/ i Wi}t (§awjfia ^auk The Gamma Tau Chapter of Phi Gamma Delta Georgia Tech WINTER 1995 Bigger and Better Than Ever Mitch Rutledge FT'97 It is finally here. Who ever said Persistence doesn't pay off. On February 28, 1995, the most anxiously awaited day in mine and many graduates and undergraduates' lives will be here. The completion of the Charles C. "Bumper" Bragg house addition will be upon us. As most of you know this addition was conceived way back in 1978 when Brother Bragg donated a large sum of money for a house addition. Ever since then we have been raising money, conceiving designs, and everything else imaginable to get this 4800 square foot addition to begin. As many of you know we ran into some problems when we liiiji began last summer with loose ground. As a result Lusk Engineering, our general contractor on the job, was required to dig the footings 9 feet, twice the originally designed depth. This was due to very sandy soil. I think we all know what that is from!!! As a result a $9,000.00 cost overrun was incurred. We have had other cost overruns including having to install a $7,000.00 ventilation system for the kitchen which was required by the City of Atlanta. As a result of these extra expenses we definitely need support from our graduates. I would like to thank all the graduates who have made donations to our fund-raising campaign and would like to encourage everyone else that if they have not made a donation yet to do so. Our goal is $75,000 and we are close to one third of the way there. We are so excited about the new addition and really hope that everyone will come to pig dinner to see our beautiful bigger house and take part in its dedication. This new addition is for every undergraduate and graduate brothers and we want you to come see it. Please note the list of who has contributed to the fund raising effort. Your name should be on that list. All donations over $100 will receive permanent recognition in the addition. Go To Page 8 And Send Us Your Update fTiYTf\ l»95 ]\oiTis Pig Dinner April 33 , Ekkiesia '94 - A New Direction Scott Sullivan FT'96 The 146th Ekkiesia was held this past summer in Kansas City, Missouri. Our chapter sent four representatives. The three voting delegates were Brothers Larry East (FT '95), Marc Gilbert (FT '95), and Scott Sullivan (FT '96). Robert Wagstaff(FT '96) was an alternate. For anyone who has never been to an Ekkiesia, it is quite an experience. The most exciting thing was meeting brothers from other chapters across the country. Even though we had a lot of fun, there was very important business to attend to. The main focus of this Ekkiesia was to revamp the current Acts of Ekkiesia and Constitution. These two large, confusing documents were reworked into a simple continued on page 5 \r\nGAMMA TAUK Homecoming Are You Ready? by Steve Pybum,FT '96 As the returning Homecoming chairman this pastfall, I knew that we had a tough road ahead ofus. After blowing away the closest competitor last year by over thirty points,I new thatevery fratemity on campus would be gunning for us one way or another. Page Two WINTER 1995 iir^ F'i' m The 1995 Norris Pig Dinner is scheduled for Saturday, April 22, 1995. This will be the first of many pig dinners to be in the newly completed Francis"Bumper"Bragg addition.The addition as you know is almost complete and the new room will be perfect to have our most loved graduate event. No more windy tents. No more loud band p,ailies,to deal with. We will be indoors! As most of you know, mother Clough FT '62 is the"^^ GroTgia Tecl^ '. m The infamous mini 500 started by a crazy engineer.It is stillfun to watch, but not sofun to be in. Whether it would be the Pikes or Phi Sigs trying to beat us in events day, the Phi Kappa Tans in the Reck and Display, or the Lambda Chis in absolutely everything - everyone wanted a piece of us in something. So, in an effort to step up our performance from last year,I looked beyond our active brothers in the chapter. On the younger side pledge John Thompson assumed the reins of co-chairman and provided immeasurable help by motivating President"^d will also be our speaker at this year's Pig Dinner. Brother Clough will be speaking about Georgia Tech and its"New Vision" for the future. We really are hoping for a record turnout this year. We are planning new festivities on Friday and Saturday. Please mark the form attached for what you would like to participate in and send it back as soon as possible so that we can get a good count this year. I will also promise you the best Pig Dinner you have been to(even you Charlie)! We hope to hear from you soon. Don't miss out. Remember Phi Gam is not for College Days alone!! Fraternally, Mitchell Rutledge Graduate Relations Chairman everyone (including some brothers) and simply working his tail off. With the pledges in high gear, I then turned to the graduates for some aid,and found Dale Harsh from FT'61 in local Marietta just aching to help.Brother Harsh,who was an expert in the Reck in his days here at Gamma Tau,showed the present Reck brothers a thing or two about welding - and he showed all of us here a great deal about having commitment and a genuine love for this house, about how it is really not for college days alone. Unfortunately, pledges and graduates alone cannot possibly win any major competition, or we would have won this year's We are happy to announce our 1994-95 pledge class. A fine group of young men who will be molded into Phi Gam's. Matt Armstrong- Marietta, GA Dann Dennison- Marietta, GA Adam Komomer- Marietta, GA Michael McNamara- Elberton, GA overall trophy by over sixty points. Instead, with the help of the active brothers, we had to settle for winning the A-league division by only 21 points over the second place Lambda Chis.Some ofour many finishes included first in Mr. Georgia Tech (our student body president, Greg Foster, is graduating this spring if anyone Brandon Drew- Marietta, GA Michael Moats- Marietta, GA Robert Franzmathes- Tucker, GA Russell Smith- Cornelia, GA needs a CEO for their company anytime soon),second in the talent show,first and third in the Movie Impersonation Contest,second in the video contest (for anyone interested in viewing these last three contests, we have everything on tape),second in events day, and third in the Reck(which,by EVERYONE'S opinion,including Howie Hargis- Palmeto, GA John Thompson- Birmingham, AL Jason Hauser- Tucker, GA Luke Thompson- Orlando, FL Neel Joshi- Birmingham, AL Andy Van Epps- Atlanta, GA Philip Duffie- Tucker, GA Jason Scheve- Marietta, GA Mike Evans- Charlotte, NC Ted Schneider- Puyallop, WA Matthew King- Friendswood, TX those who placed above us, was a rip-off). Also, we collected nearly $20,000 in Kroger receipts for the yearly philanthropy project(second on campus),and we have more brothers attending more "sign-in" events and competitions than any other organization. From the pledges to the graduates. Gamma Tau is starting to develop a Home ."OLLKWOQD '• coming dynasty here at Tech.I hope every one of you enjoyed the brunch as much as we Our 1994 Homecoming Fixed Body entry. The theme this year was "Buzz goes to Hollywood." all enjoyed the entire competition. 1995 Georgia Tech Basketball Schedule Feb. 12 NORTH CAROLINA (ABC) 1:30 p.m. Feb. 15 NORTH CAROLINA A&T 7:30 p.m. Feb. 18 at Wake Forest(RJ/ESPN2) 4:00 p.m. Feb. 22 VIRGINIA (RJ) 8:00 p.m. Feb. 25 at N. C. State (RJ) 1:30 p.m. Mar. 2 FLORIDA STATE(ESPN) 7:30 p.m. Mar. 4 at Clemson (RJ) 4:00 p.m. Mar. 9-12 ACC Tournament, Greensboro, NC(RJ/ESPN) Home Games in ALL CAPS. All times Eastern. \r\nPage Three WINTER 1995 GAMMA TAUK The Life Blood of The Fraternity Three times each year we all get together and open our house to the young men of Georgia Tech interested in joining a fraternity. Every time we do this we make a decision whether or not these young men have potential to be Phi Gam's.This decision is based on talking with these gentlemen for maybe two hours a night for two or three nights.I believe and I think everyone will agree that it is pretty hard to make a judgment about someone you just met three days ago on whether you want him to be your brother for life. This is exactly why we need you the graduates who know young men who will be coming to Georgia Tech each year to tell us about these gentlemen. We need as much information about these guys before we make that critical decision on whether or not to give them a bid into the Fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta. This directly affects you also. You will come back to the house and want to see it thriving in brotherhood as well as on campus,so send us your rush recommendations. Make it a goal to send at least one in each year,especially the brothers who live in Georgia. You probably will know more people who are coming Rafting down the Ocoee was a great summer Rush event. to Georgia Tech.Rush is getting very competitive and fewer guys are coming through rush each year. So we need the extra edge to get the really quality guys to come to Creighton Vail Hall each quarter. Remember Rush is the life blood of the fraternity. Send your Rush Recommendations to: Rush Chairman,841 Fowler St.,NW,Atlanta, GA 30313 Fratemally, The Undergraduate Chapter Undergraduate SpotlightGreg Foster by Mitchell Rutledge(FT 97) This is the first in a series of articles that will become a graduate forum. However, this forum will only work if you participate by taking a few minutes of your time to share your thoughts. It does not have to be fancy, and it Jack Gregory Foster pledged the Gamma Tau chapter in the fall of 1993; since then Greg has been initiated and has made many does not have to be long. But,only with your support will this be successful. The topics of discussion will pertain to our fratemity, Georgia Tech,or anything else thatcreates lively exchange. To get the ball rolling for the next issue, our topic will be the GammaTauk.What's your opinion ofthis publication? great contributions to the chapter. Greg pledged as a Junior at Georgia Tech. He had already become extremely involved on campus and was well respected by admini-strators, professors, and students. Greg is currently Student Government Association Fiji Forum Brother Foster FT'95 A great brother who has encouraged and exemplified leadership President. Last Winter Greg probably had one of the greatest days of his life, that was the day that he was initiated into Phi Gamma Delta and the day he was elected SGA President. Not many people get those kinds of rewards in life, especially on the same day. Since then Greg has made a conscious effort to encourage other brothers as well What would you like to see added or deleted? How can we make it better? Do you know it costs the undergraduates approximately $1,600.00 per publication? How can we cut costs? Is this an award wiiming fratemity newsletter? If not, why not? Give us your thoughts. We'd like to hear from you. Send your letter to: Graduate Relations Chairman, 841 Fowler St., NW,Atlanta, GA 30313 Thank you for your support. Fratemally, Marc D. Peria Gamm Tau '92 as pledges to get involved. It doesn't matter what you become involved in but just join an organization and learn some leadership skills. Greg has been very knowledgeable for his brothers on what kinds of organizations and services that are available at Tech. I personally and many brothers are always able to go to Greg when we have a question, comment or even a gripe about something on campus.We go to Greg because we know if he is able he will answer our questions or take care ofa problem we have on campus. We are very lucky to have Greg as he is to have Phi Gam.I know that I personally have learned a lot from Greg and that he will be a friend beyond college. Greg will graduate this spring and go on to a consulting firm somewhere in the Southeast. We hope that he will come back and keep encouraging the brothers and pledges that leadership is an integral part of brotherhood. \r\nGAMMA TAUK Page Four WINTER 1995 Olympic-related construction and fraternity improvements on Tech campus by Bill White TT'59 of The Georgia Tech campus will look vastly different by the time"Letthe Games Begin"is heard - three miles away at the new Olympic Stadium in July 1996. Georgia Tech will play a major role in the 1996 which the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games is contributing $47million. The new residential units Olympics,and will be seen via TV throughout the entire world. As site ofthe official Olympic Village as well as will all be "apartment style," with full kitchen, living/ study area, single occupancy rooms, and one bathroom two competition venues, the school will house 16,000 for each two students. Two residential apartments were athletes and officials. Immediately after the Olympics, the school will host the 1996 Paralympic Games, utilizing many ofthe Olympic facilities. Heading up the entire Olympic Village projectis Russ Chandler,Gamma Tau '67 Construction cranes are evident throughout many areas ofthe greatly expanded campus.The new buildings reflect a growing emphasis on attractiveness and student amenities.Even today the campus has a look and feel of a major university, a major departure from its long standing industrial complex appearance. While hosting Olympic athletes, the campus will have extensive state-of-the-art security. Brothers who are in town for the games will not be able to visit the completed in 1993,and the remainder of the projects on the main campus will be completed by September 1995. Upon completion of this major building program. Tech will house about70 percent ofits student body,compared to 40 percent at present. A $21-million Olympic Swimming Venue is being constructed next to the Callaway Student Athletic Center. It will consist of an outdoor Olympic competition pool and diving pool, and a temporary water polo pool. The existing indoor pools at the Student Athletic Center will be demolished and replaced by the Olympic pools. The existing outdoor pool has been covered during construction to provide indoor recreational swimming chapter house, which will be rented to an as-yetundetermined delegation. In addition to tight security for the athletes, the Olympic Village will have many for students. Tech will enclose the Olympic pool and recreation facilities, international marketplaces, and Boxing Venue preliminary and semi-final rounds. A major renovation of the Coliseum is scheduled by the varied dining services. The look and ambiance will be totally different compared to what graduates remember from their days on campus especially those who were in school prior to the extensive building projects ofthe last decade. Tech is constructing 2,700 new student beds on the main campus for use by Tech students. An additional 2,000 student beds (called "University Apartments") are being constructed on the south side ofNorth Avenue, replacing Juniors and the Techwood dormitory, for post-Olympic use by Georgia State University students. These buildings, up to 14 floors high, will include numerous amenities for their residents. Planning meetings are already underway to blend students from the two schools together as much as possible to share facilities and other resources. The total capital investment in the new student housing is $169-million, diving pool after the Olympics and add additional research and recreational space to the complex. Alexander Memorial Coliseum will host the Olympic Tech Athletic Association following the 1994-95 basketball season. There will be improvements to the concourse, rest rooms, locker rooms, and concession areas, in addition to permanent air conditioning. McDonalds Restaurants recently agreed to invest over $5-million in the Coliseum remodeling and related improvements, and will have a visible presence and appropriate signage on the campus in return for its financial commitments. Georgia Tech Plaza will be constructed next to the existing student center. It will include a fountain, 300seat amphitheater, campanile, and extensive lighting and landscaping. The $2.2- million project will be paid in part by alumni contributions and by ACOG. Continued next page \r\nPage Five WINTER 1995 Olympic Related Construction Golden Owl Awards 1994-95 Continuedfrom Page 4 In addition to dormitories, athletic venues, and other projects, a number of campus fraternities are improving their facilities. Many fraternities,including Gamma Tau as mentioned above, will make money by renting their houses to Olympics groups. The TKE house,on the same block as Gamma Tau,has completed the latest in a series of expansions. From the main entrance on Fifth Street a visitor arrives on the second GAMMA TAUK Richard H. Clements Byron L. Borup James L. Bowen James L. Russell, Jr. James H. Fletcher Joe C. Boston Dayton F. Hale Elliott E. Ransom, Jr. Edgar M. Holtsinger Robert A. Sheffey, Jr. Richard S. Anderson Claude S. Swift level of a large, two-level public area and overlooks a vast social area below two floors high. The Sigma Chi house has been torn down, and a large, classical style house will be built on the site. The Beta Theta Pi house has been torn down and a larger house will be built there. Kappa Sigma has built a large addition next to Gamma Tau on Fowler St. Many of the smaller fraternities have enlarged their houses also. Silver Owl Awards 1994-95 Dramatic changes on campus are mirrored by extensive projects underway throughout Atlanta. Bruce C. Berger Edward W.Rittmayer Garrick W. Bauer George L. Smith, Jr. Freeway widenings, extension of the MARTA line to William J. Brooksbank, Jr. David A. Stivers Dunwoody, major shopping center expansions new C. Michael Dempsey J. Ross Wills hotels, numerous new or improved athletic venues, entertainment complexes, and cultural institution expansions will give Atlanta a new look for 1996. The population of the 20- county metro area, now over 3.1 million, is expected to reach 3.8-million by 2000. The 20-county area is larger than Connecticut and Rhode Island combined in total square miles. Robert M.Paxton John N. Davis Lawrence W.Barkely David A. DeLong Robert D. Blythe, Jr. Robert W.Hooper James E. Hellmann Ricke G. Kirk John R. Parkinson, Jr. William J. Schmalz John W. Rife, Jr. Herbert L. St. John, Jr. Ekklesia '94 continuedfrom page 1 set of bylaws in an easy to follow fashion. Also remodeled was the Archonate, the leaders of Ekklesia. For the first time in history, two undergraduate brothers were added to the Archonate. This will help in the future to have a fair view of undergraduate opinions when the Archonate meets. Two new chapters were installed into the portals of Phi Gamma Delta to close out the important business. Aside from the business sessions, several education seminars were held, including sessions on Pledge Education, Rush, goal setting, and leadership. We learned a lot about what it takes to make a great chapter greater! Brothers also assisted in Project Phi Gam, a service project for a local children's home in Kansas City. Other events included a model initiation, a musical, and an Ekklesia Delegates(L toR): Scott Sullivan FT'96,Lairy East FT *96, Dave Slater, Section Chief, Marc Gilbert FT '95, Rob Wagstaff FT '96 awards banquet. At the banquet we received awards for scholarship and general excellence. Due to the baseball strike, our trip to see the Royals was cancelled. Even with this setback, however, we were able to enjoy ourselves and do our part to lead Phi Gamma Delta into the future as one of the top international fraternities. I only hope I am able to attend the 148th Ekklesia during the summer of 1996 in Phoenix, Arizona. \r\nPage Six WINTER 1995 GAMMA TAUK Best Buddies by J. P. Bitencourt FT'96 There has always been a long standing myth at Georgia Tech that students here only care about themselves, about band parties, about their future careers, about girls ... Well,fortunately, that is not the case, well at least not at the Fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta. For the past three years,I along with four other Phi Gamms,Bill White '96, Troy Coons '97, Lance Slade '97, and Scott Griffin '97, have had the pleasure of being involved with Best Buddies at Georgia Tech. Best Buddies is an international college based volunteer organization that fosters relationships between Tech students and the mentally handicapped. The organization is in no way tutorial-based or set up as a mentor-pupil relationship, the sole mission as Ralph Waldo Brothers J.P. Bitencourt and Troy Coons enjoy a picnic this pastfall with other Tech students and their Best Buddy Friends. Emerson put it "is friendship". Best Buddies was founded in 1987 by Anthony K. Shriver at Georgetown University. Since then it has spread to over 170 college campuses in the United States, as well as, universities in England, France, and Greece. To date, Georgia Tech is the only technology/science-based university that has a chapter of Best Buddies. Not our friends at MIT, RPI, or Cal-Tech, proving once again that Tech students always "break the mold". Best Buddies really spun from the theme of the Special Olympics, started by Shriver's mother, Eunice Shriver. In that strong and meaningful relationships would be built over the course of the games. It was Mr. Shriver's idea that"why couldn't the relationships continue". And the relationship do continue, mine is going on three years. Best Buddies also provides an opportunity to break the social stigmatism that to date seems to plague Fraternity men. Individuals within the Greek system do care about their community, do care about the ills of society, and do want to make a difference. What furthers the importance of Best Buddies is that it has direct and far reaching effects on the community, in that it improves and changes peoples lives. Anyone can collect cans outside local supermarkets or drop a few pennies in a Salvation Army kettle. But to work with another human being, to care about the life of another individual takes time, effort, and empathy. We here at Gamma Tau are constantly reminding ourselves of this as we put words into actions for the upward march of humanity. These Proud Gamma Tau Brothers Have Helped Make The Long-Awaited Addition Come True. • • 500 Derek Brown Bret Anderson 100 James L. Brown Stan Anderson 100 R. Wright Cannon 100 Robert Harmon Ben Adler $ 100 50 100 Richard Hanson 100 Karl Meihoffer John Harkins 100 Frank Miller 100 25 250 300 250 Russ Chandler 500 Jerry Harris 100 Dennis Pryor Frank Radey Joe Atkinson 50 Richard Clements 100 Michael Harris 500 Rick Robins Howard Barfield 50 Richard Costin 75 Hal Hart 300 James Rountree 10 David Hronchek 100 Jim Rowe 250 Phillip Scott 500 Armenaki Fund 1,867 Charlie Bass 100 Winford Ellis 50 Joe Baumgartner 500 William Florence Thomas E. Bell, Jr. 100 25 A.C. Johnson 250 Bill Smith Milton Berry 100 Walter Flynt Gary Free 200 Andrew Kohl 250 Wesley Sokolosky Rick Boone 100 John Fumbanks 500 Kirk Landon 500 Michael Spears 550 John Bosky 250 Mark Garlen 200 Kirk Landon 5,000 500 Dale Brandt 250 William Grant 140 Richard Lawson 100 George Stewart Eric Taylor Don Brandt 250 William Green 250 Bob Leckrone 500 Ed Guilbert 500 100 Ken Weatherspoon Dudley Williamson 500 Jim Hamil 500 John Longshore Don Lundkovsky 300 C.W.Zimmerman 250 Charles Brasfield Martin Bretherton Johnny Briggs 1,100 100 500 Ed Hund 50 50 100 500 100 1,000 The Gamma Tauk Editor: Mitch Rutledge Thanks goes to all contributing writers,especially J.P.Bittencourt,Bill White,Scott Sullivan and Marc Perla. \r\nPage Seven WINTER 1995 GAMMA TAUK 1995 NORRIS PIG DINNER RESERVATION FORM .CLASS/MAJOR NAME . HOME ADDRESS ( HOME TEL. WORK TEL. ( L ) □ I will attend the 1995 Norris Pig Dinner at the Chapter House on Saturday, April 22. My check for $30.00 per person is enclosed. Note; This is a Brothers-only event. □ I will attend the 8th Annual James Couser Rowe III/FIJI Golf Classic on Saturday, April 22. My check, made payable to Phi Gamma Delta, for $ has been sent to Mitch Rutledge, 841 Fowler Street, Atlanta, GA 30313. □ Sorry, I will be unable to attend, however a contribution is enclosed to help defer publication costs of the Gamma Tauk. Comments: COUSER/FIJI GOLF CLASSIC RESERVATION FORM NAME HOME ADDRESS HOME TEL. ( WORK TEL. ( ) ) PREFERRED PAIRINGS Send by April 1 to: Mitch Rutledge, 841 Fowler Street, Atlanta, GA 30313 RUSH RECOMMENDATION .CLASS GRADUATE BROTHER. ADDRESS RUSHEE NAME RUSHEE ADDRESS TELEPHONE NUMBER ( )_ CREDENTIALS FOR PHI GAM Please take a moment to fill out both sides of this form \r\nGAMMA TAUK WINTER 1995 Page Eight THE GAMMA TAUK NEEDS NEWS ABOUT YOU! We are interested in what you are doing and where you are. We want to tell your friends the best news. Also we need to know your current address so that our computer database will be up to date, guaranteeing prompt receipt of your Gamma Tank Please fill out and return this form today. Your brothers are waiting to hear from you. (Please print) NAME CLASS. HOME ADDRESS OCCUPATION HRM. BUSINESS ADDRESS HOME TEL.( ) BUSINESS TEL.( What's new with you and your family? Tell us about one of your fondest Gamma Tau memories:. PLEASE SEND TO: MITCH RUTLEDGE 841 FOWLER ST., NW ATLANTA,OA 30313 ).