The banquet was well-attended by family, friends, and Gamma alumni. The speakers included chapter advisors Eric Buddendeck and Andy Shuman, chapter sage Aaron Winkel, and Grand Sage Chris Brown. The Gamma alumni club presented the chapter with a framed picture of our creed.

Standing ovations were given for alumnus Wib Angles, who was instrumental in getting Gamma re-colonized, and for undergraduate Ben Balthaser, the only person active with the colony from the initial colonization until chartering. Congratulations can be sent to gamma@sigmapi.org. 

The Ohio State University’s main Columbus campus is one of America’s largest and most comprehensive. More than 55,000 students select from 14 colleges, 175 undergraduate majors, and 240 master’s, doctoral, and professional degree programs.

As Ohio’s best and one of the nation’s top20 public universities, Ohio State is further recognized by a top-rated academic medical center and a premier cancer hospital and research center.

C h a r t e r ing T e a m : Grand Sage: Chris Brown, Grand Sage (GH, ’81) Grand Second Counselor: George Hakim, PGS (GA, ’78) Grand Third Counselor: Thomas Finkelmeier (G, ’93) Grand Fourth Counselor: Andrew Shuman (G, ’92) Grand First Counselor: Eric Buddendeck (G, ’93) Grand Herald: Craig Donnelly (BC, ’01)

Chapter Chartering

T h e Univ e r si t y :

Gamma-Sigma reorganizes at Missouri

by Chase Langan (GS, Missouri)

The University of Missouri was founded in 1839 in Columbia, Mo., as the first public university west of the Mississippi River and the first state university in Thomas Jefferson’s Louisiana Purchase territory. MU provides all the benefits of two universities in one — it’s a major land-grant institution and Missouri’s largest public research university.

C h a r t e r ing T e a m :

The Gamma-Sigma Chapter at Mizzou has undergone an extensive makeover over the last 12 plus months, going from an inactive chapter to a thriving, growing chapter with 71 members. All of this, in the matter of a year, is a testament to our hard work and dedication to helping this Fraternity succeed.

We especially appreciate the great help we have received from our alumni, most notably, our Chapter Director Robert Weber (DZ, ’77).

Also, we owe a great deal of gratitude to the expansion consultants, Adrian Rodgers (BK, ’10) and Joe Ruggieri (ZA, ’07), who recruited the original 37 of us who got the ball rolling.

Our re-chartering occurred on April 30, 2011.

In attendance were dozens of Gamma-Sigma alumni, as well as Executive Director Mark Briscoe (AP, ’82) and Grand Second Counselor Ed Levesque (HH, ’89). The experience as a

whole was great as 55 men were able to call each other a brother of Sigma Pi. Following the initiation, we invited our alumni and dates over for a celebration and dinner.

Today, the chapter stands as one of the most up and coming fraternities on campus at the University of Missouri. We have been actively involved on campus, finishing fifth in homecoming, which was Mizzou’s centennial, and also taking three top five finishes in various philanthropies. Furthermore, we have been very successful in recruitment, largely in part due to our rush chairman, Darrell Bass.

A class of 24 fall pledges and at least a dozen spring pledges was everything we could have asked for and more. Now, we are just trying to improve every day and are excited for what the future has in store for the Gamma-Sigma chapter at Mizzou. 

Grand Sage: Edward R. Levesque (HH, ’89) Grand Second Counselor: Dr. Lester C Joern, Jr. (ΓΣ, ’76) Grand Third Counselor: Leslie L. Wright (ΓΥ, ’70) Grand Fourth Counselor: Michael J. Frayne (ΓΣ, ’84) Grand First Counselor: Joseph P. Turck (ΔΩ, ’94) Grand Herald: Mark S. Briscoe (ΑΠ, ’82)

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Expansion

Newest announced colony at Rutgers Sigma Pi Fraternity, International announces its newest colony at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Over the past weeks Sigma Pi Fraternity Expansion staff members have been recruiting A New Generation of Leaders to restart Gamma-Eta chapter of Sigma Pi Fraternity at Rutgers. The colony’s 47 refounding fathers present at at the colonization ceremony will be aggressively working towards fulfilling the requirements of becoming a full chapter while continuously recruiting men who desire to become leaders.

The colonization ceremony was held on Sunday, September 25, 2011 at three o’clock in the afternoon at the Livingston Student Center on the Livingston Campus of Rutgers.

The presiding officers of the ceremonies were as follows: Grand Sage: Christopher Brown (ΓΗ, ’77), Grand Second Counselor: Richard Gallagher (ΓΗ, ’69), Grand Fourth Counselor: Patrick Forker (ΓΗ, ’75), Grand Herald: Paul Gorman (ΔΕ, ’93).

The colonizing officers of the colony were as follows: President Jordan Zuber, Vice

President Ethan Arbuthnot, Treasurer William Lichtenberger, Secretary Ian Wolf, Sergeant At Arms Theo Vlahos and Historian Michael Cordisco.

Sigma Pi has a bold commitment to its chapters, colonies, members, and alumni, and a solid reputation for quality, integrity, and leadership. The Gamma-Eta colony is dedicated to perpetuating these ethics while being an active component of the Greek and campus community. 

Sigma Pi colonizes at Duke On March 27, 2011, Sigma Pi Fraternity officially colonized at Duke University. The colonization marks an exciting beginning for the 30 men who were pinned as members.

Fall2011

Expansion Consultants, Joe Ruggieri (ZA, ‘07) and Adrian Rodgers (BK, ‘10) are to credit for the on the ground expansion work and start of the group.

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The men of the colony truly represent what Sigma Pi Fraternity is about and what great things come from starting new colonies on prestigious campuses across North America.

Diversity is truly the word, as the membership consists of feshmen, sophomores, and juniors, with different family backgrounds and areas of study. This blend of men makes the group one of the most dynamic fraternities on campus. It also gives them the opportunity to be one of the best Sigma Pi chapters in our organization.

Thanks cannot be said enough to our alumni and active members who attended the colonization. Todd Rust (EG, ’83) will be the Colony Director, and Tommy Rodwell (R, ‘05) will serve as the Alumni Comptroller. Todd

and Tommy conducted the ceremonies with George Ehrhardt (AN, ’84), and Peter Bolac (AN, ’06). Past Grand Sage and Founders’ Award Recipient Gary Tash (BP, ’68). Brothers from Rho (NC State) and Alpha-Nu (Wake Forest) were also in attendance. All of these men should be commended for their help and will all provide great support for the colony. We all should expect great things from this, the newest group of Sigma Pi Fraternity, as they are already setting high goals and standards for their organization. 

If you are interested in getting involved as an alumni volunteer or know of any undergraduates you would like to refer for membership please contact Adrian Rodgers at arodgers@sigmapi.org.

2012 Mid-Year Leadership Conference February 3-5, 2012 · Saint Louis, Missouri The Mid-Year Leadership Conference (MYLC) is Sigma Pi’s premier educational training conference where new chapter officers learn about their positions.

MYLC began in 2001 as a means of educating chapter presidents about how to effectively run a chapter. Chapters and colonies currently bring the president, vice president, treasurer, and recruitment chairman to this three-day-long event.

We are one of the only NIC fraternities to provide this type of leadership training at no cost to undergraduates.

MYLC has grown from 80 undergraduate attendees in 2001 to over 400 in 2011.

Within the next three to four years Sigma Pi would like to expand MYLC to include the entire Executive Council along with recruitment chairmen and new member educators for a total of eight members from each chapter and colony.

The Mid-Year Leadership Conference is developing newly elected officers into A New Generation of Leaders. The conference will develop lifelong leadership skills that can be used in collegiate, professional and fraternal experiences. Participants will develop networks across North America while gaining an awareness of specific officer responsibilities within the Fraternity. All attendees will learn about goal-setting, project planning and execution, leadership practices and management strategies through interaction with members from other chapters, alumni volunteers, the Executive Office staff, guest speakers and both the Grand Council and Educational Foundation board members.

Past guest speakers have included NIC staff members and Phired Up Productions CEO and President Josh Orendi.

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Chapter reports are those submitted by deadlines listed on the inside front cover.

Chapter Reports  Chapters

 Colonies

Brothers from Alpha-Pi Chapter at Arkansas State pose with Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe (AP, Arkansas State ’68)

Alabama  Theta-Omicron Chapter Fall 2011 has been very successful for the ThetaOmicron Chapter after a rough spring where we saw a tornado rip through Tuscaloosa on April 27th.

We initiated 2 members of our Spring pledge class at the beginning of the semester and have one of the biggest pledge classes on campus this fall with over 40 members. We will be having a plaque dedication on October 8th for our brother,Marcus Smith, who passed away from the tornado this past Spring. Thanks to the Alpha-Delta and ThetaGamma chapters for presenting this plaque that means so much to our brothers. This Fall will be enjoyable for all brothers as we have a great social schedule, philanthropy events, and football season.

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Arkansas State  Alpha-Pi Chapter

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After a great fall with our numbers up and our chapter GPA on the rise, we look forward to an eventful spring semester. The chapter has participated in many charitable events such as the Delta Zeta Turtle Tug, benefiting the speech and hearing impaired, and the Alpha Gamma Delta stAte Idol for the American Juvenile Diabetes Association. Our chapter also contributed to the Alpha Gamma Rho Greek Rodeo, supporting St. Jude’s, and the Chi Omega 5k for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. We also had great success in our own events such as collecting money for St. Jude’s Hospital. We look forward to participating in the

Up til Dawn event to raise money for St Jude’s, and the Chi Omega Make-a-Wish A-Thon for the MakeA-Wish Foundation. With spring rush in full swing, there is a bright future ahead for our chapter.

Arkansas Tech  Iota-Lambda Chapter This Friday we will conduct an initiation ceremony for our largest pledge class. The following day we will hold our second formal in Little Rock, AR. On November 7th, we had our second Founders’ Day. Recently our current Herald Brian Thomas and current Sage Nick Hannaman were appointed to serve on IFC for the coming year.

Auburn  Alpha-Delta Chapter The Alpha-Delta Chapter has started the new school year off with a bang. We have started this fall off by pinning 32 new members for the fall 2011 pledge class which we feel will all be strong assets to our fraternity. This fall we also have earned block seating in the Greek section due to our hard work earning spirit points. We look forward to keeping up the hard work so we can get seats again for next season. Our chapter has also improved its overall GPA as a result of our newly revamped scholarship plan and we plan to continue our success in the classroom again this fall.

Bridgewater State  Eta-Eta Chapter The Eta-Eta chapter has been going through some amazing times recently. We’ve reached

the 900 club, and that’s in no small part due to the contributions of each and every one of our brothers here. We initiated nine great brothers last semester, and we’re expecting many outstanding guys to come out and join our brotherhood this year. We’ve been doing some great philanthropy recently as well; we helped move in the freshmen on campus, and 5 of our brothers went on a 5k run to honor those who lost their lives on 9/11. We’re running on an all-time high at the moment, yet our drive is still the same. We can only go up from here.

Cal State – Long Beach  Beta-Omicron Chapter This past summer the brothers of Beta-Omicron have been working hard to not only prepare for Fall 2011, but establish higher standards for years to come. A new budget and financial (plug in system) has allowed our Executive Council a new and easy method for managing chapter finances.

Another fantastic feature that improves the overall appearance of our house would be the custom iron Sigma Pi gate we had installed this past June. This semester we have a new President (Taylor Fix), Vice President (Chase Owens), Sergeant at Arms (Josh Fletcher), and Herald (Jarrod Shusterman), so everyone can expect some exciting new changes to the way this chapter is run. We took a very personal one on one approach to rush and succeeded beyond expectations. We have rushed twenty five potential members. This rush was approached with the notion that the importance of quality supersedes quantity.

California  Iota Chapter

California - Santa Barbara  Alpha-Omicron Chapter The brothers attending school at UC Santa Barbara in the Alpha-Omicron chapter have been having a great summer. We recently reinstalled our much desired Chapter Director, Gary Grubacich, to his former duties and relations with our chapter.

As our self-proclaimed “grandpa”, he is ensuring we are staying on track and continuing the lively atmosphere at our house. Following a fallout in Spring Quarter, we have rebounded and are at the peak of brotherhood. Our house is the cleanest it has ever been. Our newly instated EC members have provided organization and purpose for the future. At the end of the month, we are scheduled to participate in our annual retreat. There, we will elect an official Sage and Herald for the following Fall Quarter. Our passion for the fraternity has never been as high as it is now. We have realized how important brothers are to us, and we are striving to be the best chapter we can be. The upcoming school year is about to be the best our chapter has ever seen.

Central Missouri  Gamma-Gamma Chapter The men of the Gamma-Gamma chapter are currently planning our annual Fire Fighters Appreciation Day. The brothers join the firefighters at the fire house and learn about their jobs and just get to know them on a more personal level. We provide lunch and dinner for the firefighters. It’s a good way to show appreciation for what they do.

This is the fourth annual Fire Fighters Appreciation Day for the Gamma-Gamma chapter.

Delaware  Iota-Beta Chapter The Brothers of Iota-Beta have had a great summer this year, coming off a very successful spring

Zeta-Omicron Chapter celebrates their intramural triumphs at Lawrence Tech

Detroit Mercy  Gamma-Alpha Chapter The Gamma-Alpha Chapter is ready for an exciting new school year! Following some renovations in the basement, the house is looking better than ever.

The brothers are looking forward to begin rushing events in a few weeks. Keeping the status of having the highest G.P.A. on campus remains another goal of the chapter as classes continue. A large focus of the Gamma Alpha chapter is fundraising so that more positive changes can be had in the future.

A new, efficient budget was proposed and the chapter is expecting a large pledge class. This year is Gamma-Alpha’s 50th anniversary as a chapter and a celebration is being planned for this year’s Orchid Ball; Past Grand Sage George Hakim, who is an alumnus of the University, will be attending.

Drury  Epsilon-Rho Chapter The brothers of Epsilon Rho chapter are excited to welcome 16 new pledges, the second largest pledge class on campus. These 16 show great promise, a very strong and tight knit class already.

Our connections to the community grow stronger, with our philanthropy efforts at the Boys and Girls Club in town and our regular street clean-ups. We as a chapter grow closer as well with brotherhood, including creating closer ties to our alumni.

Duke  Colony Sigma Pi at Duke University has really begun to ramp up this past October. Our own brother won Zeta Tau Alpha’s Big Man on Campus competition as a result of an incredible majority of votes earned.

The Duke Sigma Pi Brothers will now also have a place to call home come next academic year after being given their own housing section. The brothers have also been very active on the service side of

Sigma Chapter brothers at Iowa State stop for a moment to pose before heading out to serenade sororities

Brothers at Eta Chapter at Purdue were pleased to complete a day of work sessions

things. Just recently, many brothers gave Duke employees a well-deserved break and served brunch to freshman in their dining hall. The first transition to a new executive board also went remarkably smoothly, with an all sophomore Executive Council excited to lead the colony ever closer to chartering.

East Stroudsburg  Colony It has been a very busy summer for us as we prepared for our final semester before finally being able to charter into Sigma Pi here at East Stroudsburg University. We are coming into this semester extremely focused and dedicated to accomplishing the necessary criteria we need to charter in December. Over the summer we held numerous brotherhood cookouts at our house on campus where we could all meet up since a lot of us live far apart between Philadelphia, New York, and New Jersey. This semester we are really focused on increasing our fund raising efforts and adding more brothers to our great group that we already have established. The tasks that lie in front of us as a colony in order to charter are not easy, but we are determined as a group to exceed all expectations of us and charter in December.

Chapter Reports

The Iota Chapter is off to a great start for the 2011-2012 school year. With a pledge class of 8 fine gentlemen, plans to participate in upcoming philanthropies – such as the Red Cross Blood Drive and Gamma Phi Beta’s G-Phi Night Lights: Flag Football Tournament – this year promises great things. Our athletes are practicing so that next semester we can defend our IFC Basketball Intramural title. With a more enthusiastic and involved group of members than ever, we look forward be setting new standards for social excellence in our chapter.

semester in which we welcomed 10 new brothers to our chapter roll. We were excited to host our Annual Golf Tournament, where we welcomed friends, family, alumni, and brothers alike to play a round of golf with part of the proceeds benefiting Operation Homefront. We also co-sponsored a car wash with the sisters of Sigma Kappa and Community Connectors, a group for adults with disabilities that encourages community involvement. In addition, this summer several brothers organized our first brotherhood fishing trip in Atlantic Heights, New Jersey; we look forward to future trips. Fall Rush 2011 is already coming together, and we are looking forward to another great year.

Emporia State  Epsilon-Epsilon Chapter At Emporia State, the Epsilon-Epsilon chapter of Sigma Pi is working hard to stand out on campus and in the community. Our numbers are improving and we are making quite an impression on our campus. The Epsilon-Epsilon chapter at Emporia State University is thriving and things are going great.

Ferris State  Theta-Theta Chapter This 2011/2012 school year has started out great.

We have begun by hitting our recruitment hard. Our Rush Chair along with many other brothers have gone on campus and chalked our letters all over the sidewalks in preparation for Rush. With great motivation among all the brothers we are looking forward to a great rush period. We have also begun work on getting local businesses to donate to our 10th Annual Teeter-Totter-a-Thon for the American Cancer Society in honor of our brother Dane Crystal.

We are hoping to beat our $1500 donation from last year. With an enthusiastic young core of brothers, we are looking forward to a successful year.

Theta-Tau Chapter at William Paterson winning a volleyball tournament on September 30th

Sigma Pi spirit is strong at Omega Chapter at Oregon State

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Gamma-Sigma brothers at Missouri

Fitchburg State  Eta-Tau Chapter Shout out to our Gamma-Iota chapter at WPI for helping us work on our house and giving us some much needed motivation last semester. We are two weeks into rush and our rush chair Zac has a lot of great events lined up and we have several great guys interested in rushing Sigma Pi. We have our sleep out for the homeless coming up soon which we are very excited about and we are continuously improving as a chapter and pushing each other to be exemplary Sigma Pi and citizens. Best of wishes to all other chapters in a safe and fun rush and academic year.

Georgia  Alpha-Phi Chapter The Alpha-Phi chapter got the 2011-12 school year off to a great start. After our biggest rush since the 1960s, we initiated 27 new members into our chapter. Our rush committee has already started work on another great pledge class for this spring. The brothers are looking forward to our annual Trick or Treat with the Greeks in October which benefits the Boys and Girls Club of Athens.

Alpha Phi is more excited than ever about our future at the University of Georgia.

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Houston  Theta-Nu Chapter

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The brothers of the Theta-Nu chapter are making a big splash on campus this semester with a great rush class and are making a push for the President’s Cup, an award that is presented to the top fraternity each semester based on intramurals, overall GPA, community service and philanthropy participation. We are continuing to renovate and make improvements on our house to leave a lasting

legacy for the future members of our chapter.

Indiana of Pennsylvania  Theta-Epsilon Chapter This semester is expected to be the best in our entire 10 year history. Our Chapter is becoming thoroughly involved in not only our campus life, but in philanthropy throughout the community. On top of a breakfast planned for every major department on the Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s campus as one part of our ACE Project; we will also be holding a battle of the bands with all donations going towards Alzheimer’s research. Furthermore, we will be participating in a blood drive and a chapter wide trip to work at Cedar Point to raise money. Our entire pledge process has been reconfigured as to serve our pledges in ascertaining the history of Sigma Pi as well as our chapter history in the most efficient way possible. Finally, we have received great advice from our ELC Cory Bosco to ensure our chapter is more efficient as a whole.

Indiana Tech  Gamma-Kappa Chapter At the Gamma-Kappa chapter of Sigma Pi we have been doing a lot of recruiting to get more guys into the house. We have been doing a lot of things, on campus and with the other organizations, as well.

We also just pinned 10 pledges, and there are more that should be joining the house in the next few weeks. We are participating in the Greek Week here at Tech with the other organizations.

Iowa State  Sigma Chapter Sigma Chapter has been doing well over the past year. Last spring we placed second in Greek Week, as well as a strong showing in homecoming this

fall. We are hoping to continue that momentum into this year’s Greek Week and gain another top finish. This year was the 20th anniversary of our rechartering. It was awesome to see so many alumni back for the celebration. We enjoyed tailgating the Iowa vs. Iowa State game, as well as a wonderful dinner and banquet at the Memorial Union.

Johnson & Wales  Eta-Omega Chapter After finishing strong at the end of last year our chapter wanted to get off to a strong start this year in every aspect. We wanted to continue to excel in community service hours while having a strong recruitment process. On top of continuing to build are chapter to the next level we wanted to make sure our brotherhood bond was stronger than ever. We have done a few community service events thus far and have a few more planned for this trimester. We recently just had a alumni weekend where a large number of our alumni came to Providence for the weekend for a few days full of activities to entertain them as well as a meeting to show the alumni where we are today. The chapter is stronger than ever and continues to move in the right direction and we have very high expectations for this year.

Kansas State  Iota-Alpha Chapter Fall semester is in full swing for the brothers at Iota-Alpha. The various committees are working very hard to finalize an events schedule for next semester, and to recruit an awesome spring class.

The Alumni Relations Committee is planning for an Active-Alumni football game this fall, which is sure to be a good time for all.

Louisville  Colony

Missouri – St. Louis  Delta-Zeta Chapter

In recent weeks there have not been any extreme highlights to point out. However we have gained enough points to be at 77% and are soon to pick a possible chartering date for the spring. The only thing we need to make sure of is members and all dues in. We should have over 80% in points by next month the latest. We held an alcohol awareness event involving the Dean Giles G., the fire department, the police department, and campus safety. We held a penny wars fundraiser for ECDC which sponsors Baby Behind Bars in Nepal. These children are locked away in jail with their parents because they have no other family.

The Louisville colony has been keeping very busy with its dynamic growth. New members are joining every week. We had a great “pref” night in which all the new members were introduced. Soon after we started our flag football team and competed against fellow fraternities. All the brothers who have new little brothers are currently getting to know them. Sigma Pi at Louisville has big plans for recruitment and public exposure.

Since last reporting the Delta-Zeta chapter has been going through a big overhaul. We now have a new President, Vice President and First Counselor.

Ryan Willer is now Sage, Ryan is a Junior at UMSL and has been on EC the last three years and has held almost every position on EC. Mike Mannino is a sophomore and was our last First Counselor and has made a very good transition into Vice President. Bennett Felton is the new first counselor, this is his first major position but we are looking forward to his ideas and wisdom on EC. Also at the beginning of the summer Delta-Zeta was given the task of completing a major list of things to better every aspect of our chapter. After the summer was over I am very proud to say that we finished them.

Kutztown  Eta-Pi Chapter The Eta-Pi chapter is coming off a great year. We won Greek Week while also raising approximately $800 in one of the events. As decided upon by the chapter, we donated this money to a local charity called Friend, Inc. in which assist families in need by providing them with meals. As for our main philanthropy event, our campus clean up gained much support from fellow Greek organizations on campus which helped us reach our goal to show Kutztown University that Sigma Pi cares about having a clean learning environment. This year we plan on expanding our Fraternity by putting together many recruiting events to obtain the best young men on campus for the Eta-Pi chapter.

We look forward to another successful year as we continue to maintain our positive image throughout campus, and the community of Kutztown.

Lawrence Tech  Zeta-Omicron Chapter Things for the Zeta-Omicron chapter are going pretty well. The rush events that we have planned for the Fall ’11 semester are going very well. The flyers that we have made have been a big hit.

In the middle of the summer we had a summer retreat where the brothers got together and went camping for 3 days. While on retreat, 20 brothers tied together and floated down the Ausable River.

We have also been pretty active around campus, participating in the freshman move in, having orientation leaders, first year mentors, as well as holding many campus jobs around campus. Two of our brothers were elected on the IFC E-Board for the next year, holding the positions of Judicial and Treasurer. Also, due to the continuing success of our Cedar Point fund raiser, we are going again this year for three weekends.

Theta-Xi Chapter, Salisbury, ACE Project work on campus digging out a garden.

Michigan  Alpha-Beta Chapter Here in Ann Arbor things are very hectic. Recently, a storm blew over a tree in our front yard which nearly hit our house. Classes are very challenging here at Michigan, and midterms are in full swing.

To make matters worse, we are still in debt to our landlord about $22,000. If you’re feeling generous or simply want to help out your fellow brothers, please send any and all money donations to: Sigma Pi, 1415 Cambridge, Ann Arbor, MI 48104.

Missouri  Gamma-Sigma Chapter After an outstanding recruitment in the fall, the Gamma-Sigma chapter has grown to a staggering 75 members. 24 new gentlemen have the honor of being our Alpha pledge class for many others to look up to. The fraternity is paired up with Delta Sigma Phi and Zeta Tau Alpha this year for homecoming to help get our feet on the ground and get the ball rolling. While we are a new chapter to the mighty Sigma Pi family, we are trying our best to be a cornerstone to the Mid-West reach of this great foundation. New house repairs are on their way this Thanksgiving with replacing dirty carpet with hardwood flooring on the 2nd and 3rd floors. The future looks bright!

Missouri S&T  Alpha-Iota Chapter Here at Alpha-Iota Chapter, we had a fun summer full of activities and recruitment, where we were able to sign ten new members. This semester we plan to improve our chapter GPA so we can once again be recognized for the highest Greek GPA on campus. IFC Greek Week is upon us already, and we plan to stay in the top 3 this year. We’ll be having our annual alumni event during the MS&T Homecoming which is October 8th. This semester is going to be full of recruitment, brotherhood and simply having a good time.

Alpha Chapter Sage Brent Kelley at Vincennes during a blood drive for the American Red Cross

Chapter Reports

Keene State  Colony

Monmouth  Delta-Beta Chapter Over the summer, our fraternity met for our annual summer meeting to discuss our upcoming semester. We went over certain things such as our blood drive, fundraising events and recruitment strategies. We made sure our recruitment shirts were done in time and we got certain items that we were missing for the start of the semester.

Montclair State  Iota-Iota Chapter The brothers of Iota-Iota had a lot of fun during our summer break and are very excited for the upcoming semester. We eagerly await the time when we can add to our numbers and continue to grow as one of the best fraternities at Montclair State University.

Murray State  Gamma-Upsilon Chapter The Gamma-Upsilon chapter welcomed eight new members that accepted bids: Evan McPeak, Will Simpson, Adam David, Dakota Fields, Davis Powers, Tyler Pippin, Tyler Krupp, and Josh Johnston. The chapter is participating in homecoming with Sigma Alpha occurring October 15th where the theme is “Once a Racer, always a Racer”. Juan Casa delValle has been nominated for Mr. MSU. The chapter would also like to congratulate Juan Casa del Valle and Kyle Meador for their recent engagements! We are in the process of doubling in membership and working on year round recruitment.

NJIT  Alpha-Mu Chapter Currently we are in the works for making a

Brothers pose at East Stroudsburg Colony

Theta-Lambda Chapter, Radford, brothers at a car smash where they raised money for juvenile diabetes

Gamma-Gamma Chapter’s annual Firefighter Appreciation philanthropy at Central Missouri

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commemorative collage of all the pictures of our recently passed brother Lou Loffredo Jr. This will then be framed and placed in the kitchen as a reminder of his dedication to Sigma Pi Apha-Mu. North Carolina State  Rho Chapter This spring has been quite eventful for Rho Chapter. We had our most successful philanthropy in recent years. Our “Break the Silence 5k Run/ Walk for Suicide Prevention Awareness,” held on March 20th, and raised over three thousand dollars for North Carolina State’s Student Counseling Center. The event was held in memory of one of our brothers, Marc Haege, who took his own life on December 20th. We plan to make the 5k an annual event in remembrance of Marc, who we all miss very much. This semester our chapter welcomed four outstanding young gentlemen into our brotherhood. Going into the summer our chapter is extremely excited for next rush at the beginning of the fall semester and have gotten a head start with some early planning; we anticipate a great deal of success.

Northern Illinois  Beta-Sigma Chapter The brothers of the Beta-Sigma Chapter have seen a rise in our membership over the past year! We also wish to report a pledge class of over 15 and a few others on the wire for the fall semester 2011!

Our second annual Sigma Pi Pig Roast was held at the beginning of the semester and was a continued success from last year’s event thanks to the help of our alumni. Our steady increase in numbers and our participation in our local community have put our chapter’s image in high standard. The brothers of the Beta-Sigma chapter of Sigma Pi Fraternity look forward to another successful year!

Oakland  Zeta-Pi Chapter With the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year, Zeta-Pi has been on campus at every opportunity to prepare for the Fall Rush. This year marks the start of OU’s newly created IFC, and along with it a Formal Recruitment period. As always, there is a bit of discontent with any form of change, but the chapter is coming at it guns blazing.

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Ohio State  Gamma Chapter Gamma Chapter at Ohio State is enjoying a successful year thus far. Only a few months since chartering, we have already formed a sizable pledge class for autumn quarter and have big plans for the future in terms of chapter size.

Chapter operations are going smoothly, and we have a full week coming up with Delta Zeta for Ohio State’s homecoming celebration. Many events with sororities are planned for this year and our social calendar is fully booked. In terms of community service and philanthropy we are still formulating plans, but are actively participating in other philanthropies put on by different Greek organizations.

Oklahoma State  Colony Starting off this semester, the colony at Oklahoma

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State University has been focused on developing a name for ourselves and recruiting new members.

We have done everything from information sessions to barbecues to sporting events so people on campus can get to know us and we them. Having nearly doubled in size from our efforts, we are now looking forward to the many social and community service events we have planned in and around the community. With a newly elected executive council to lead both our new and existing members we are pushing towards our goal of completing the necessary chartering requirements this Fall 2011 semester so we may charter and become an official chapter in the Spring 2012 Semester.

Oregon  Iota-Epsilon Chapter This last spring we initiated 13 new members and are very excited about their upcoming contribution to our chapter. We have filled our big house up to the brim with these new members and for the first time we were having trouble fitting everyone in the house. which we feel is a good problem to have! Also we are looking forward to this fall term when our Greek Life is organizing Greek Week of which we are defending champions. Also in the past two terms we have had a GPA that has beaten the All Men’s and All Fraternity’s average which is a vast improvement from a year ago!

Pi letters.

Penn State – Altoona  Theta-Iota Chapter Starting the year with 8 brothers, the chapter nearly tripled in size, finishing off the year at 23 members. Having the necessary resources to succeed in philanthropy as well as on-campus activities, the semester comprised of multiple major philanthropy events, starting with a weekend of the brothers dedicating their time to clean Raystown Lake in Tipton, PA. The brothers also hosted their 1st annual Sigma Pi’s Jam Session; a battle of the bands event put on for the students, with proceeds going to The Breast Cancer Foundation. We also participated in Bounce Marathon, raising $11,000 for Easter Seals, which helps children with disabilities. Last would be the annual ACE Project, the campus creek clean-up, which has been going on since the founding of the chapter. Sigma Pi also excelled in the campus Greek Week competition where the brothers won a resounding majority of the events.

Purdue  Eta Chapter

Omega Chapter has been working hard on rush throughout the summer and already has plans laid out to fully take advantage of our schools rush week. Our summer rush events have demonstrated how strong our brotherhood is, and how much of a good time we like to have. A key event that we have planned is going to be Sigma Pi Presents Lucha Libre Fiesta with Mexican wrestling. We are looking forward to this football season and would like to encourage Alumni to stop by for some tailgating.

Eta Chapter is nearing its one-hundredth continuous year, and we have already started to prepare for our Centennial Celebration. We held our first of many brother/alumni work sessions, to strengthen both our chapter house and bonds between brothers of different generations. We are starting our year-long hundredth year celebration on homecoming and have events planned for Founders’ Day and on June 8, which marks our hundred years, with a final celebration on homecoming 2012. In addition to preparing for our hundred-year celebration, we have had a great recruitment so far with ten new members accepting bids only two weeks into recruitment. This year Eta Chapter looks back on the past, and prepares for a bright future.

Pennsylvania  Delta Chapter

Radford  Theta-Lambda Chapter

Just had our alumni weekend. It was an exciting time to reconnect with alumnus and learn more about their history as well as sharing our events.

Alumni flew in from most of the East Coast. As the past graduating class was our 2nd Alumni class, we were able to get a view of what it was like working and how their connections were maintained.

The men of Theta-Lambda have gotten off to a great start this semester. With the initiation of our latest pledge class last semester we are now the third largest fraternity on campus and plan to surpass that to the top. We are getting ready to start our main philanthropic event, St. Baldrick’s, which raises money to help find a cure for kids with cancer. This semester we plan to extend the event throughout the semester in order to accomplish our goal of raising over $20,000 dollars for the cause which doubles our previous accomplishment of over $10,000. Although this past year we have had to make a lot of changes to our chapter we are now doing better than ever and plan to continue with what we’re doing to achieve the ultimate goal as the best fraternity on campus in every aspect possible.

Oregon State  Omega Chapter

Penn State  Theta Chapter The brothers of Theta Chapter are looking forward to another successful year coming off a stellar spring rush. The first sanctioned rush event was attended by no fewer than 150 rushes despite the off-putting weather. Brother Drew Gardner in coordination with the philanthropy chairs and a local organization have organized a system of recycling to properly recycle all of the cans used by the house which has worked in stunning fashion.

In intramurals Theta will field strong teams in softball, golf, and the IM 5K. Renovations over the summer have the house looking impeccable with the addition of new tiling in the chapter room that features the signs of the zodiac, as well as a safety railing around the solarium that sports the Sigma

Rowan  Zeta-Chi Chapter The brothers of the Zeta-Chi chapter at Rowan University started off the fall semester by holding our annual ACE Project on September 10th.

Brothers teamed up with the brothers of Phi Beta Sigma and sisters of Zeta Phi Beta and hosted a

Chapter Reports

Oklahoma State Colony showing their school spirit

free BBQ for students and faculty of Rowan.

Rutgers  Colony Since colonizing in September, the Gamma-Eta colony has been busy establishing brotherhood and getting our name out in the Rutgers community.

Each Friday we have been having recreational activities such as football and volleyball, where brothers just show up for an afternoon of sports and hanging out. Related to that, on October 7 we watched the Rutgers football team take on the Louisville Cardinals. As for getting our name in the community we celebrated Zeta Tau Alpha’s Founders’ Day by surprising the sisters with flowers. Later in October we participated in and finished fourth in a Greek basketball tournament for autism. Moreover, we have held PR days where brothers are supposed to wear their numbers. In terms of upcoming events, we are hoping to host our first ACE Project in early December.

planning our ACE Project and this year we are pulling out all the stops. Along with other things on campus, our chapter continues to grow and change.

Southern Illinois - Edwardsville  Delta-Omega Chapter Coming back to a new year and a new beginning we started off the Fall semester with a bang. Our first Summer meeting we initiated 3 newmembers..

We already have a full schedule for the rest of the academic year that will help with fundraising, philanthropy, and most importantly spreading the word of Sigma Pi. Rush week will begin on September 12th with high expectations.

Southern Tech  Epsilon-Alpha Chapter

This semester Theta-Xi chapter at Salisbury University is planning on a big rush. We are having several different rush events including barbecues, cookouts and sports to promote Sigma Pi on campus. We have already been active with alcohol awareness by passing out Sam Spady cards to freshman on Fridays.

Our chapter has placed second in our fall competition, and is already preparing for next year.

Our hard recruiting efforts over the past 3 years has now become full circle. Leaders are emerging for elections and committee head positions. Our chapter only has 3 members graduating this year, and with the surge of new members we will soon have one of the highest memberships of the Greek community. We cannot wait for this spring to take home Greek Week. Last year we placed third, and with the current pledge class athletes joining our ranks we have a definite shot at taking the top spot.

Southern Arkansas  Epsilon-Kappa Chapter

St. Joseph’s  Theta-Chi Chapter

We are having another excellent semester at Southern Arkansas University. Fall Rush is looking to be one of the best yet. We are planning a large turnout to our Rush Cookout and have high hopes for our intramural sports teams. We have begun

Brothers recently attended a recruitment retreat featuring seminars on personality and the perpetual importance of the recruitment process.

We were privileged to have a presentation from Past Grand Sage and Province Archon John Williams.

Salisbury  Theta-Xi Chapter

We have a lot of preparations in store to ensure that this will be another successful semester. Our chapter is fielding a team for a 5k obstacle dash held in Quarryville, Pennsylvania. We have begun searching for artists to play at our Spring Concert, and hope to have a mix of artists both local and signed to pay homage to Philadelphia’s long standing music culture. The concert will benefit Philadelphia children’s charities. The chapter has also implemented a scholarship to acknowledge academic achievement during the pledge semester, demonstrating our commitment to scholastic excellence and character development.

TCNJ  Theta-Delta Chapter As the fall semester begins, Theta-Delta finds itself running at a high level of efficiency and a strong brotherhood. In planning our philanthropy and community service events, we expect to surpass the achievements of last year and expand the reach of such efforts. With Unsung Heros in particular, we hope to involve more organizations on campus and recognize more of its workers. In regards to new members, we are in the process of taking a small but strong fall class and look forward to a very promising group of young men in the spring. Our alumni continue to stay active in our chapter, giving advice, planning events, and visiting when possible. Overall, our chapter is at an all-time high in every aspect of our brotherhood and we intend to keep performing as such in the coming months.

Texas - San Antonio  Iota-Delta Chapter Fall 2011 has seen the first season of UTSA’s football team, triple digit heat, as well as the rise of Sigma Pi - Iota-Delta to the largest fraternity

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on campus. Many fraternities have undergone some intense reviews and have been found to be performing at a sub-par level this semester. Sigma Pi has held strong to the Creed and persevered! We expect to have one of our largest pledge classes ever as well as an outstanding social calendar!

UCLA  Upsilon Chapter Sigma Pi UCLA had a great end to the 2010-2011 school year. During the 2011 Spring quarter, Rush and Orchid Ball were some of the many events that the house held. Throughout the quarter the Executive Council came up with many projects, both long term and short term that will improve the house in many different ways. We are all extremely proud of the brothers that graduated as the class of 2011. Many of them are already off to an exciting start for example; Bobby Keo is going to start grad school at CSUN in the Fall, Cameron Howard will be moving to Korea, and Kanishk Tulsyan has moved back to India.

Valparaiso  Beta-Tau Chapter The Beta-Tau Chapter of Sigma Pi has begun the 2011-2012 academic year strong with a great group of hard-working brothers. For the past several months we have been working to renovate our houses and have made vast strides on improving our image. Beta Tau has also been thoroughly involved with philanthropy both on and off campus. We participated in several philanthropic events within the Valparaiso community including Night Ride, a bike ride that benefits the Valparaiso Parks Department. Additionally, Beta-Tau held a successful volleyball tournament in which several campus organizations participated in. The benefits of the tournament went to the National Youth AIDS Foundation. Beta-Tau continues to contribute to its host campus, and we are optimistic about the coming academic year.

Vincennes  Alpha Chapter The last three months have been interesting here at Alpha. 7 pledges have gone through and we could have not been prouder. During the month of October we sold ghost insurance to houses. Ghost Insurance is where if the house gets pranked at Halloween we go and clean it up. It’s November now and we are doing our Rake and Run where we go rank up leaves from houses. We also go and collect cans of food for the hungry. We continue rushing and Alpha is still going strong. We are having a Thanksgiving dinner on November 17.

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Wake Forest  Alpha-Nu Chapter

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The brothers at Alpha-Nu are working hard to add to our numbers this year as we begin fall rush at Wake Forest. Typically smaller than the spring, this fall we have a lot of interest in the fraternity thanks to more on-campus involvement from our brothers. Outside of recruitment, the chapter is preparing for two of the biggest campus-wide philanthropy events of the year, Hit the Bricks and Project Pumpkin, two events where Alpha-Nu has traditionally been a big name. In addition, the chapter has big plans for philanthropy this year,

Brothers at Delta-Omega Chapter at Southern Illinois - Edwardsville

with a revamped ACE Project and multiple charity initiatives including benefits for testicular cancer and Wounded Warriors. It’s great to be back on campus and the chapter is looking forward to making this one of its best years yet.

Washington State  Iota-Nu Chapter After acquiring our new Chapter house last summer, Iota-Nu is larger than ever and with a fall pledge class of 27, we intend to have a 70+ man chapter! We are continuing to work with Alpha Gamma colony at The University of Washington to help them re-colonize. We plan to use this new colony to expand our great brotherhood. We have several alumni events coming up and are excited to see how hard we can hit rush this spring! We are proud of the hard work of our brothers and are excited to share Sigma Pi with our new initiates!

Since acquiring the new house, the fire inside the brothers has been reignited; Sigma Pi will soon be #1 at Washington State!

West Alabama  Theta-Gamma Chapter Sigma Pi chapters across the State of Alabama recently gathered for a plaque dedication for a Brother that passed away in the April 27th storms. The idea started when we were contacted

by Auburn’s past Sage Allen Stroud. He ask if we would be interested in designing a plaque to honor our fallen brother. We worked on it for a while and then decided it was time to do more than just sit there and design a plaque, so we all decided to drive to Tuscaloosa and help with the cleanup. This is when we finalized the design for the plaque. We decided to have a dedication for it in Tuscaloosa.

This event has brought these three chapters closer together in more ways than one. Now that we are working closer together, we hope to better not only the state of Alabama but also the next generation of leaders!

West Chester  Zeta-Alpha Chapter We are starting the school year off on the right foot at West Chester with over 20 new members, all of whom are excited to start their process of becoming a brother of Sigma Pi at Zeta-Alpha.

We held our ACE project in conjunction with the Women’s Center on October 3rd and 4th, helping with Project Clothesline to help raise awareness of violence towards women. We are looking forward to participating in “Walk A Mile in Her Shoes”, also helping raise awareness for violence against women and participating in Zeta Tau Alpha sorority’s annual Breast Cancer Walk in the upcoming weeks.

Our annual “Sorority Showdown” event for the West Chester PAL will be held on October 27th and we are looking forward to the date, making sure our local philanthropy event for the underprivileged youth continues its success.

West Virginia Tech  Gamma-Xi Chapter Gamma-Xi chapter started the semester running.

We have been working diligently on fundraisers and recruitment, as well as striving to improve our efficiency. We are working on setting up our ACE Project, as well as a few more philanthropies.

We are looking forward to a fun semester, filled with community service, philanthropies and brotherhood.

Western Illinois  Epsilon-Zeta Chapter Last semester the alumni of Epsilon-Zeta outright bought the fraternity house from the landlords, so now we finally own it. The actives in the house worked hard and long all summer to remodel the entire house. It looks fantastic!! Rush just got over with and we have ended with 15 new pledges and are really looking forward to our semester and getting every single one of them initiated.

The Brothers of Gamma-Rho have recovered nicely from our recent situation. Despite the University’s sanctions given to us, we’re still continuing to spread the ideal of Sigma Pi to other students. We recently have moved into a nicer housing for us and or future brothers. Gamma-Rho would like thank you all for supporting us through a tough year.

You’ll be hearing positive news shortly from us.

Chapter Reports

Western Michigan  Gamma-Rho Chapter

William & Mary  Alpha-Eta Chapter

Xi Chapter at the University of Iowa Raises $2,000 for Make-a-Wish Foundation® of Iowa A Fellowship of kindred minds united in brotherhood, that is the mission of the Sigma Pi Fraternity. The University of Iowa Chapter recently took brotherhood and teamwork to a whole new level! Working together the members of Sigma Pi focused on making a positive impact on the lives of Iowa children with life threatening medical conditions.

They conducted a flag football tournament that raised funds to benefit the Make-AWish Foundation® of Iowa. Over 30 teams participated representing all sororities at the University of Iowa. This was a single elimination tournament attended by over 400 people. The Sigma Pi members sold tank tops as a means of increasing their fundraising efforts. The flag football tournament was a creative way to bring fun to the campus and smiles to children in need.

This is just one example of Sigma Pi’s commitment to the community and dedication

to philanthropy. Congratulations to the Gamma Phi Beta Sorority who were crowned champions of the tournament!

Sigma Pi Fraternity at The University of Iowa is comprised of over 80 undergraduate members, and multiple alumni volunteers who work every day to further the ideals and values of a true fraternity man. Members excel in academics, participate in intramural sports, give back to their community through Habitat for Humanity, and promote a growing Greek community on campus by attending philanthropic events and donating time and money to local causes.

Sigma Pi also hosts an annual ACE Project, (The Altruistic Campus Experience) an event unique to their fraternity, and every year give back to The University’s campus life in different ways.

The undergraduate brothers look forward to partnering with The Make-A-Wish Foundation for many years to come, and hope that together, we can help make many wishes come true!” 

Congratulations to new inductees into the Order of Omega Kavan Agrue, Minnesota • Patrick Albano, Florida • Stephen Ankney, Ohio Northern • Andrew Askew, Penn State • Michael Colabella, TCNJ • Dan Coppola, TCNJ • Matthew D’Abreu, Valparaiso • Joseph Deaven, UCLA • Sean Harris, Texas - San Antonio • Nathan Harris, Wisconsin - Oshkosh • Tyler Hercamp, Southern Indiana • Kasey Keigley, Grand Valley State • Ryan Khuri, Louisville • Casey Knapp, Penn State • Chris Lagoeiro, TCNJ • Kenneth Rhett, Texas - San Antonio • Will Lawrence, Illinois Wesleyan • Daniel Leva, TCNJ • Matthew Lewitke, Valparaiso • Marlon Martinez, Cal State - Dominguez Hills • Chris Miller, Illinois Wesleyan • Aaron Orlorski, Penn State • Vincent Phan, Minnesota • Spencer Roach, Valparaiso • Carlos Rosado, TCNJ • Tom Rusher, Wake Forest • Ryan Sinke, TCNJ • Alex Sirois, Carleton • Brandon Spinner, Valparaiso • Jonathan Steinway, TCNJ • Clarence William John Stone, Fairleigh Dickinson • Michael Szyjka Jr., Salisbury • Nicholas Tarangelo, TCNJ • Justin Wallace, Mississippi • Jimmy Wu, San Jose State • Benjamin Wygal, Alabama 

The Alpha-Eta chapter at William and Mary has gotten off to a great start to the new academic year. Over the first few weeks we have reached out to the new members of our campus, and have shown them what being a Sigma Pi man is all about. We have improved our campus through our annual ACE Project where we helped landscapers spread mulch which improved the appearance of our campus. We also set up a stand on campus and where we informed people about being green and how much it helps the environment. Our main priority this semester is recruitment. We plan on recruiting enough people so we will be eligible for the new fraternity housing that should be ready by fall of 2013.

William Paterson  Theta-Tau Chapter Theta-Tau had a very good recruiting semester by tying a chapter high with 10 pledges this Fall. We won our own A.C.E. Mud-Volleyball Tournament by beating the Nationally Ranked WPU Rugby team on September 30th, 2011. We will be continuing community service at an assisted living home in the area while we set up a canned food drive and a self defense class on campus. We continue to try and improve our Chapter day in and day out.

Wisconsin – Oshkosh  Gamma-Mu Chapter Gamma-Mu is doing very well. Over the last semester we have rushed the largest pledge class in our recent history, become the largest fraternity on our campus, and have done some very nice upgrades to our chapter house. We are very proud of our current new members for envisioning and creating a new continuing philanthropy for diabetes research. We hope that this will be a continuing endeavor for many years to come.

Worcester Polytech  Gamma-Iota Chapter Gamma-Iota has been doing well so far this year. Over the summer many alumni from the 1970s returned to have a reunion and met many of the active brothers of the chapter. We held an orientation program for the brothers living in the house to get them accustomed to living the in the chapter house. The chapter participated in both the Greek Carnival and the Activities Fair, which are events that advertise Greek life as a whole, to much success. The year has just started here at WPI but the year holds a lot of promise for the chapter. 

Order of Omega is a leadership honor society for members of Greek organizations. Order of Omega recognizes juniors and seniors who have exemplified high standards in the areas of scholarship, leadership, involvement within their respective organization and within the Greek, campus, and local community.

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SingOff Sigma Pi Jared ”Smoothcat” Weintraub (IB, Delaware ’11) was honored this fall when as a member of the University of Delaware Deltones he learned they would be competing on NBC’s “The Sing-Off,” hosted by multi-platinum recording artist Nick Lachey, which returned for season three.

The show had a weekly format featuring two-hour episodes and with the number of groups competing expanded to 16. The groups performed for celebrity judges Sara Bareilles (“Love Song” and “King of Anything”), Ben Folds (Ben Folds Five) and Shawn Stockman (Boyz II Men) and competed for the prize of $200,000 cash and a Sony Music recording contract.

Now that the season is over, the Emerald asked Jared about his experiences.

What was your initial reaction when you learned the Deltones had been selected to compete on “The Sing Off?” I was lucky enough to be the first person in the group to know that we were in the running to be on the show. At first I didn’t really believe that it was actually happening.

I thought it was some sort of prank. The idea

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The University of Delaware Deltones was founded in 1991 by a group of five University of Delaware students affectionately known as “the origitones.”

The group prides themselves on their smooth tunes and their motto – friends first, singers second – a motto they have lived by for 20 years. They focus their energy towards singing on campus and in the Delaware community, as it is important for them to give back to those who support them. The group consists of five current UD students, seven recent graduates and three recent “alumnitones.”

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Jared ”Smoothcat” Weintraub

of being on national television is very surreal because it just seems like something that only happens to people after struggling with failure. The idea of just being catapulted into prime time television on one of the oldest and biggest networks in the world is just insane.

However, I was never surprised by it. Watching past seasons I always had this feeling that the Deltones were qualified and could be successful on this show but the timing was never right for us to audition until this year.

Tell us about your experiences on “The Sing Off.” “The Sing Off” was my first taste of being a professional musician and was an incredible learning experience. We worked long days that began at 8 a.m. and sometimes ended past 1 a.m. There were very high expectations both from the producers and from ourselves.

The other side of being on the show was the relationships that were made off stage. It was an honor and a pleasure getting to know people in the other groups. There were so many talented people on the show that you never really saw perform on the show because there were just too many people to show off. Many of us would have late night jam sessions at the hotel. For me, those were the moments that were the most rewarding learning experiences.

How has competing on “The Sing Off” been good for you?

On a personal level “The Sing Off” was nothing but a positive experience. I learned what it was like to be involved in a huge production on national television and [the many steps] to get the final product which the audience actually sees. The experience of having to perform at such a high level is also something that most people don’t have the ability to prepare for. Since I am pursuing a career in music, outside of Deltones, I feel like this experience has prepared me for the future.

What are your future aspirations?

In the short term, I am writing a solo album that I hope to release in the coming year.

In the creed of Sigma Pi, brothers all pledge to develop character in their daily lives, how do you do that in your life?

Every day is special and could be your last.

A baseball coach once told me that every day you don’t get better is a day you get worse.

There is so much information out there that is accessible to all of us for free that I strive every day to learn something new and help myself achieve the goals that I have set for myself. You never know when you might get the phone call you have been waiting for your whole life that can make your dreams come true. The worst scenario in my mind is that person on the other side of the phone decides it was a mistake to make the call. I practice my music every day and strive to push myself harder and harder so that when I get the opportunity I will be ready to prove myself.

Any last words?

In today’s entertainment market, it is very important to have as many followers and fans as possible. I would truly appreciate the support of my brothers. Please like me on Facebook, follow me on twitter, and view my YouTube videos. Please also check out my song “Why Won’t it Rain” on iTunes.  Facebook: www.facebook.com/jaredweintraubmusic YouTube: www.youtube.com/jaredweintraub Twitter: @jaredweintraub For booking information or just to contact me e-mail: jweintraub89@gmail.com You can also learn more about the Deltones: Deltones www.deltones.com Twitter: @ilovedeltones

The Foundation Dear Brothers: Each year as the holidays approach, I like to pause and reflect upon the last twelve months.

As probably was the case for many of you, 2011 gave me more than a fair share of adversities and challenges - mostly caused by the ongoing economic crisis which seems to have affected each of us in some way.

The same was true for the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation. In 2011, we found ourselves competing for fewer donor dollars while at the same time facing a higher demand for our support as the cost of education continued to rise. Moreover, our finances were challenged by volatile global markets as we again saw only modest returns on our investments.

FOUNDATION BOARD OF TRUSTEES Allen W. Yee (AF, Georgia ’99) Chairman James T. Jennings (GU, Murray State ’93) Vice-Chairman of Administration Gary D. Dvorchak (X, Iowa ’86) Vice-Chairman of Finance

Allen W. Yee, Chairman

But every year, regardless of the adversities I face, I always find that the blessings I received outweighed the misfortunes – blessings such as my family, friends, and my association with Sigma Pi. For those blessings, I am supremely thankful.

In that same spirit, the Foundation is thankful for our blessings in 2011, such as the thousands of hours given by our dedicated volunteers and the wonderful work of our talented staff. Most importantly, we are thankful for the over $300,000 in generous gifts received from Sigma Pi alumni and friends. Those gifts allowed the Foundation to support the educational pursuits and leadership training of over 4,000 undergraduate members of the Fraternity.

As you reflect on 2011, I hope you too find that your blessings were bountiful. And as we begin the new year, I hope that you will share those blessings with the young men of Sigma Pi who again will be turning to the Foundation for support. Your gifts ensure that when those men graduate, they too will experience the blessings of a good education and positive Sigma Pi experience.

On behalf of the entire Board of Trustees and the thousands of undergraduate men who benefited from your generosity this past year, I thank you and wish you and your families a happy Holiday Season and a prosperous New Year.

Fraternally,

Les L. Wright (GU, Murray State ’70) Vice-Chairman of Development Gary S. Grubacich (AO, UC - Santa Barbara ’64) Vice-Chairman of Legal Affairs Joseph V. Palazzolo (DB, Monmouth ’03) Treasurer Ian M. Itschner (W, Oregon State ’93) Secretary TRUSTEES Edward A. Mora (BO, Cal State - Long Beach ’93) John J. Merino (BO, Cal State - Long Beach ’58) John J. McCann (AN, NJIT ’83) Jay Joern (GS, Missouri ’76) Chris R. Brown (GH, Rutgers ’81) George N. Hakim (GA, Detroit Mercy ’78) Paul W. Hansen, Advisor Trustee (BT, Valparaiso ’80) Frank C. Fryburg, Honorary Life Trustee (Q, Penn State ’49)

FOUNDATION STAFF Business Manager Lisa M. Pearson

Allen W. Yee (AF, Georgia ’99) Chairman of the Board of Trustees The Sigma Pi Educational Foundation

Finance Manager Carey F. Reynolds, CPA Administrative Assistant Jennifer R. Wyatt ADMINSTRATIVE OFFICES Sigma Pi Educational Foundation Post Office Box 1897 Brentwood, TN 37024

PROFILE: “As an undergraduate, my personal development and my leadership development were advanced by the support of the Educational Foundation. If it were not for the support of the Educational Foundation I would not have been able to work as a Futures Quest mentor or a UIFI intern. Both of those experiences provided me valuable learning experiences and truly helped to develop my skill set as an individual and a leader. The undergraduate brothers deserve to have the same opportunity that was afforded to me when I needed it.

It is for those reasons that now, as a young alumnus, I give back to the Educational Foundation and will continue to give back.”

Tel: (615) 373-5728 Fax: (615) 932-7622 Email: SPEF@sigmapi.org Website: www.sigmapiedfund.org

Helping Our Fraternity Build “A New Generation of Leaders”

—Kyle Koelbel (BK, Arizona State ’09)

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Matching Gifts

Why Give Unrestricted Funds?

While all Foundations are appreciative of restricted gifts such as named scholarships, educational funds, leadership funds, etc., a Foundation cannot thrive or exist without unrestricted funds. Unrestricted funds are funds given that have no strings attached and no designations. This gives the Foundation the ability to use these funds in the best interest of the organization whether it is to give additional scholarships, other than the named scholarships, supplement the funds for educational training at Mid-Year Leadership and Sigma Pi University or sponsor a speaker at Convocation.

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Each year the Foundation solicits funds through an annual campaign. By supporting the Foundation through this campaign, you also support the Fraternity. Due to IRS regulations and statuses, the Fraternity is not an entity that can accept monetary gifts to support scholarships or educational funds. It is the collegiate chapters, through fundraising efforts, and alumni responsibility to support the Educational Foundation through yearly donations.

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Have you made your unrestricted gift, no matter how large or small to the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation yet? It is not too late to get your year-end tax deductible donation in. There are several ways to give: Check. Donations are to be made payable to Sigma Pi Educational Foundation and mailed to P.O. Box 1897, Brentwood, TN 37024. Please do not send cash in the mail. Convert to a

money order first, if you do not carry checks, before mailing.

Automatic Draft. If you would like a set amount deducted each month or quarter from your checking or other account, contact the Foundation at 615-373-5728 or 1-800-3321897 to start your lifetime of giving today.

Credit Card. Sigma Pi Educational Foundation accepts Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express. This method can be used to make one-time, monthly or quarterly contributions. You can contact the Foundation at 615-373-5728 or 1-800-332-1897 to start your lifetime of giving today.

Donate Online. By logging onto the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation website www. sigmapiedfund.org and clicking “Donate to SPEF” in the upper right hand corner, you will be able to make your donation online.

Corporate Matching Gift.

Numerous companies match an employee’s personal donation to a non-profit, tax exempt foundation. Ask your employer or Human Resources Department if your company has a matching gift program. 

One of the smartest ways to give to charitable organizations is through a matching gift program. Matching gifts or matching funds are grants an employer makes to match its employees charitable giving. They are often dollar for dollar matches and some corporations have a 2 to 1 match which in turn maximizes your giving. Finding such information is often as simple as contacting your Human Resources Department and asking. Most times there will be a form you will need to complete and submit with your charitable donation to the Foundation. On the average 1 in 10 donations a Foundation receives is gift matching.

It is important to read the form prior to completing to make sure your gift fits the matching gift criteria. The Sigma Pi Educational Foundation is recognized by the IRS as a 501(C)(3) charitable organization and qualifies for most companies’ matching gift program.

Matching funds are usually unrestricted funds, funds that can be used at the Foundation’s discretion based upon IRS guidelines. These types of donations are very vital and important to the Foundation, as they provide the greatest flexibility. It allows the Foundation to use the funds to address pressing needs as they emerge or evolve.

Matching gifts are a win win situation for both parties. The donor maximizes his giving level and the Foundation receives double the funds.

Have you checked yet to see if your dollars donated to the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation are eligible for gift match through your company? Should you have questions about matching gifts, please do not hesitate to contact the Foundation at 615-373-5728 or 1-800-332-1897 or SPEF@sigmapi.org 

Alumni Notebook

Editor’s Note: I have known Bill since I was an undergrad at Purdue 42 years ago, and he epitomizes our Creed. His father Bob was a Founding Father of Eta Chapter in 1912 and served the Fraternity as Grand Third Counselor. —JDK

Usher Bill Fall says the best part of his job is the crowd

by Michael Heinz/Journal & Courier

West Lafayette’s Bill Fall (H, Purdue ’41) has a simple answer when asked why ushering for Purdue men’s basketball games in Mackey Arena is so important to him.

“It keeps me going ... keeps me young,” Fall, 94, said. “I look forward to coming over to Mackey. I thought that a good way to begin an ushering career would be to be here with the start of Mackey Arena in 1967.”

“I never thought I would do this for so many years. For the past 10 years, it has been an every-year decision. I haven’t made a decision until the boss has called. I will judge how I feel if I’m going to do this next year. I have had two hips replaced.”

Fall, a World War II and Korean War veteran, began as a Mackey Arena usher on Dec. 2, 1967, when former Purdue All-American guard John Wooden brought his No. 1-ranked UCLA team to West Lafayette, defeating the Rick Mount-led Boilermakers, 73-71.

When Purdue plays Northern Illinois tonight in the Mackey Arena re-dedication game, Fall will be at his usual post, helping fans locate their seats near sections 9 and 10.

For the past 41 years, Fall can count on two hands the number of games he has been unable to attend, mostly because of his former job at Purdue in the telecommunications department.

“I’ve enjoyed the games, the players and the coaches, but for the most part, I’ve enjoyed the crowds,” Fall said. “That’s basically what has kept me coming back. By and large, the people are pretty nice.

“Occasionally, you run across somebody who is bullheaded and will give you a hard way to go. But most of them are very, very easy to get along with.”

Including Purdue coach Matt Painter’s wife, Jerri, who usually is escorted to her seat by Fall, with whom she has developed a friendship.

“I love Mr. Fall, I really do,” Jerri Painter said. “To do what he does for so many seasons speaks a lot to the person that he is .”

Upon meeting Fall for the first time, Painter learned about Fall’s passion and devotion to his family, his church and to Purdue University.

“Mr. Fall is the ultimate grandfather figure,” Painter said. “The only thing I don’t like about new Mackey is that my seats have been moved, and I’m not in Mr. Fall’s section. I always gave him a big hug. He touches people of all ages.

Even my daughter, Maggie, is drawn to him.”

Painter said there is a valuable lesson to be learned from Fall, who drives himself from his home to Mackey to usher each game.

“I just hope I have half the energy at that age that he does,” Painter said. “He is a man of integrity and loyalty. Some things in life are constant.

“Seeing his face at the start of the game is a constant ... a tradition. When I think about Purdue men’s basketball and its history, it’s coach (Gene) Keady, coach Wooden and Bill Fall.”

West Lafayette’s Dale Reinke, head of security for the Indiana region of Andy Frain Services, is Fall’s boss. Reinke said Fall’s dedication is unique.

“He loves it ... wouldn’t miss it,” said Reinke, who has worked in event security for 45 years.

“Bill can’t wait to get here. He is one of the first employees to check in every game and one of the last ones to go home every night.

“He loves the crowd. They come to see him.

Bill is a special guy. We enjoy him, and he enjoys the crowd. It’s a perfect match for all of us. Every year I call him, and he is more than eager to come back. I tell him, ‘Bill, if you can walk the stairs, you can do the same job.’ He has been an usher at that (section) since Day 1. He will continue to do it as long as he is able.”

Fall, who will celebrate his 95th birthday in February, graduated from Cincinnati Hughes High School in 1935, enrolling at Purdue that fall.

Fall’s father, Robert, earned a degree in agriculture from Purdue in 1910.

After earning a degree in speech pathology from Purdue in 1941, Fall joined the Navy and was assigned to motor torpedo boats during World War II.

for several Evansville-based radio stations, eventually being promoted to program manager.

He was recalled to active duty during the Korean War, although he was stationed in his hometown of Cincinnati.

After the Korean War, Fall became program manager for TV station Channel 6 in Indianapolis. In 1960, he returned to Purdue to provide guidance for the military’s airborne television instruction.

In 1962, he accepted Purdue’s offer as associate director for development in the telecommunication center.

Fall retired March 1, 1982, but never considered retiring as an usher for Purdue basketball games.

“I remember that first game with Rick Mount and John Wooden,” Fall said. “I don’t recall the particulars of it other than we lost by two points. It was an exciting evening. Now, I’m impressed with Mackey’s new look.”

Fall, who has been a widower for almost 23 years, loves sports almost as much as he enjoys the people associated with athletics.

He is proud that his son, Doug, played quarterback for coach A.J. Rickard at Harrison High School, and that his grandson, Grant Fall, was a cross country standout at Harrison.

But Purdue basketball -- and ushering fans to their Mackey Arena seats -- remains right there with his favorite things in life.

“When I was growing up, I really didn’t know there was any other university than Purdue,” Fall said. “I still kind of feel that way.”  (Written by Jeff Washburn, jconline.com)

After the war, Fall took a job as an announcer

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The Brothers of Summer

by David Plaskow (EX, Fairleigh Dickinson ’86) Baseball has always had the power to connect people – fathers and sons, friends, and so on.

But it also has the ability to connect fraternity brothers. Such is the case of several brothers from the Epsilon-Xi Chapter of Fairleigh Dickinson University-Rutherford.

What started out as a few brothers attending a New York Mets versus Boston Red Sox game in 1997 in Beantown – long-before the success of Red Sox Nation – has grown to include brothers, friends, in-laws and others.

“I remember it like it was yesterday,” says Dave Plaskow (Mu pledge class 1986). “Tim Wakefield of the BoSox balked the winning run home from third base in the ninth inning and the Mets won 1-0.”

After some tapas on Newbury Street and a few drinks downtown, the boys flew home the next day and knew they were onto something.

Next year’s trip was to be decided at an annual rotating Super Bowl party held by a different brother each year. So, with MLB schedules in hand, the fellows met at Michael Dalton’s (Nu pledge class 1987) home in Pennsylvania and, after some haggling, the verdict was Chicago.

Since Chicago, there have been a dozen other trips. There have been many games, flights, restaurants, watering holes – some good, some not so good. But the camaraderie, based on knowing each other for 20-plus years, is what really makes these trips. The weekend culminates in the Saturday steak dinner where the attire could be anything from sport coats to Hawaiian shirts. “It’s not just a reunion, but a chance for us reminisce and capture that feeling of being 21 again,” says Robert Gutmann, (Mu pledge class 1986). “And we get to revert back to our nicknames once a year, too.”

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As more people joined the party, there would be the occasional trips to see the New York Yankees, as was the case in Toronto, St. Louis, Los Angeles and Tampa. But, based on the attendees, it’s usually a Mets affair. At this rate, the group will hit all 30 stadiums sometime around 2027, when the next generation of brothers might be ready to join in on the fun.

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It’s not uncommon during these trips to run into a few ballplayers. There was Al Leiter in Atlanta, Rey Ordonez in Boston, Mike Piazza in Chicago and Carlos Beltran in San Francisco.

There were other thrills like having dinner with current Yankees manager, but then catcher, Joe Girardi’s father at the Twin Anchors Tavern in Chicago where the group got to try on the 1996 Yankees World Series ring, seeing A-Rod go for his 600th homer in Tampa, and hiking in Red Rocks in Colorado and winding up in a photo shoot with a stunning model. The trip

Epsilon-Xi Sigma Pi brothers (from left) Jeff Silver, Russ Parisi, Scott Gault, Dave Plaskow, Michael Dalton and Keith Norman (above Plaskow and Dalton) at the annual baseball weekend in 2010 in Tampa. to Denver was also interesting when a few of the lads wandered around Coors Field, took a couple of wrong turns and actually wound up in the Mets dugout!

pick-up where we’ve left off,” says Plaskow, “feeling like we were just hanging out on campus the other day.” 

This year’s trip, the 14th, took place in San Francisco. Plaskow and Jim Zambrano (Pi pledge class 1989) took some extra time and flew into Los Angeles and drove up the Pacific Coast Highway. “What an awesome sight stopping at dawn and seeing elephant seals lounging on a deserted beach,” notes Plaskow.

Many of this year’s attendees made the mistake of packing the usual shorts and t-shirts in what turned out to be a very chilly city by the bay. But it didn’t deter anyone from transversing Golden Gate Park, taking a ferry to Tiburon and walking back and forth across the Golden Gate Bridge. And, of course, there are always the ball games. In what was more like football weather, the Mets unfortunately dropped two of three to the defending World Series Champion Giants. But that didn’t matter too much, especially with the Mets far exceeding expectations with a skeleton crew.

The group got to see star closer Brian “the Beard” Wilson blow a save as well as witness one of only 57 “splash down” home runs hit into San Francisco Bay in the stadium’s 11year history.

And, of course, there was that camaraderie.

While we’ve moved to different corners of the country, cultivated different careers and have our own families and circles of friends, there is that comfort level of just hanging out with people you’ve known half your life. “We simply

Best ballpark Wrigley Field, Chicago Best steakhouse Chop house, Atlanta Best ballpark food Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles Best beaches South Beach, Miami Best nightlife South Beach, Miami Best sports bars Chicago Best sightseeing San Francisco Best outdoor activities Denver Best museum Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland

Alumni Notebook

Alumni News: Georgia Alumni Club We have to compliment the undergrads on the condition of the house. We spoke with Kohler Brafford (House Manager) by phone about the upgrades already completed at the house. We have a brand new front lawn and it looks great. Kohler and few others did a great job laying new sod and keeping up with the maintenance. Secondly, the back area of the parking lot has been cleaned and a new wood fence installed. Lastly, the brothers have installed a security camera system. In addition to monitoring the outside of the house the undergrads have used the camera system inside the house holding brothers and their guests responsible for their actions and minimizing damage to the house.

We want to thank each of you who volunteered your time or made a donation to make the improvements to the house.

Sigma Pi Alumni Association of Arkansas The Sigma Pi Alumni Association of Arkansas is looking forward to a tremendous year. We are looking to put on several events catering to our alumni brothers. Now is the time to get reinvolved with the chapter and with the alumni club. For more information contact Ricky Marshall @ ricky. marshall@sigmapialphapi.com. Please follow us or contact us through Facebook at www.facebook. com/SigmaPiAlphaPi.

Meet me in Havana: Robb Williams (HE, Florida State ’96) recently piloted the first flight from Tampa, Florida to Havana, Cuba in over five decades. “The most interesting part to me was the air traffic controllers that kept asking us where we were coming from,” said Williams. “When we landed in Tampa they had a water cannon salute, a band playing for us in the terminal, and many news stations were there. It was very festive with Tampa being known for its Cuban heritage. The flight back was interesting as we had news crews from all different agencies including CNN.”

Beta-Omicron Alumni Alumni of Beta-Omicron held their annual Jim Robertson Memorial Golf and Scholarship Drive in October at the Meadowlark Golf Course in Huntington Beach. Their homecoming basketball & tailgate date was November 12 at the Pyramid vs ID. They also have quarterly alumni networking meetings in effect. Additional details to any listed events can be found at www.BetaOmicron.com or call John Olsen at (949) 480-1168.

Upsilon Alumni Association Founders’ Day 2011 - A large group of 1970s graduates gathered from afar, several for the first time since graduation: Stephen “Jay” Riggs, Jim Lipow, Hon. Andrew Guilford, Jim Junio, Barry Maiten, Paul Goto (Hawaii), Richard Hofman, David Shiokari, Rev. Mark Nakagawa, Michael Rauch, Mike McFarlin (San Francisco), Dan Pence (Texas), John Tsukahira, and Rich Leserman. Joe Henriksen, the Chapter Advisor in the 1970s, re-connected with his group of former actives. Bob Baker, a long-time Housing Board member, also attended. Richard Pena, a restauranteur owner in San Diego, attended for the first time since graduation and sponsored the full bar. Taek Chang helped to pick up mixers.

Doug Keppler attended for the 5th consecutive year. Chef Ruben Zuniga, who was honored last year for 20 years of meritious service, feted with a roast pig and Hawaiian Luau.

Please register and update your profile on the

Alumni Association website www.SigmaPiBruins. com. The login is your email address. Be sure to include your email address in your profile when you register. This enables us to contact you via email and reduce mailing costs, which saves money for house renovation, scholarships, events, etc.

Problems? Herman at Herman@Quispe.com.

Alumnus Updates: B.G. (Buddy) Beck (AP, Arkansas State ’58) - has been appointed by the Virginia Governor to the Board of Visitors at George Mason University.

Boyd A. Bradshaw (BG, Eastern Illinois ’93) - was appointed as vice president of enrollment management at Logan College of Chiropractic/ University Programs.

Mark Byrne (BM, Mississippi ’81) - was awarded with the Pacific Northwest Month of July MVP Award. Mark is employed by Crossmark and represents Kraft Foods as a Marketing Specialist in the South Puget Sound Region of Washington State. Mark lives in Lacey, Washington, with his wife Natalie (Ole Miss ’82) and their daughters, Sara and Kelly.

to the Indiana University Foundation Board of Directors.

Brian Mills (HU, U.C. - Irvine ’95) - labor and employment defense attorney at Snell & Wilmer L.L.P. in Costa Mesa, CA was elected as partner at his firm and he was also named a 2011 Rising Star in Super Lawyers Magazine.

Hodge

Tom Tezak (BS, Northern Illinois ’82) - a sales associate Tezak with Coldwell Banker Island Properties in South Maui, was the number one sales associate in “properties listed”, “properties sold”, & “closed adjusted gross commission income” among all the Coldwell Banker® sales associates in Hawaii. Tom was also in the “top 10 for closed adjusted gross commission income for the western region” and in the “top 20 out of over 40,000 sales associates nationally” for independently owned and operated affiliated companies in the Coldwell Banker® system in 2010. 

James R. Hodge (B, Indiana ’74) - was elected

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Celebrating 40 years at Delta-Rho Chapter at Morehead State

A purple haze enveloped the mountains of Eastern Kentucky as alumni, actives, and little sisters of Sigma Pi Fraternity descended upon the campus of Morehead State University to celebrate the 40th anniversary of DeltaRho Chapter, April 15-17, at the Morehead Conference and Convention Center in peaceful downtown Morehead, Kentucky. More than 260 guests, representing alumni and actives from the 1970s through 2011, attended the event. The entire weekend was set aside for the celebration of our chapter’s founding in 1971 by Jeff Wilkinson, a transfer from Alpha Chapter in Vincennes, Indiana.

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A golf scramble was held on Friday afternoon at Eagle Trace Golf Course and more than 35 brothers participated. For those non-golfers, another group gathered for a tour of campus and other memorable locations in the area.

For some, it was their first visit back to campus since their graduation. Another highlight of the weekend was a formal initiation of pledges, attended by more than 45 alumni and actives.

What really made the initiation special was the fact that Grand Sage Chris Brown, Executive Director Mark Briscoe, and Assistant Executive Director Brian Alley actually performed the ritual, with the help of a few distuinguished alumni from Delta-Rho. This marked the first time any Grand Sage had ever been on the campus of Morehead State University.

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Saturday afternoon, an alumni meeting was held at which time two very special announcements were made. First, a new website has been launched for the chapter (sigmapideltarho.com) which will greatly help with communications between the active chapter and the Delta-Rho Alumni Association; and second, a ribbon-cutting for a new fraternity house will take place during our annual summer picnic, which is scheduled for Saturday, July 9, 2011. Also, 18 additional

alumni joined the Delta-Rho Alumni Association immediately after the meeting, clearly indicating a renewal of interest in the organization and the fraternity as a whole.

The main event of the weekend, however, was our formal Orchid Ball. A wonderful dinner of chicken and pork with all the trimmings was followed by speeches from the Grand Sage and other dignitaries, as well as a telephone call from Jeff Wilkinson himself, who is currently in Afghanistan. Debbie Kennedy Black, an alumnae of our Little Sister program of the late 1970s, presented a family tree project she had been working on for months and, for the first time ever, all members of the DeltaRho Chapter could trace their heritage on the large display which included their individual names, pledge class, and semester pledged.

Before formal activities came to an end and the dancing began, a 15-minute video spanning the entire history of the chapter brought many in attendance to tears. Also, auctions of various items -- from Sigma Pi hats to hand-made clocks and artwork created by both brothers and little sisters -- brought more than $2,000 in funds. Finally, a new charter for the DeltaRho Alumni Association and a refurbished original charter for the actual chapter were unveiled. Both will soon be displayed in the new fraternity house on campus.

Impromptu gatherings at the various hotels on both Friday and Saturday nights also became momentous occasions. Dozens of brothers, little sisters, husbands and wives reminisced well into the early morning hours on both nights. All in all, the entire weekend was a huge success and many actives and alumni have already asked about plans for next year’s Orchid Ball, as well as for plans for a 50th Anniversary ten years from now. 

The Delta-Rho Alumni Association (DRAA) has recently reorganized and become better focused on improving relations with alumni and actives. The recent introduction of a new DRAA website sigmapideltarho.com will dramatically improve our ability to correspond with members, update contact information, pay dues and publish future events.

We would like to introduce the following new leaders of DRAA: Board of Regents: Bruce Peak, Bob Webster, Charlie Eldridge Executive Officers: Marcus Hundley, Jason Tackett, Dan McGowan, Wayne Grannis, Kevin Shelton and Mark Cade.

Visit the website: sigmapideltarho.com

by Paul J. Exner (GI, Wochester Polytech ’71)

Solicitor, England & Wales Not very many American lawyers are licensed to practice law in a foreign country, but Past Grand Fourth Counselor John Michelich (EG, Illinois Wesleyan ’74) is now admitted to practice in England and Wales. After passing three essay examinations on English law, John is now admitted as a “Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales.” In England, lawyers are known as “Solicitors” and in the U.K., England and Wales is a separate jurisdiction from Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Thirty Sigma Pi brothers of Gamma-Iota Chapter at Wochester Polytech (WPI), and many spouses, gathered on June 4th in conjunction with the school’s 40th reunion of the Class of 1971. Many Gamma-Iota members from 1971 have kept in touch and decided that we would attempt to get together with those brothers who occupied the chapter house during our stay at WPI. We were able to attract brothers from the classes of 1969 to 1975. The event was also attended by some younger alumni and members of the active chapter who were staying in the house during the summer break.

The event was very emotional for many of the elders, some of whom had not seen each other since they left school nearly 40 years

ago. Dinner was served and many of the group stayed overnight and attended a buffet breakfast at a local Worcester, MA restaurant.

The conversations were highly charged and the memories washed over everyone. We had a hard time breaking up the gathering on Sunday morning.

Alumni Notebook

Gamma-Iota Class of ’71 Reunion

We are hoping to have similar events in the future. They help to preserve the Sigma Pi legacy and to instruct the young folks on how brotherhood can survive through many of life’s tribulations. These events also can be a springboard for further communication among the brotherhood and as a way to reacquaint the guys with the active chapter and its financial challenges. 

Over a year and a half, Michelich studied nights and weekends to prepare for three exams, similar to the bar exam in the U.S. The tests covered English civil litigation, wills, trusts, estates, taxation and property law which is known in England as “conveyances.” The exams also covered financial services regulation, professional liability and Solicitors accounts rules governing accounting in a law office. In the United States, the exams are given in several cities including New York City,where John sat for the exams.

“Most people ask why I would put myself through this to get a license to practice in a foreign country where I will never live,” said Michelich. “That’s a good question.

I think we never really stop learning, and the subject matter was really interesting.

Plus, I think it is cool to say that I can now represent clients on both sides of the pond!”

PHOTO: Linda Lee, President of the Law Society of England and Wales presents a Practicing Certificate to John Michelich at a formal induction ceremony for new Solicitors at the historic Law Society in London on February 18, 2011. John was the only foreign lawyer to receive a certificate at the ceremony. 

Front row seated: Christine Exner, Bert Milano (71), Mike Weill (71), Tom Burns (72), Pete Billington (70), Dennis Chin (71); 2nd row seated: Paul Exner (71), Beth Hillson, Bill Palmer (71), Bernie Dodge (70), Tony Monteiro (71); 3rd row seated: Rich Page (73), Bruce Hillson (71), Bill Medeiros (72), Jack Kaferle (70), Jim Anderson (72); 4th row seated: Roy Lindblad (72), Joe Staszowski (73), Sam Cuscovitch (72), Rob Byrne (71), Lorri Byrne (73), Carl Johnson (74), Ralph Isabella (75); Standing: Pat Fowler, Lenny Fowler (71), Cathy Pastore, Barbara Doran, Joe Doran (69), Harry Kasparian (73), Kathy Milano, Mike Kajen (71), Marcia Kaferle, Chris Tamborra, Pat Tamborra (72), June Dodge, Maryann Billington, Roger Landry (71), Susan Wolshen, Shirley Landry, Ernie Wolshen (71), Tommy Aquino (70); Dick Pastore (72) took the picture. (Not pictured: Craig Lazenby (71) and Ken Johnson (73))

Send your alumnus news updates to: emerald@sigmapi.org

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Adytum on High

You may make a gift in memory of brothers to the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation at www.sigmapiedfund.org.

Life lost to tornado brings chapters together Nearly six months after University of Alabama student Marcus Smith (QO, Alabama) died from injuries sustained in the April 27, 2011, tornado, friends and acquaintances reflected on the many things they miss about him.

“He was one of those really nice guys,” said Clark Hilton, who was in the same fraternity as Smith. “Every time I saw him around campus, he would get a big smile on his face, and we would have a short conversation about what we were doing and everything.”

“The Sunday night before the tornadoes hit, he taught a college Bible study in one of the homes of our members,” Roberson said. “That’s the last memory I have of him.”

The last time Roberson and many of Smith’s peers ever saw him, he was encouraging them to put God first, Roberson said.

“That night, he was sitting in the recliner with his Bible and notes in his lap, talking about how we should put God first in our lives,” he said. “He did an excellent job and was very encouraging. That’s how Marcus always was. He always cared about serving God.” 

Hilton said that he remembers Marcus as being a friendly, outgoing and overall genuinely good guy.

The Theta-Omicron chapter of the Sigma Pi Fraternity, where Smith was a brother, along with Sigma Pi chapters at Auburn University and the University of West Alabama, dedicated a plaque in Smith’s honor a few weeks ago, fraternity brother Sonny Age said.

The plaque is located in one of the public rooms of the fraternity house and serves as a memorial of Smith to the fraternity.

William V Hesson Jr. ’56 Florian V Kaczmarek ’57 Ronald P.F. Albertsen ’56 John A Brownell ’59 Robert L Keith ’56 Richard F Bomberg ’57 James A McMillan ’59 Ronald C Patchen ’58 Donald H Bryant ’56 Michael S Fong ’91 Cornell - Mu John R Martz ’46 Raymond N Zimmerman ’50 Robert B Whyte ’41 Charles C Huey ’44 Richard B Felbeck ’52 Detroit - Gamma-Alpha Jon J Kabara ’65 Drexel - Beta-Theta George R Adams ’52 Gerard F Songster ’51 S. Douglas Steele Jr. ’53 Stephen D Pine ’55 Samuel McCullough ’55 Phillip I Plugfelder ’55 John J Donlan ’55 Alan L Dietrick ’56 Alan B House Jr. ’56 James D Wagoner ’58 Frederick E Lewis ’59 William H West ’60 Daniel J McNichol ’63 William A Iulicci ’67 Nicholas Rondolone ’69 Eastern Illinois - Beta-Gamma Vitus J Mockaitis ’63 Kurt V Jaenike ’79 Robert E Yamnitz ’06

Justin Roberson, who was a good friend of Smith and also a minister at Northwood Church of Christ, where Smith attended church, said he remembers Smith as being someone who was always genuinely happy and seeking ways to encourage other people.

Fairmont State - Gamma-Epsilon Gale P Bentz ’67 Franklin & Marshall - Nu Gordon K Banzhoff ’47

Roberson attended a Bible study that was taught by Smith a few nights before the tornado hit Tuscaloosa. from The Crimson White, Univ. of Alabama

Georgia - Alpha-Phi John R Rader Jr. ’71 Michael H Bloodworth ’68 Illinois - Phi Richard R Stouffer ’44

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Alabama - Theta-Omicron Marcus J Smith ’12

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Arizona State - Beta-Kappa John W McGann ’50 Humphrey D Knight Jr. ’53 Willard E Scheidler ’51 William B Woodman ’52 Allen L Isaacs ’54 Kenneth E Ragle ’54 Luke A Kirby ’52 Nondas W Brooks ’54 James Aloian ’53 Robert F Ohnleiter ’54 Charles R Haltigan ’54 Phelps K Ter Heun ’57 Herbert R Randel Jr. ’55 Frank S Giuliano ’60

Edgar T Weekes III ’71 James E Warne ’63 Dennis R Conklin Jr. ’86 Arkansas - Alpha-Sigma Richard J Hostetter Joseph N Beasley ’52 Arkansas State - Alpha-Pi Glenn C Griffith ’63 Darrell L Richey ’64 William D Penick ’55 James A Connor ’72 Ronald R Henson ’67 Gerald W Dudley ’59 Leo J Sallee ’50 Auburn - Alpha-Delta James D Lindsey ’45

John M Ponder ’78 Ball State - Delta-Nu Harold E Voight ’74 Beloit - Alpha-Theta Jess W Lobdell ’52 Cal State - Long Beach - BetaOmicron Jay W Munce ’72 Thomas G MacFarlane Joseph W Blocker ’54 William T Poulsen ’54 Duane J Ring ’54 Charles Krepcoe ’55 Eugene R Ferkich ’57 Gordon S Yater ’57 Richard D Luttrell ’56

Indiana - Beta Albert A Rucinski ’48 Lloyd A Emerson ’57 Thomas R Marshall ’51 Dr. Thomas R Marshall ’24 Paul L Hertenstein ’43 Ronald L Hoff ’59 Sam G Van Arsdell Jr. ’40 Kenyon - Lambda James A Zedella ’57 William H Harsha ’43 Louisiana State - Alpha-Kappa Otto F Diettel Jr. ’59 Louisiana Tech - Delta-Lambda Michael J Garcia ’02

Mississippi - Beta-Mu Roland H Jenkins ’49 Charles E Patch Jr. ’50 Earl W McFarland ’49 Jack L Herring ’51 Marcus L Burks Jr. ’53 Arthur J Hayes ’53 William A Russell ’53 Jerry A Byars ’54 Guy C Faggard ’55 Johnny B Sharp ’55 Billy J Fuller ’55 Reginald L Chandler ’56 Arlue E Usry ’57 Charles H Bobo ’57 Wilton V Byars II ’59 Joe B Rogers ’59 Edgar W Cooley ’60 Paul M Jones ’59 Daniel J Lindlau ’62 Charles W Hartman III ’62 Craig H Witte ’65 Stephen R Vaughan ’64 Missouri S&T - Alpha-Iota Terry E Brackman’70 Charles T Foster ’52 Shane K Rivers ’94 Joseph G Bushko ’55

Dennis C Keefe ’59 Vernon L Edde ’57 Robert M Falt ’57 John M Hayes ’57 Robert B Johnson Jr. Richard L Adams ’59 Juan-Antonio N Juarez ’60 Richard D Dickson ’61 Donald G Henderson ’63 Charles R Lockhart Jr. James L Flack ’63 Glen T Soesbe ’64 Charles M Shurley ’80 North Carolina - Ashville - Eta-Xi Joseph B Frick ’93 Northern Arizona - Beta-Iota Keith R Coons ’65 David L McKee ’66 James G Newberry ’68 Ronald L Gonzales ’67 Gregory Bucklew ’70 Fred I Coon ’71 Johnny W Rutherford ’56 William O Boler Jr. ’56 Eugene M Feerick ’56 Henderson B Warnock Jr. ’56 George F Warnock ’57 Ronald G Cote ’60 Richard E Wensel ’60 Myron L Sherwood Jr. ’59 Kenneth V Alford ’64 George H Rolland ’64 Joseph C Rolle ’41 Richard K Powers ’52 Apolinar P Diaz ’50 Raul N Chavez ’51 John A Montgomery ’50 Al B Munoz ’50 Frank E Pfunder ’52 John D Trethewey ’51 Robert F Topp Charles E Fauset John P Carey ’54 Ernest D Manning ’52 Fred J Sundstrom ’50 Richard C Anderson ’54 Jack H Ferrer ’53 Max E Taylor ’52 Charles I Gause ’52 Lester Oliver ’53 Ildefonso M Vallejo ’53 Bruce S Beckley ’55 Charles W Burns ’56 Jay D Merrill ’55 Northern Illinois - Beta-Sigma Daniel L Meriwether ’63 Charles D Bruns ’65 Ohio - Epsilon Rodney W Main ’40 William E Bacon ’43 Paul A Baldy ’40

Missouri State - Alpha-Rho Claud C Maxwell ’50

Ohio Northern - Zeta William W Blauser ’51

New Mexico State - Beta-Xi Marlowe G Anderson ’57 Rafael C Gallegos ’56 Robert C Schatzabel ’50

Ohio State - Gamma Donald R Eversman ’64 Oregon State-Omega

John G Thompson ’44 John A Heffley ’57 David J Genz ’52 Pennsylvania - Delta Roy A Ely ’34 Penn State - Theta John B Reeves Jr. ’48 James E Walker ’43 James H Yerkes ’51 Pittsburgh - Chi William L Bailey ’50 Joseph McCutcheon J. Stewart Hunter ’76 Leonard E Samuelson Guy R Moon ’27 Franklin O Robinson Edward H Hutton ’32 Emmett M Smith ’30 Robert D Starrett ’32 Charles A Lithgow Howard S Long ’33 William R Riggle ’33 Raymond J Gray ’33 William G O`Brien ’49 Clifford J Koerth ’51 John J Messina ’50 Allan K Hennel ’51 James R Maloney ’51 Harry A McArdle ’51 John W Stein ’52 Robert W Cowie ’51 Harrison J Logan ’52 James A Eriser ’52 James A Dennison ’53 Paul D Whalen ’53 Charles W Brooke Jr. ’53 Alex W Andres ’53 Robert E Temple ’56 John A Kinkle ’58 Ronald V Delle Donne ’59 Lester R Fansler ’59 James R Wilson ’59 Paul M Apostolos ’61 Lute L Owrey ’28

Antone L Donna ’57 Robert O Wallin ’57 Thomas D Rotramel ’57 Charles D Williamson ’60 Gary Mills ’60 Russell A Schnepp ’58 James J Woods ’61 Donald E Hepler ’61 David L Harris ’64 Melvin D Patton ’64 James R Bertram ’64 James E Ramey ’65 Robert V Snyder II George E Miller ’64 Richard W Graham ’66 Michael T Galvin ’66 James A Arnold ’66 Gary R Munn ’68 Robert D Putman ’67 Temple - Kappa George T Garver ’50 Towson - Eta-Nu Kevin M Gebhard ’99 Tulane - Omicron William J Keller Jr. ’46 UCLA - Upsilon James D McBroom ’56 John E Goodlad ’53 Gary P Gross ’91 Dale Champion ’49 Ralph E Scott ’48 John E Goodlad ’53 Lewis F Baker ’58 John W Blaikie ’40 Glenn E Smith ’49 Utah - Pi Wayne E Fisher ’40 Valparaiso - Beta-Tau David O Anderson ’64 Vincennes - Alpha Byron R Lewis ’55 Kristofer L Kurtz ’93

Purdue - Eta Kenneth A Baum ’57 Al Hornocker ’49

William & Mary - Alpha-Eta David B Dunkle ’54 William F Way ’42

Rhode Island - Alpha-Upsilon Joseph A Orabone ’63

Wisconsin - Tau Vernon C Beardsley ’25 Alfred H Jensen ’25 Frank H Breaw ’25 Virgil O Dewitt ’25 Charles H Lloyd ’28 Frank L Moffit ’27 Stuart K Hummel ’28 Hugh L Stokes ’30 Charles E Hoyle ’30 Leonard E Nelson ’31 William I Scott ’31 Roderick A Porter ’42

Rochester Tech - Beta-Phi Richard J Schantz ’60 SIU - Carbondale - Beta-Nu Samuel B Eubanks ’50 Raymond A Palmer Jr. ’51 Jack R Lawler ’52 Harry W Pick ’54 August L Schwartz ’52 William R Hunt ’53 Kenneth O Meyer ’53 Harry E Boaz ’54 Lindell G Clarke ’54 Harold W St. Pierre ’55 James C Schmulbach ’53 William E Cameron ’52 Charles C Cutrell ’54 Richard C Smith ’56

Adytum on High

Lycoming - Beta-Lambda Robert F Zanker ’55 Milo H Frey ’54 Howard K Emert ’55 Robert F Schramm ’54 William M Henniger ’56 Edward P Donnell ’54 William L Levegood Jr. ’52 Jack R Edgar ’57 George S Beveridge ’57 Newell M Ryder ’55 Donald B Bohr ’58 Frederick A March ’58 Glenn W Pursel ’57 John B Ernst ’58 Jonathon G Phillips ’57 Robert P Vollriede ’59 Rollin C Price Jr. ’60 William J Ainsworth ’63 George H Buehler ’64 Donald R Irwin ’65 Brian W Peters ’66 Edward C Krome ’65 Robert E Stetson ’67 Robert D Barnhill ’67 John C Draper ’68 Norman B Ream Jr. ’68 Harold E Cooper ’69 Warren L Johnson ’70 David J Hooper ’71 Frederick E Martin ’70 Theodore G Bucher ’72 Vincent C Joy Jr. ’73 David G Webster ’73

Wisconsin - Oshkosh - Gamma-Mu Matthew T Lipscomb ’89 Worchester Polytechnic - Gamma-Iota Lawrence J Sniegoski ’71

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Sigma Pi Fraternity P. O. Box 1897 Brentwood, TN 37024

Prsrt Std Non-Profit U. S. Postage PAID Lebanon Junction, KY Permit No. 441

change service requested

Congratulations to our brother Zach Cabrera

who recently won Mr. University of Central Florida 2012. (pictured here with Miss UCF, Alexa Schmidt)