THE ILLumINatI
Triangle Fraternity
Renovations
by Keith Lewitzke ill76
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his fall additional renovation and ancillary tasks were completed, including repaving the parking lot, installing of a basketball goal and court, and installing of additional storage. The parking lot had not been repaved since it was constructed in the 1960s. Paving was delayed in 2022 while a property rights issue was resolved with the city. Construction finally started this September, when the remaining old asphalt was removed, the subgrade re-graded and improved, 3” of new asphalt laid, and parking spaces striped and numbered. The public sidewalk along Second Street was replaced and widened, to comply with current city code. The entire area from the sidewalk to the west property line was paved, providing more paved area than ever before. Thanks to the chapter for accommodating the construction by temporarily using off-site parking in a city lot a few blocks from the house. When the parking lot repaving was being planned, the chapter asked if a basketball goal and court could be added. The alumni board subsequently purchased
Live-in Scholarship
WHY TRIANGLE?
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• • • • • • • • • • •
Scholarship recipients will have the oportunity to live in the newly renovated Triangle house with stellar amenities and opportunties. Living in the house will also fulfill the university housing requirement!
December 2023
a commercial-quality goal, and installation of the concrete foundation and court striping were included with the parking lot construction. The court is half of an NCAA regulation court, including a 3-point line. After the foundation cured, members of the chapter assembled the goal. When the chapter reoccupied the renovated house in 2022, a concern was storage space that had been eliminated outside, on the 7th floor, and in areas of the basement, and things like outdoor maintenance equipment and yard games began to be stored in the Makerspace and the stairwells. To provide more storage space, a 20’ x 8’ storage container was purchased and placed between the Makerspace and parking lot, on a base prepared in conjunction with the parking lot paving. The container provides an economical, durable, and secure solution, and the shape actually complements the architecture of the house very well. Industrial-grade paint has been provided to the chapter, for painting the container a color to complement the brick. Special thanks to the Triangle Building & Housing Corp. for funding and assistance with this work!
Private certified housing Expansive common area Network of high achievers Genuine brotherhood Cutting-edge makerspace Personal chef Dedicated gym Afforadable rates Great location Academic support Fun activites
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Questions? Contact Rush Director Jack Schnepel at triangle.uiuc.rvp@gmail.com
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Heartfelt Homecoming by Justin Bronzell ill17, Alumni Board Vice President
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his past October, our chapter had the pleasure of welcoming more than 65 actives, alumni, and their families to the chapter home for a great Homecoming weekend full of fun, football, and fraternity. With a brotherly atmosphere and fantastic weather, the weekend kicked off on Friday with the Homecoming Parade, where the active brothers jammed with a full band on the back of our “Woodstock” themed float. After the parade, the brothers gathered for a hearty feast of deep dish from Papa Del’s before easing into an informal networking event of personal and professional questions and casual conversation. Saturday morning began bright and early at the chapter home with donuts, coffee, and more conversation served for breakfast—a fitting warmup for our pre-game brunch tailgate at Grange Grove, consisting of burgers, brats, hotdogs, macaroni and cheese, fruit salad, and vegetarian alternatives catered by the house chef. With our canopy tent overflowing and everyone enjoying the food and our tailgate location, the tailgate turned into a lively intergenerational party until gametime. Those who had
reserved tickets within our chapter’s ticket block made their way to the 2nd level of the East Balcony while the rest of the brothers returned to the chapter home to catch the game projected on the dining room wall. The Homecoming game this year saw the Fighting Illini go up against the Wisconsin Badgers once again—the same team the Illini had beaten by 1 point during the 2019 Homecoming game. And the game did not disappoint! It was a hard-fought game that saw the Illini with an early lead, but also saw many impressive plays and back-and-forth from both teams, which ultimately resulted in a close but crushing loss for the Illini—much to the satisfaction of the few brothers from the Wisconsin chapter, whom we also welcomed for the weekend.
home, it seemed to me in that moment as if those who had come home to join us had never really left. As 2023 comes to a close, we’d like to thank everyone for helping to make Homecoming 2023 a success and invite you all to join us next year on September 13 and 14 to make Homecoming 2024 even better.
Once the dust had settled from the game and everyone had returned from Memorial Stadium, it was time for the actives, alumni, and their families to fill the dining room and sit down for an excellent prime rib dinner (or a pesto-chimichurri cauliflower steak vegetarian option), also prepared by the house chef. After a rousing dinner song, the house filled with the sounds of brotherhood and clanking cutlery, before settling into a steady murmur of glasses lifting and familiar voices laughing. And though the coming Sunday morning brought promises of groggy beginnings and lengthy travel
SAVE THE DATES! Swampwater & Congress Weekend April 19 and 20
Homecoming 2024 September 13 and 14
University of Illinois | illinoistriangle.com | THE ILLumINatI
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adding your name to the donor wall that will be displayed in the house. Gifts and pledges can be made online at tinyurl.com/illinihousefund or by scanning the QR code in this newsletter.
Assuring Our Second Century Campaign Exceeds $1.8 Million
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hanks to the generous support of more than 100 Illinois Triangle brothers and friends, we have raised more than $1.8 million to support the renovations made to the chapter house. We are grateful for what we have received, and the upgrades to 112 East Daniel Street are having a tremendous impact on our actives by creating a premier living-learning environment.
We still have opportunities to recognize our most generous supporters. To discuss a gift or naming opportunity, please contact Greg Lamb, Triangle Education Foundation Vice President at glamb@triangle.org.
Last fall, many of you received a video message from Brother Mark Tolliver that showed updates on the renovation and asked you to join in this transformational campaign. If you missed it, visit the following link to view the message from Brother Mark: tinyurl.com/ILCampaignVideo. Our plan is to conclude the campaign at the 2024 Illinois Congress in April. Before that, we hope you will consider
Donor List
Total Amount of Pledges & Donations
$1,811,411.00
$500,000 Landuyt Family Fund Cindy & Mark Tolliver ill70 $100,000 - $249,999 James Ashbrook ill63 Paula & William “Camel” Engelbrecht ill77 Christopher Rorvick ill96 $50,000 - $99,999 Ron Swofford ill51 $25,000 - $49,999 Fred Chin ill73 Stephanie & Mike Chu ill86 Donald Harris ill78 Susie Kemnetz (in memory of Frank) ill76 Ray Klouda ill79 Pam & Keith Lewitzke ill76 Gary Monetti ill78 Mark Pavlat ill79 $10,000 - $24,999 Chris Chandler ill91 Edward Crylen ill70 Emily & Matt Groch ill94 Alison & Ward Hand ill92 Eric Han ill96 Andrew Lee ill12 Ryan Shoff ill94
Current Illinois House Campaign Supporters as of 12/19/2023 $5,000 - $9,999 Bob Benziger ill61 James Connolly ill70 Paul Dees ill78 Robert Hoffman ill68 Carl Johnson ill96 Yoric Knapp ill78 Al Pope ill67 Jeffrey Rohrer ill80 Kent Sims ill77 Thomas Taylor ill77 John Terlisner ill88 $2,500 - $4,999 Daniel Burg ill81 Patrick Burke ill16 John Carron ill78 Tom Dalicandro ill92 Matthew Frank ill11 Mike Hoffman ill71 Michael Justice ill76 Craig Stiegemeier ill77 Gary Thoman ill69 Morris Westerhold ill65 David Zielke ill71
$1,000 - $2,499 Donald Benson ill59 Richard Campbell ill61 Randolph Christianson ill66 Ed Cox ill66 John Fay ill77 Aaron Girson Preston Henne ill67 Christopher Horvath ill08 Bradley Hunt ill81 Stuart Kienlen ill95 Dylan Ladd ill12 Bill Laitar ill18 Imran Mohamed ill93 Kevin Moloney ill94 Patrick McGovern ill81 John McHarry ill66 Alex Perez ill19 Mark Pool ill86 Thomas Rainey ill67 Samuel Schoenberg ill07 Timothy Stabrawa ill99 James Velander ill69 Steven Wooldridge ill86
University of Illinois | illinoistriangle.com | THE ILLumINatI
$50 - $999 Kevin Clark ill85 Stephen Colburn ill59 Richard Davey ill93 Joseph Doedtman ill83 John Dudkiewicz ill78 Thomas Francis ill62 Don Garvey ill76 John Hackbart ill93 Carron Hanley ill76 George Kinstedt ill67 Robert Lennes ill91 Douglas Miles ill85 Jim Ottaviani ill82 Robert Rimdzius ill71 C. Philip Ross ill63 Cary Rusmussen ill89 John Sikora ill83 Jim Skogsberg ill67 Richard Sprague ill82 Theodore Takasaki ill77 Andrew Way ill12 Stephen Wilmes ill73
STAY CONNECTED LIKE US ON FACEBOOK: Triangle Fraternity: Illinois or @illinoistriangle CONNECT WITH US: Instagram: @uiuctriangle UPDATE US: Update your contact information! bit.ly/triangleupdate SUPPORT: Donate to the House Campaign today using this QR code or the link below:
tinyurl.com/illinihousefund
THE ILLumINatI
Recruitment Update
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his past semester, our chapter welcomed 23 new members into the fold, thanks to the hard work of active Rush Director Jack Schnepel and the brothers on his recruitment team! This effort brings us closer to our goal of having 50 brothers living in the chapter home and puts us on target to reach and sustain that goal by Fall 2025. This pledge class is our largest in recent years, and, as a group, they have been very dedicated to the house so far! In fact, as of writing, this pledge class has a 100% retention rate—another first for a class in recent history. So the next time you’re in Champaign, consider stopping by the chapter home to congratulate them and wish them well!
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