Alpha Phiji News ALPHA PHI CHAPTER of PHI GAMMA DELTA UNIVERSITY of MICHIGAN Volume XXXIV, Number 1 April, 1970 ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN WILDCAT REACHES 24th YEAR: NO END IN SIGHT In an age of individualism, fraternities 11.^ are based on brotherhood, collectivism, likb and internal unity. It is much easier to he individual, to look after only yourself. Unity is hard work, cooperation, and self lessness. To understand this element of fraternity life is to begin to understand what A1 "Wildcat" Wall has meant to Phi Gamma Delta at Michigan for almost 25 years. His unselfish willingness to serve others before himself has left its mark on To listen to Cat speak of his life is not every Michigan Fiji since 1946. It is im possible to imagine what 707 would he only fascinating - hut exhausting. Few people know that he was once a hoxer and a featherweight champion. His ferocity in the ring earned him the name Wildcat. He has performed on the stage of Hill Audi torium, taught riflery to underprivileged children, and received awards for his First Aid ahUity. His most amazing feat, how ever, is the repertoire of songs and stories that he has aceumulated. An evening spent with the Cat is an entertaining and edifying experience. During his vacations. Cat takes a long drive to the West to enjoy the Montana countryside. On his way, he stops in every littletown to visit Fijis that once were men like if it weren't for Cat. Cat has to he the one element of so- eiety that never changes but is still able to draw people from every generation into worthwhile association. For 25 years(this fall), every pledge and brother has been subjected to the "ire and \vrath" of the Cat, hut nobody seems to he the worst for it. And the "tooth and roar" never seem to lose their fierceness even after all these years. Cat came to 707 and took the job of house man, handy man, and keeper of spirit and tradition. He has accomplished that job with distinction, hut, even more, he has established himself as a human tra dition, a constant bond between changing alumni and changing undergraduates, a link that all connected to 707 can hold to. The same songs and the same jokes keep occuring,hut every year people come hack to share the warmth that is generated every time Cat picks up his Uke. ALUMNI OUTING GREAT SUCCESS A new trend in Alumni relations began on February 7 with a seeond semester Alumni outing. Over 30 alumni were able to attend the day long affair which was highlighted by dinner in the house under the careful watch of Wildcat. The idea he- hind the outing was to get as many of the loeal alumni as possible together in an in formal setting to promote an exchange of constructive ideas as well as recollections of the years gone by. of Michigan. Once there, he passes the The event was different from other time with forest rangers, travellers, and nature itself. Last year, at the age of 109 (he claims), he braved the mountains on mule and tamed a modern snowmobile. Through all his travels he has been a first rate P.R. man (he raised $50,000 for the new addition). alumni events held recently because it cen tered itself more around the brothers pre (Continued on page 4) sent than around the weekend activities at Michigan. Most of the alums went to the basketball game in the afternoon, but the real outing began during the dinner and in the discussions that followed. The best (Continued on page 4) \r\nALPHA PHIJI NEWS EDITORS CORNER - We are almost ready to complete another school year at the University of Michigan. It has been an eventful year; the campus has been forced into a dra in the forefront of fraternity life as shown by the Homecoming float and our first IM championship. The men of Alpha Phi chapter are look ing to the future, and future brothers will still be able to share the advantages and opportunities of this association because of it. stic transformation. Students have violent ly protested the war, ROTC, American Capitalism, and police involvement on campus. At this moment, the University is paralyzed by a student strike support ing the demands of the Black Action Movement. The men of Phi Gamma Delta have adapted constantly to the changing cam pus. We have revised our pledge program, increased interest in campus politics, and placed the emphasis of our association on personal contact. We have also remained m THE ALPHA PHIJI NEWS Publbhed by the Alpha Phi Chapter PHI GAMMA DELTA Plugg Victor in Pudding Race Ann Arbor, Michigan Gates Moss George Copple Editor AssL Editor Address all correspondence to EDITOR - ALPHA PHIJI NEWS Phi Gamma Delta, 707 Oxford Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104 Chapter Pledges 17 In Winter Class In keeping with the fast changing cam pus scene and the ever growing trend to ward relevance, the Fiji pledge program has taken on a new look. Gone are the days of hazing, sweat sessions, and orga ALPHA PHI BOARD OFFICERS President Duane Renken Treasurer Michael Scherer Secretary Eugene Hartwig at assimilating the new men into the house Ann Arbor as potentially good brothers rather than Ann Arbor docile Cringing, obedient serfs. In a more serious vein, several interesting items have been added to make pledging a worth Bloomfield Hills UNDERGRADUATE OFFICERS President Chuck Trzcinski River Rouge Recording Secretary Jim Parks while and memorable experience. These new items have changed the meaning and direction of the pledge period. The Winter 1969 class began the slow change by taking a pledge trip to the Miami of Ohio campus, and reports are that the Treasurer Larry Kunkhe nized trivia. The revamped program aims Evanston, 111. place has not been able to recover yet. The trip was supposed to give the pledges Saginaw a chance to be with one another for an Corresponding Secretary BUI Younger Milwaukee, Wis. to know one. another better. In this re Historian Nelson Bogart Evanston, 111. extended length of time so they could get spect, the trip was a huge success. The pre sent class has just completed a similar trip to Wittenburg University. The second in novation in the program is the change in Hell week philosophy. The emphasis is no longer on physical labor, but rather on a more intellectual use of time. Last semes ter, the house hosted a "T" group class for the pledges during the week to give the brothers and pledges a chance to study their living relationship in the house. At the present time these and other changes are planned to improve the present system. * * * We are very happy to have a promising pledge class this semester to build for the future at 707. The men in the class this semester are; Skip Barcy, Dearborn;Jim Belitsos, Grosse Point; Rich Booth,' Ma rion, Ind.; Bill Borkenstein, Kalamazoo; Jeff Crook, Kalamazoo; John Dotlerer' (son of Chuck Dotterer), Franklin; Dave Dye, Birmingham;Glenn Gable, Auburn, ^ash.; Kai Hansen, Birmingham; Grant Hyatt, Dearborn; Phil Montgomery (Bro ther to Steve), Springfield, 111.; Jim Langly, Bedford; Dave Robinson, Birmingham; Bob Van Syoc, Kalamazoo; Tim Hanley, Kalamazoo; Greg Grant, Toledo; and Paul Freedman, Cleveland. \r\nGRADUATE QUESTIONNAIRE BROTHERS: As you know, the communication between 707 and the alumni has been far from adequate in recent years. Therefore, we are inserting this questionnaire to better our relationship by learning more about each of you and what you are now doing. Please assist us in our effort, by filling out this form and returning it to us. Hopefully the next "News" can include everyone. name CLASS PRESENT LOCATION OCCUPATION & POSITION RECENT INFORMATION ABOUT YOURSELF OR YOUR FAMILY (married, engaged, children, service,jobs, etc.) IMPORTANT INFORMATION OF OTHER FIJIS IN YOUR AREA: NAME The second part of the questionnaire concerns rush and we hope each of you will support us by recommend ing anyone in your area who you feel will make an outstanding Phi Gam. Again, we would appreciate your assistance. RUSHEE'S NAME HOMETOWN CLASS LEGACY (?) INFORMATION \r\nApril, 1970 Page 3 ALPHA PHIJI NEWS SPEAKER PROGRAM EDUCATIONAL MASCOT This year the house has tried to in crease interest in popular topics by the means of a speaker program. These topics have usually been quite controversial, both in the house and on campus, so the pre Due to a generous gift from the family of brother Rob Martens, Alpha Phi Chap ter represents itself this year in the form of a handsome English setter. His com mon name, selected by a contest among the brothers last semester, is Baxter. The rapidly growing pup has adapted extremely sentations have turned into a free exchange of ideas rather than the typical after din ner speech. * * future of this type of warfare, as well as a colorful description of the various types of agents used. A highlight of the evening was the protective suit he brought along which was tried on by one of the brothers. * * well to fraternity hfe, picking up both the good and the bad habits from the brothers. * Asa fitting prelude to the Dow recruit ment on campus. Dr. Smith, a popular Chemistry teacher, visited the house to talk on chemical and biological warfare. The evening was spent on the history and * . Another program of immediate signifi cance was presented by several staff mem bers of the University Hospital on addic tive drugs. As everyone knows, drugs are used extensively by students on this cam- NEW HOUSE He loves to hunt, a trait that was undoubt pus so an educational program on the ef fects and after-effects of popular drugs was extremely interesting. The discussion stayed away from the ethics of drugs, a thing left up to the individual. Most recently,several volunteers in sup port of the Black Action Movement were at the house to discuss the BAM demands to the regents on inereased participation by blacks in the university community. This program was extremely timely, as the regents were meeting the next day on the demands.This program was extremely well edly mixed with his thoroughbred breed ing. Someday soon, we may watch Bax ter and Wildcat as they disappear in the woods in search of some interesting game. Baxter had an unfortunate experience last semester as his hunting instinct sent him after the wrong game. The car he hit was a little too big, and Baxter came out the worse for the fight with a broken leg. Luckily, the injury healed quickly and Baxter is once again up to his old tricks. received because most of the brothers had their questions about the demands and the courses of action that the movement was taking. Because of the speakers, the brothers were able to take an educated in terest in the proceedings. FLOAT UNIFYS HOUSE After a year's absence from the tradi tional practice of float building, the chap ter decided that it would once again rep resent itself in the annual Homecoming parade. The float's theme was "Whiskey Cheers - A Hundred Years". Contrary to popular belief. Whiskey represents a Wol verine mascot that leads the team to vic tory every Saturday afternoon. The dog chases a ball around the field, so the float had a movable dog that tossed a maize and blue ball up and down. « * -i jt rui n' * Even though the float was the crowd's overwhelming favorite, the judges over looked the traditional and failed to give has been infiltrated by student political views. the house an award.Instead, all the awards went to floats that had political themes. Anyway, the float was a great success because it gave the brothers a chance to work together and to produce what they It seems that the traditional homecoming feel was an excellent success. PIG DINNER October 16-18 \r\nPage Four April, 1970 ALPHA PHIJI NEWS Big Plans For Pig Dinner WILDCAT (Continued from page 1) While at Michigan, Cat has established himself quite comfortably in the basement of the old house. His Den of Iniquity, a collection ofitems from his entire lifetime, is an interesting history in itself as a me morial to his variegated achievements. Cat would be the first to admit that his proud est achievements are the friendships he has earned with the men of Phi Gamma Delta over a quarter of a century. In his daily life at Michigan, Cat divides his time between his daily chores(the pan cakes are just as heavy as they always were) and the entertainment of his friends. Every day, some lucky brother is cornered for a brief lesson in polities, campus disorders, or the glories of the past.It is even rumored that the delivery boys spend the afternoon in the basement sipping suds. It is almost an understatement to say that Cat has made an everlasting impres sion on the future of every man who lived at the Fiji house. No matter what the sit uation, he is always available, always un derstanding. always. . .Cat. This security, this unchanging force in the lives of the men at 707 is one of the best advantages in life in the fraternity. Wildcat has shown for so many years why "it is great to be a Fiji- Pig Dinner 1970 should be one of the most memorable occasions that happens in the Fiji house for many years. Several things make this alumni dinner different than any other. Most importantly, this will mark the 25th anniversary at the house of the legendary Wildcat. The entire weekend is planned to honor our "Cat" so we can show him how much we appreciate all that he has done to make 707 the place it is. Secondly,the weekend has been scheduled the weekend of October 17, with a great game against Michigan State. We have re served as many tickets as we could, but these will go fast so early reservations are necessary to insure thai we can get you a As you can see, the weekend looks to be enjoyable for all. Get your reservations in early, as soon as we contact you at the end of the summer,to insure a place and a seat at the game. Most importantly, be sure to attend and bring your classmates so we can make this a great weekend on Cat's 25th. seat. The schedule for the weekend is tenta tively set as follows; Friday, October 16 Arrive at the house in the evening; Drinks, Cards, review the past with your classmates and com pare to the present with the brothers. A Parting Message Saturday, October 17 Lunch at the house; Football game against MSU; Cocktails and dinner at the house (if there is enough room); Speaker and recognition of Wildcat; After dinner drinking and BuU sessions. Sunday, October 18 Brunch for all a- lumni that are still around; Alpha Phi Board annual meeting. The Alpha Phiji News has been out of circulation for the past two years. We are now in the process of trying to reestablish rapport with the alumni, mainly because we have finally seen how important a role they can play in making the Fiji house a rewarding experience. We have already had a second semester dinner to reach the lo cal alumni and have set the ball rolling to organize Pig Dinner 1970. ALUMNI OUTING (Continued from page 1) change was dinner held in the house, be cause it gave the brothers a chance to mix with the alumni on a more informal basis, impossible when the dinner is held at a lo cal restaurant. After dinner, all the brothers gathered in the living room for bull sessions and singing entertainment from Wildcat and brother Dick Wingfield ('65). The songs were all too familiar, and the jokes 75 years old, but it was an excellent chance for all those present to share in a common experience that so many years had tried to destroy. The most rewarding thing from the en tire event is that it united all those present into a sound relationship and began the long trail back to better relations between the undergraduates and the alumni. * * * From you, all we ask is a little cooper ation. This newsletter is basically an alum ni paper, but we have little information about any of the brothers that have left Michigan. We have enclosed with this let ter a simple form that we hope you will all fill out and return so that the next paper can contain news about the alumni. It will be an excellent opportunity for you to keep in touch with all the people you went to college with. 4f- * * Start planning now to attend Pig Din ner 1970. It has a great game (MSU), a great purpose (Wildcat), and offers a good chance to see the new and changing cam pus. See for yourself how rewarding a lifetime association with 707 can become.