The Golden Eagle FIJI THETA TAU CHAPTER OF PHI GAMMA DELTA VOLUME 26, No.2 Summer 2005 24th Annual frank Norris Pig Dinner New Graduate Website Launched: www.ttufiji.com/tfi or www.techfijiinc.com Our special guest speaker was Bill Bracewell, a 1968 graduate of the University of Georgia. (Bill Certainly enlightened and entertained with his stories) The pig is back!!! \r\nre N z ap a © = = laa - La \r\nThe Golden Eagle Fiji Winter 2005 L ETTER THETA TAU FROM THE Graduate Brothers, Thanks to the 62 Theta Tau graduate brothers who made the 24th Anniversary Frank Norris Pig Dinner an outstanding success! It’s great to rekindle the friendships cultivated by the spirit of fraternal association. If this year’s Pig Dinner is just the appetizer for next year’s much anticipated 25th Pig Dinner, then I can hardly wait! Hopefully we can get Bill Bracewell to grace us once again with his humor and fellowship. S PECIAL P RESIDENT Over the course of the spring semester, the chapter has seen great improvements in the areas of scholarship, campus involvement and graduate relations. Scholastically, our goal of 85% + pledge retention was achieved. The Beta Iota pledge class had an 87.5% retention rate, with 6 of the 8 making a 3.0 or greater. Six clicks to the Beta Iota pledge class and the Theta Tau chapter as well. In an effort to lead by example, all five Cabinet members achieved a 3.0 GPA or greater also. N EW G RADUATE W EBSITE TFI and the Theta Tau Alumni Association is proud to announce the deployment of a brand new website and alumni database. The new website aims at creating a central point for the graduates of Phi Gamma Delta to come for information about the chapter and each other. This project was lead by TFI’s Vice President of Information Manage- VOLUME 26 No. 1 IS O NLINE ment, George Titsworth (Theta Tau ’04), TFI’s Former President Brent Ellis (Theta Tau ’99), and Theta Tau’s Graduate Relations Chairman Mitch Robinson (Theta Tau ’05). “In the past, we never had a single place to go for information about our brothers that we went to school with,” said George. “If I wanted to find someone, I would have to (Continued on page 8) POINTS OF INTEREST : I only mention this to show that these accomplishments are evidence of Theta Tau’s commitment to pursuing scholastic achievement here at Tech. It is your chapter’s belief that only through applying oneself in the scholastic arena, can one attain the rewards of a University education. Another area seeing marked improvement is the involvement on campus and the influence Theta Tau has on campus affairs. We elected 5 (Continued on page 2) • New Graduate Website • 24th Annual Pig Dinner • Knoxville Area Graduate Chapter • TFI Leadership Changes • IFC Adopts a New Philanthropy • Scholarship Update • Athletic Update • Community Service Update • Highlighted Graduates • Pictures from Fiji Land \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 2 L ETTER FROM THE P RESIDENT CONT brothers to the Student Government Senate, three in the College of Engineering alone! Justin Jolly was recently elected Vice President of the Student Alumni Ambassadors and has, the last time I checked, signed up over 10 brothers to be a part of SAA. Currently, Jeff Henry, the longest serving member of the Student Admissions Representatives, has been actively recruiting SARs within the chapter. He has had success with over 15 brothers getting SAR positions. Theta Tau is once again seeing its contribution to the Tech community soar with our push for more campus involvement. IFC C HANGES P HILANTHROPY T HANKS ITS Lastly our graduate relations are the best in recent years. The new Golden Eagle Fiji format has been raising eyebrows across Fijiland. The graduate database’s holes are being filled by the diligence of Mitch Robinson and his committee. It is our hope that we can continue the great work he has put forth to this I received an email from a concerned graduate earlier this semester who told me about one of our own brothers who has a child who is suffering from cancer. I immediately relayed this information on to our president JR Gillette. Throughout the semester we continued to brainstorm ideas on a way that we could raise some money for St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Then finally it came to us. Why have only one chapter working towards this very worth while cause when this needed to be a much larger initiative. A motion was brought before IFC to change the IFC philanthropy to St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Initially, it didn't look like it was go- committee after his departure to Auburn’s pharmacy school in August. Thanks again brothers. Thanks for having the courage to start something new and greater than what Tech offered back in 1979. Thanks for holding strong through the tough times, when membership dwindled. And lastly, thanks for giving us the opportunity to share in the greatness that is Phi Gamma Delta. ing to pass until JR (our chapter representative) told everyone how our chapter had graduates who were directly affected by the work of St. Jude's and suggested that their chapters might have similar circumstances. After this plea was made the by-law was subsequently passed. Not only was the philanthropy changed but the old ineffective method of raising money was also updated. In year's past fraternities have sold Boston Butts and made little money for the designated philanthropy. However, this year we are throwing a Greek-wide party at a third party venue TO JR is ready to pounce! (I think…) P HI G AM R EPRESENATIVES and charging an entrance fee. This motion was also proposed by Phi Gam with the hopes that this will enable this event to be the largest IFC philanthropic fundraiser ever held at Tennessee Tech. This is quite fitting, after all, Phi Gam is Excellence! \r\nV OLUME 26, N O . 1 P AGE 3 K NOXVILLE A REA G RADUATE C HAPTER Brothers, The Theta Tau Graduate chapter in Knoxville has formed! I’m not sure if it’s ever a good idea to get some of these guys together in one room, but we’ve done it anyhow. Graduate sightings and thanks go out to Chad Smith, Pierson Simon, Derek Jarnigan, Matt Graves, Jeff Breedlove, Brent Ellis, Trey Newby, Jason Reed, Jarrod Chapman, Jimmy Nelson, Preston Cloud, Lucas Yeary, Matt Osborne, Scott Stapleton, Clark Denson, and Todd Weaver for helping make this a success and remembering “it’s not for college days alone”. We add new guys every month and hopefully will continue to do so. The chapter meets once a month on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. at some random location to eat dinner and catch up. We will be continuing these all summer and hopefully a cookout at some point. The next dinner will be at Charlie Peppers (West Hills) on June 22nd and at the normal time. We’ve voted to move Brent to the Knoxville Florida chapter, so you don’t even have to listen to donation speeches anymore. If you’re in the Knoxville area (graduate or undergraduate) and want to be included in the “fun”, please contact me at 865-803-8627 or email me at pgdfiji@hotmail.com to be put on the Knoxville graduate distribution list. It was great seeing you all at Pig Dinner and hope to see you all at our next Knoxville dinner. Fraternally, Christopher Weaver ‘01 Perge! April Knoxville Graduate Dinner What a compilation of brothers from over the years... \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 4 24 TH A NNIVERSERY F RANK N ORRIS P IG D INNER “T HE P IG IS BACK!!!” After a one year hiatus the pig is back! On April 23, 2005 Theta Tau held its 24th annual Frank Norris Pig Dinner. This year we had the largest Graduate turnout that we’ve ever had, with 64 Graduates in attendance. Much of this success can be attributed to Paul Cronin and his dedicated committee. This year’s Pig Dinner was not only our largest ever it was also one of our best ever. If you missed it you missed a great weekend of brotherhood. “A S THE PIG ROASTED OVER THE COALS THE BONDS OF BROTHERHOOD CONTINUED TO BUILD .” On Friday night there was a cookout at the house, which allowed the graduates to get caught up with their fellow grads and get to know the younger brothers in the chapter they may not have met before. We were even fortunate enough to witness several of the graduates take the volleyball court for the first time in years. (What a sight!) As the pig roasted over the coals the bonds of brother- hood continued to build. Two couches were moved around the fire pit, and brothers stayed up all night socializing. reestablish their fraternal bonds at the McCarty's Meeting. This is always a special time for the graduates and undergraduates alike. When Saturday morning arrived everyone knew it was time for the Pig Dinner Golf Scramble. Though some of the brothers chose to sleep in and recover from the late night before, many grads made it out for the tourney. (See Golf Tourney article). Our chapter Sweetheart, Sarah Johnson, hosted the Piglet Dinner for all the wives and girlfriends of the brothers who were heading off to the cigar social and Pig Dinner. Saturday afternoon graduates were given the opportunity to Tech Fiji Incorporated (TFI) sponsored a cigar social at the house prior to the dinner itself. They supplied all the (Continued on page 5) TFI Cigar Social G OLF T OURNEY R ESULTS C AUSE U PRISING ... Though the conditions at this year’s Pig Dinner golf tournament were less than ideal, with 15 mph wind gusts and temperatures in the low 50’s, a good time was had by all. Alex Sauls announces the winners of the Golf Tourney (which stirs controversy) Over 30 graduates and undergrads participated in the nine hole four man scramble, which was held at Southern Hills Golf Course. Each team was selected by the players this year. And as always there were a couple of stacked teams who were the odds on favorites to win. However, much to the surprise of everyone at Pig Dinner the winning team was: Chris Weaver, Todd Weaver, Matt Leonard, and Kyle Davis. Accusations of cheating were immediately made, but to no avail. It was too late. I guess we will have to wait till next year to see if this team posted a legit score or if their numbers were fudged to dethrone Rector. Prizes were also awarded for closest to the pin (Rob Wheeler) and longest drive (Michael LeMarbre). \r\nV OLUME 26, N O . 1 “T HE P IG IS P AGE 5 BACK!!!” attending graduates with a special Phi Gamma Delta cigar commemorating the event. Everyone enjoyed the opportunity to reminisce over their stogies. We even learned the details of Stacy Hunt’s exploits from the night before. Pig Dinner itself was held at the Leslie Town Center. There were 134 total brothers at the dinner. The Chapter was privileged to have Bill Bracewell as the guest speaker for the evening. Bill currently serves on the Board of Chapter Advisors for the Kappa Deuteron Chapter. He is well known throughout the Fraternity for his service at the local and international levels in past years. Bill had the distinct honor (not sure about the pleasure) of being the first to kiss the pig as the oldest Brother in attendance. During his Keynote Address, Bill commented about the many reports he has seen regarding the Chapter over the years. He remembered that he was particularly intrigued Brent Ellis has a tree named after him at the Fiji house. CONT by purported exploits of a few brothers in particular: Pierson Simon, Ryan Fulkerson (for his choice of salad), J.R. Gillette, and Keith Edmondson (for 4-letter words in crossword puzzles) among others. Bill’s humorous, but important, message to the Chapter was simple – keep working towards your greater goals and your persistence will pay off in the end. Several awards were presented during this Pig Dinner: The Trophy Room will now have a plaque on permanent display in honor of the years of dedicated service given by Tony Marable. A tree at the Chapter House was dedicated in recognition of Brent Ellis’ hard work as TFI President – he prefers that some of you not know which tree it actually is. There will also now be a Rush scholarship awarded each semester by the Chapter to one of our pledge brothers based on his academic potential. (Continued on page 6) Brian Douglas acted as M.C. for the evening 2005 Cabinet poses with Bill Bracewell and the Pig Beta Iota brings in the Pig (not the worst I’ve ever seen, but close) Graduates sharing stories before dinner \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 6 “T HE P IG “…thanks for coming back to your home away from home and supporting the guys in the chapter…” IS BACK!!!” The Brothers also recognized Brother Lee Scarborough who had traveled the farthest to attend Pig Dinner. Lee is currently serving a tour of duty in Iraq and planned his leave specifically to be able to reunite with his Brothers. CONT Lee was recognized with tremendous and lengthy applause in appreciation of the sacrifice he has made for us all. A true Phi Gamma Delta! The evening concluded with a gathering at one of the finer local establishments for some additional Brotherhood and revelry which lasted into the morning hours. Brothers, the Pig is definitely back and better than ever!!! T HE E XILE ’ S T OAST Brothers, Well another Pig Dinner is here and regretfully I have to miss this year. Life working on cruise ships isn’t that bad but I would rather be hanging out with my brothers. As an undergraduate I always looked forward to Pig Dinner to see all of the older brothers that I looked up to and learned a lot from when I was new to the chapter and also meeting a lot of the older graduates and hearing stories of what life was like in the chapter when it was just getting started. Now as a graduate I’m going to miss seeing my old pledge brothers (Alpha Ups) and the brothers, young and old, that I became close to when I was in school. I’m sure that Chad Kenney will be telling some far fetched stories to the young guys in the chapter while Lemarbre and Conyer roll their eyes and fire some sarcastic insults. Say hi to “Big Gay Joe” for me. And who is it going to be this year cheating at the golf tournament and getting too drunk to drive the cart? I know that Webber will find some way to get in on that. I’m going to miss seeing the guys that I looked up to like General, Kevlar, and my big bro Fish. Even the brothers that I still talk to regularly like: Mad Dawg, Sideburns, Fulky (don’t break anything), Mo and JR (who I’m sure will find some way to get some girls thong and wear it around his head at the party). If Grooms and Hodar got permission from their wives to come this year tell them to drink some “Killer Beez” for me. And of course Lee Wray who will be the drunkest Fiji there. Drink one for me bro. To all my little bros: B-Rad, Titty, and Sowards, I’ll be thinking of you so smoke a nice cigar and drink some Captain Morgan for your big bro. to keep the standards and traditions going that were started so many years ago. I wish I could be there with you to watch the young guys cook the pig, hear and tell some old stories, “Bring in the Pig,” and find out who this year’s snake is going to be. I hope to see you all next year. Here’s To Good Old Delta! Fraternally, Mark Morgan Perge! To the undergrads: thank you for continuing to strive for excellence during the hard times and keeping our chapter alive so that the graduates always have a home to come to in Cookeville. To all the graduates: thanks for coming back to your home away from home and supporting the guys in the chapter who are working hard Mark at a football game during his undergraduate days. \r\nV OLUME 26, N O . 1 P AGE 7 Plans have already begun for the Theta Tau chapter’s 25th Annual Frank Norris Pig Dinner! The event will be held April 22, 2006 The pig is coming… Consider yourself warned... \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 8 GRADUATE SPOTLIGHT E DMOND L EE S CARBOROUGH ‘92 Lee just hanging out... “911 occurred and I realized that every soldier waits for a war and this was mine.” Where to begin, hmmm, I have been out of school since August of 1992 with a degree in Human Resources. Unfortunately, graduation came in the middle of a recession so jobs were few and far between. I relocated back to Knoxville. I applied to Insurance companies, banks, stores, it was quite frustrating to realize that a degree isn’t worth much and you start looking for something that matters and has some form of a future. On March 17, 1993, I reported to Parris Island, South Carolina for basic training in the Marines. Graduated on 11 June 1993 with Marines all over the United States and was joined by a VMI Graduate who couldn’t get a commission out of college. Gee, thanks Bill Clinton. I then went to Camp Lejuene, North Carolina for the School of Infantry. It was interesting and to some extent exciting to be able to get paid to shoot guns and blow things up. It is quite addictive by the way. I did this as a reservist which I still think is the best way to join the military. While at the School of Infantry I met then Captain Woody Woodburn a Phi Gam from the University of Virginia. Prior to enlisting I talked with another Phi Gam, Lieutenant Robert Wonderlich, whose name I got through Headquarters. If you remember correctly many years ago he was featured on the cover of the Phi Gamma Delta Magazine being a member of the Navy’s Blue Angels. I returned to Knoxville in June of 1994 and again started looking for work. Having found little in the way of meaningful employment and still looking for the niche that really grabs you I floated from job to job. However, finally on 13 November 1995, I became a deputy sheriff for Anderson County, TN with the county seat in Clinton. This was the niche I had been looking for because it formed the complete training I had been looking for. Sort of like a finishing school for the Marines. Anyway, I made progress working my way up from just being a shift officer to the Officer in Charge of the shift (the Deputy of the Jail). In September 1999, I was able to go to Police Recruit School at Walters State Community College. I was then able to escape the Jail and get on the road. I found the work to be interesting, exciting, and sometimes gross. However, every job has its draw backs. I worked for the Sheriff’s Office off and on for 8 years. Anyway, 911 occurred and I realized that every soldier waits for a war and this was mine. On 27 April 1999, I Convoy Ready! \r\nV OLUME 26, N O . 1 transferred to the Army Reserve from the Marines. I was expecting to be mobilized immediately after 911. It took a year and a half instead. On April 28, 2003, I reported to Fort Knox, Kentucky to a Army Reserve Unit which is the Home of the Flying Tigers of World War Two. This adds a tangible connection to the pilots of World War Two through conventions and reunions that embellish its great history. On 6 June 2004 we were mobilized and sent to Fort Dix, New P AGE 9 Jersey. We wasted tax payer money for almost 6 months before we were actually sent to Iraq via Kuwait. Six months have gone by and it didn’t seem like any time at all. Have to admit it is interesting having seen firefights, convoying through Iraq where you don’t know what would happen next. (See Insert) I am proud to have attended the 2005 edition of Pig Dinner and seeing Scott Harold, Pierson Simon and my big brother Richie Elmore. \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 10 N EW G RADUATE W EBSITE email someone in the chapter, who would in turn email someone else, and so on, and so on. It would take me weeks for someone to get back to me, if they got back to me at all. With the new site and database, the process of finding one of your brothers is much easier, more convenient, and takes a lot less time.” In order to understand why this website is such a big achievement, look back to the system we had one year ago. The graduate database was no more than a Microsoft Access file that was maintained by Brent Ellis. While Brent managed the database very well, the method for updating the database with new information was a burden. Being a former Computer Administration Chair-person, George said, “There was no organization to how we managed the update of alumni information. Alumni would either send address changes or new phone numbers to the Web Admin email of the fraternity or one of the brothers they knew well that is still an active member. That person would then forward the update to the current Grad Relations Chair, who would then forward it to Brent Ellis. There were too many middlemen in the process and information would always get lost or forgotten about somewhere along the way.” Another big problem George saw was that all information fell into one person’s lap. “What if that person loses the information, doesn’t have time to enter updates, or worse, just stops caring? One person’s laziness or carelessness would hurt the entire fraternity.” These problems sparked George IS O NLINE CONT to start designing a new approach to managing Theta Tau’s graduate information. The vision of the new graduate database was this: A centralized information source that was accessible to all graduates, but was managed by each individual alumnus. Meaning that one person is not in charge of everybody’s data, but everybody is in charge of their own information and have an easy way to ensure their information is up to date. George felt that the only way to see this vision through was to transfer the old database to a fully interactive, online system. “The online database opens up new doors to alumni,” says George. “They are now able to instantaneously update their address, phone numbers, work information, and so on. They can do this from home, work, school, or the library, pretty much anywhere there is a web connection. They can also find their pledge brothers, little brothers, big brothers, any brothers, in just a few clicks.” Not only does the new database benefit alumni, but it also makes the job of the database administrator much easier. “Now that the data comes in and updates automatically, I do not spend all of my time spinning my tires trying to keep up with updates,” says George. “All of my time is now spent making the database and website more useful to the graduates and to the chapter as well. Plus, more graduates will update their information more frequently, the database will always be filled with the latest information, and it will be easily accessible to the people that need it, all with out my intervention. I’m just cutting out the middleman to make the process more efficient. Some may call me lazy, and their right, but it is still a better system.” Along with this new online system came a brand new alumni website. “With the help of Mitch Robinson and the Graduate Relations Committee and the work they have done with the Golden Eagle Fiji, we have a lot of information available to offer the graduates of Theta Tau. Each month we will focus on a graduate and give an update on what they are doing now that they are out of the chapter. We will also bring graduates both alumni and chapter news as it comes in to keep them involved in the affairs of the chapter. We are just looking to gain higher graduate involvement and interest altogether and the best way to do so is to give them what they are interested in.” The best way to see what has been done is to just visit the site and browse around. Check out the “How To Register” side bar to get information on how to get to the information section of the website. Updates are planned for the site and database so make sure you check back frequently to see the latest. “We really depend on you, the graduate brother of Phi Gamma Delta, to help us out and make this project a success. So please go register and get involved. Perge!” http://www.techfijiinc.com Or http://www.ttufiji.com/tfi \r\nV OLUME 26, N O . 1 N EW G RADUATE W EBSITE P AGE 11 IS O NLINE CONT HOW TO REGISTER YOUR INFO ON THE NEW GRADUATE WEBSITE: 1. F IND YOUR NAME ON THE GRADUATE LIST . Go to the graduate listing and find your name on the list. By clicking your name, you should be displayed a limited set of information about yourself. You should also see a 'Register Now!' at the bottom of your information. 2. C LICK 'R EGISTER N OW !' L INK . When you click register now you should be sent to a registration page. 3. E NTER YOUR EMAIL AND PASSWORD . If we already have your email address in the database, it should automatically fill that in, if not enter it. Then enter a password of your choice. 4. C LICK 'R EGISTER N OW !' B UTTON After you click this button, you should be registered. After registering you can log in from any page on the web site via the silver bar at the top of the page. Once logged in, you will have an extra menu on the left side of the screen in which you can access and update your personal information. **If you have any problems with the website or database, please email George Titsworth (titsworth@ttufiji.com) & report it.** \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 12 TFI L EADERSHIP S HAKEUP Greetings Brothers, In case you haven’t heard, quite a few changes are taking place in the world of our housing corporation, Tech Fijis, Inc. At this year’s Pig Dinner, Brent Ellis, having achieved the goals he set forth in his five-year plan for the chapter, stepped down as TFI president and “passed the torch” to yours truly. For those of you who don’t know me, I came into the chapter as a freshman in the fall of 1995, and was a member of the Alpha Xi Pledge Class. As far as the next few years are concerned... well, let’s just say they’re a little blurry. I do, however, remember spending a lot of time toiling away behind the counter at Bowling World where I strived to give all my brothers as many free games as possible. I also remember living with Chris Weaver across the street from the house where we threw roughly three keg parties per month, resulting in a concrete kitchen floor and shoe prints on the ceiling. Good times were had by all. Somehow, though, I managed to graduate with a B.S. in Industrial Technology in May 2001. I currently live with my wife, Anita, in Hermitage, TN where I am employed as a Project Manager for Sherman Dixie Concrete Industries. But enough about me... As I mentioned, several changes have taken or will soon be taking place within the infrastructure of TFI. For starters, several new positions have recently been added to the board, allowing more graduate brothers to participate and enabling each member to concentrate on a specific area rather than several at once. Some of these positions have been filled, but several are still up for grabs. Current board members include: Matt Leonard - President, Lee Wray - Treasurer, Tom Caldwell - Assistant Treasurer, George Titsworth - VP of Information Management, Chris Weaver - VP of Graduate Relations, Brian Douglas - Purple Legionnaire, and J.R. Gillette - Undergraduate Chapter President. Some positions remaining to be filled include: VP of Expansion, VP of Property Management & Chapter Relations, and VP of Fundraising. Also, we are currently searching for several Area Coordinators to assist Chris Weaver by planning graduate events in areas containing graduate brothers of any chapter of Phi Gamma Delta. Chris has implemented this program in the Knoxville area with great success and we would like to expand it to other areas as soon as possible. Several brothers have already expressed interest in helping out but we can use all the help we can get. If you’re interested, or if you have any questions about any of the positions, feel free to contact me at ttufiji@hotmail.com and I’ll be happy to answer any questions you might have. As most of you know, the mortgage on the chapter house is due to be paid off early this fall. This will be a huge achievement for us and will enable us to do a lot more for the undergraduate chapter. Also at that time, Lee Wray will be stepping down as treasurer and Tom Caldwell will be taking over. As it stands now, our plans for the future are simple. We all know that the house needs some work. It always has, and it probably always will, but once the mortgage is paid we should have the funds to do some of the work that we have been forced to put off. This is priority number one. Priority number two is the eventual purchase of the property adjacent to the chapter house. For those who don’t know what I mean, I’m referring to the lot on the corner of 6th Ave. and North Walnut. We feel that this needs to be the first step on the road to a new chapter house. On behalf of all the members of T.F.I., I would like to express our thanks for all your support and I look forward to seeing you all in the coming year. As I said, feel free to contact me with any questions or suggestions. I’m always open to new ideas. Fraternally, Matt Leonard ‘01 Perge’ Our NEW TFI President (Scary huh?) \r\nV OLUME 26, N O . 1 P AGE 13 P HI G AM A THLETICS U PDATE Phi Gam Athletics has continued to succeed in its many competitions this semester. Softball had a very successful season. With enough brothers wanting to play to warrant two teams Fiji made a powerful statement to the rest of campus and IFC. One team competed in IFC against the other fraternities and the other competed in the open league. Each team had its successes. The IFC team finished first in the regular season, by dominating their division. Then after a first round bye our first game of the tournament was against TKE, who were completely outclassed, losing by run rule in just four innings. In the semifinals we faced a tough Pike team who bested us by one run in the last inning. Phi Gam is not known for its lay down and quit attitude, so the team went out and played Sig Ep in the third place game and won, securing third place in IFC. Our IFC Golf team finished first overall beating SAE by two strokes. In the intramural golf tournament the team of Alex Sauls, Brad Tursky, Paul Swift, and Dustin Turner finished FIRST. The team shot 13 under and won the Greek division by 4 shots and overall by 2 shots. Not bad out of a 25 team field. In the Kappa Delta classic the team of Alex Sauls and Brad Tursky finished third overall in the two man scramble tournament. They shot 8 under and lost by 2 shots in the 16 team field. It should be noted that the Kappa Sigs had 5 teams and we still kicked their rear. We actually beat FORE!!! every Greek team that participated in the event. We have also had many brothers who competed and placed respectfully in dodge ball, indoor soccer, arena football, and sand volleyball. B ETA I OTA P LEDGE C LASS P ROJECT The Beta Iota Pledge class has come through this semester with flying colors. I would venture to say that they are one of the strongest spring pledge classes we have had in several years. Pledge Education has done a great job staying on top of their scholastic work as well as their fraternity work helping 9/10 surpass the required 2.35 GPA (note the one pledge that did not make grades achieved a 2.33 GPA). The pledges, accompanied by the pledge education committee, took their retreat to the Goddard’s farm in East Tennessee and spent a weekend repairing fences and doing various cleaning projects. This was an outstanding weekend of brotherhood and this experience has gone a long way to strengthening the fraternal bonds of this pledge class. up after volleyball in a shorter time (which will be a great addition at recruitment events). Secondly, the design of the washing station includes a drain which will move the runoff away from the house and deck, preventing wood decay and water pooling. Beta Iota made a much needed addition to the house this semester with the addition of a foot washing station next to the back deck. This station will serve several roles. For one it will allow more people to get cleaned As a chapter we are very proud of our pledge class and expect many great things from them as they continue their journey through Phi Gamma Delta. \r\n PAGE 14 THE GOLDEN EAGLE FUJI PICTURES FROM FIJI] LAND \r\n VOLUME 26, No. | PICTURES FROM FIJI LAND \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 16 S CHOLARSHIP U PDATE Phi Gam congratulates the May 2005 Graduates!!! With dreaded finals week looming only days away, the brothers of Theta Tau are starting to buckle down for the final sprint. With our priorities of scholarship, fraternity and self on their minds, brothers are forsaking many normal activities to study for exams. Failing to meet last semester’s chapter goal of a 3.0 has challenged every brother to do their best in their classes so that that goal can be attained this semester. away with: Most Outstanding Educational Program for the “Hazing on Trial” university wide seminar, Outstanding Chapter Scholarship Award (#1 in grades 2.900), Highest Scholastic New Member (Cody Dysert, with 4.0 & 17 hrs), and Greek Man of the Year (Mitch Robinson). For the first time in 8 years our chapter did not win Fraternity of the Year, but this was only because we were not eligible, we’ll get them next year! At the Greek Awards Banquet recently Theta Tau dominated the awards portion of the evening. Our chapter walked Fifteen brothers have completed their undergraduate requirements and are graduating this semester. The broth- ers of Theta Tau would like to extend our congratulations and best wishes to them as they pursue graduate school, professional school, or go straight into the work force. Phi Gamma Delta has truly succeeded in producing a fine compilation of men who are now leaving our undergraduate ranks to become valuable members of society. S OCIAL U PDATE With several events taking place over the semester, two tend to stand out above the rest. Those are Formal and the 3rd annual Heaven or Hell party. Purple Garter Formal Dinner at the Pinnacle Restaurant in Nashville At the end of February Theta Tau descended on the Nashville Sheraton for the Purple Garter Formal. It was an absolute blast! The dinner was held in the Pinnacle restaurant on the top floor of the hotel. This was quite unique since the restaurant rotates so you are able to see the complete Nashville skyline without leaving your seat. After a wonderful meal the garter ceremony was held and finally the cabinet awards were presented. The evening wrapped up with a huge party which overflowed to 2nd Avenue at midnight. that has everyone dressed as devils and angels (and everything in between). The 3rd Heaven or Hell party was without a doubt the best ever! It was held at the Hog Barn on highway 70 about 3 miles outside of Cookeville. This party was out of control. There is nothing like a themed party at a biker bar Though Phi Gam knows its priority is scholarship, we haven’t forgotten how to have a good time. Garters Please... \r\nV OLUME 26, N O . 1 P AGE 17 C OMMUNITY S ERVICE U PDATE As the semester draws to a close, the brothers of the Theta Tau Chapter are still continuing to serve the local community. Brothers continue tutoring local children at the Cookeville Housing Authority’s after school program, Teenie Weenies. Every year Tech puts on a huge International Cultural festival called, Windows on the World. It is a convention exposing foreign cultures and customs to students and the community. Many of our brothers helped with the weekend convention . Brothers helped by setting up and taking down booths and moving furniture and tables, as well as various odd jobs throughout the weekend. Also, many brothers enjoyed an afternoon of picking up trash on the side of the road. Although it may not sound like fun or even remotely enjoyable. Somehow, brothers were able to enjoy it finding all kinds of interesting items and making up stories of how they came to get there. It just goes to show that no matter what you’re doing you can have fun doing anything when you’re with your fellow brothers. Our next community service event will be the Black Diamond Auto Show which is being held July 16th, in conjunction with Clear Channel Communications. So come out and help support our effort to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis. Your Thoughts... Please provide any feedback on the Golden Eagle Fiji and Graduate Relations you might have. Also, if there is anything you would like to see in future issues or if you would like to be the Graduate Spotlight, please let us know. Quality of the articles? Good Fair Poor Graduate Communication? Good Fair Poor Good Fair Poor Additional Comments: Name Address Email Address Phone Please detach and return to: Phi Gamma Delta Attn. Graduate Relations Chairman 527 N. Peachtree Ave Cookeville, TN 38501 E-mail: gradrelations@ttufiji.com Topics covered? Would you like to be featured as a Graduate Spotlight? Yes No \r\nIf you have any comments or suggestions about the Golden Eagle Fiji or would like to be featured in the spring issue please contact: Mitch Robinson (2005 Graduate Relations Chairman) Phone: 615-289-4515 E-mail: gradrelations@ttufiji.com IMPORTANT DATES: 25th Pig Dinner: April 22nd, 2006 Homecoming: November 5th Fall Rush: August 29th– September 1st Summer Party: June 25th Black Diamond Auto Show: July 16th VISIT US ONLINE WWW. TTUFIJI. COM PERGE`! P HI G AMMA D ELTA 527 N. P EACHTREE A VE C OOKEVILLE , TN 38501 NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #241 COOKEVILLE, TN Address Label