The Golden Eagle FIJI THETA TAU CHAPTER OF PHI GAMMA DELTA VOLUME 30, No.2 Fall 2008 Friendship the Sweetest Influence! H OMECOMMING 2008 A HUGE SUCCESS WITH GRADUATES ! P IG D INNER 2009! A PRIL 17-18! \r\nTFI is proud to introduce the 2008-09 Lineup of Online Donation Programs. TFI’s Online Donation Programs are powered by PayPal and are completely secure. All you need to get started is an Email Address and a Credit or Debit Card. The 1848 Club$18.48 per month ($221.76 annually) HTTP://WWW.1848CLUB.NET The 527 Club$5.27 per month ($63.24 annually) HTTP://WWW.527CLUB.NET The Custom ClubCreate your own Club! Email MyClub@TECHFIJIINC.COM the monthly amount and the name of your personalized Online Donation Program to establish your account. ($10 monthly minimum ) Why PayPal? Convenient Secure Easy to Use Why Donate? Foundations for the Future: Your monthly donations will help lay the foundation to form a capital campaign committee and successfully launch a campaign. So, while these monthly donations will not directly allow us to build a new house, portions of your donations will be earmarked for campaign expenses. This will help ensure that our capital campaign committee will have the funds to move forward with all due diligence. For the Betterment of the Chapter: a secondary goal of the Online Donation Programs is to support the Chapter’s Graduate Relations efforts. The ability to “raise the bar” in the area of Graduate Relations and Graduate support is paramount to both the Chapter’s goal of one day winning the coveted “Cheney Cup” and TFI’s goal of one day providing them a new chapter house. Benefits for Donors: Beyond the knowledge that you are “giving back” to the organization that gave so much to you during you college years, you will receive other rewards as well. Currently, donors receive gift certificates redeemable at Pig Dinner weekends. We are also exploring a variety of other ways to recognize Club members. Questions or Comments: please contact John Solis at: donations@TTUFIJI.COM \r\nThe Golden Eagle Fiji Fall 2008 THETA TAU VOLUME 30 No. 2 L ET TER FROM THE P RESIDENT Graduate Brothers, As this year comes to and end, I would like to thank each one of you for your involvement over the past year while I have been President of the chapter. It has been a pleasure getting to meet and work some more with you. This entire year has brought about many successful things to the chapter. Our trip to Ekklesia was just another confirmation of our hard work as a chapter paying off. And I am extremely proud of how much we were able to achieve with that. I highly recommend for anyone who has the chance to go to Ekklesia to take it. It will fill you with pride how highly we are thought of on the International level. With our chapters success this year I have no doubt that we will take back the Fraternity of the year award with its reintroduction next year. Homecoming festivities, I hope you had as much fun as we did. The increased number of graduate involvement was amazing due to the extensive work with Graduate brother Lee Wray and Graduate Relations Chairman Kyle Smith. I hope that next year will be even more successful and we can look forward to even more of you coming back. This semesters’ recruit- For those of you who were able to attend this years’ (Continued on page 2) S PECIAL POINTS OF INTEREST : • President’s Letter • TFI Update • Homecoming 2008 • Graduate Spotlight– Hal Balthrop • Upcoming Pig Dinner Info • M.S. Island Week • Fall Recruitment • From the Theta Tau Pages of History... TFI U PDATE Brothers, First off, I’d like to thank all of the graduates who found the time to attend this year’s Homecoming festivities. It was great to see all of you, and I was very impressed by the number of guys who came out. I’d also like to extend special thanks to Lee Wray for the great tailgate party. I never thought I’d see something like that at Tennessee Tech. It was truly impressive. It hasn’t been too long since the last Golden Eagle Fiji, but a couple of great things have happened since then that I’d like to share. First, TFI has filled yet another open VP position. Mr. Zeke Shaver has stepped up and offered his assistance in the role of VP of Property Management and Chapter Relations. Zeke lives in Cookeville and is well-known and respected by the undergrads, so I feel like he’s the perfect fit for this position. We’re happy to have him on board, and I’d like to thank him on behalf of everyone for his continued interest in the chapter. Now for the news you’ve all been waiting for. Remember how I keep bringing up these “great things” that we’ve been working on, but I never say what they are? Well, the time has finally come to make the announcement. Over the past several months, we’ve been working up a preliminary design, including elevations and floor plans, for our new chapter house. These plans will be unveiled at Pig Dinner ‘09, so (Continued on page 3) Zeke Shaver - newest member of the TFI Board \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE FIJI P AGE 2 L ET TER F ROM THE P RESIDENT CONT ment has also brought Phi Gam back home to some of our chapters early grads with 2 Legacy pledge Brothers, the sons of Hal Balthrop and Mike MacIndoe. We currently have 14 pledges and are looking forward to adding them to our ranks in the chapter. I also wanted to share with you my excitement of my continued service to the fraternity. Following my graduation in December, I will be joining the International Headquarters Staff as the Fraternities’ 158th Field Secretary. I will be the 2nd Field Secretary from the Theta Tau chapter, with the first being Barry Bell (class of ’89). I have enjoyed having the opportunity to serve our chapter as president and I can only hope that I have helped lead our chapter closer to excellence. It has truly been an both an honor and a privilege. Thank you again to all of our graduates who continue to contribute to the chapter with time, monetary donations, and/or advice. We as an undergraduate chapter appreciate and recognize how much of a positive impact your involvement makes. I look forward to seeing all of you this spring at Pig Dinner! I wish you all a Safe and Happy Holiday season. Fraternally, Jon Vaughn ‘08 Perge! M.S. I SLAND W EEK 2008 In the year 2008, Phi Gamma Delta had and very successful MS Island Week to benefit The Multiple Sclerosis Society. The chapter was able to raise a little more than $2,500 over the course of the week and as always One Hundred percent of the earnings were donated to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The event was held October 20th-22nd and we had five participating organizations, 3 sororities and 2 fraternities. The final standings were: first place Kappa Delta, second place; Delta Gamma, third place Alpha Delta Pi. Also participating were Kappa Sigma and Sigma Chi. We were able to gather eighteen sponsorships from Cookeville area businesses. This is a tribute to the hard work of the brothers of the chapter pounding the pavement to ensure this event was a success. This year’s events were a little different than previous years. There was a banner contest on Monday. On Tuesday, for the first time ever, we had a dodge ball tournament that was a rousing success with the participants. The week concluded on Wednesday night with our traditional Miss Fiji Island Pageant where we crowned Christy Bowers, who represented Alpha Delta Pi, Miss Fiji Island. Additional funds were raised during the week with mug and pin-up sales. We ended up selling over two hundred and fifty. Again, this year was one of the most successful years that we have ever had for MS Island Week. Jeremy Govero MS Island Chairman The bothers after the Miss Fiji Island Pageant \r\nV OLUME 30, N O . 2 P AGE 3 TFI U PDATE C ONT make sure you’re there to see them! For those of you who are familiar with our zoning situation, we have also been working on that. Last month, TTU’s Greek Life Office set up a meeting with James Mills, Planning Director for The City of Cookeville. All fraternity advisors were invited to attend, though only a few fraternities were represented. This was a great opportunity to have our voices heard, and to hear the City’s reasoning for the zoning changes. After speaking at length with Mr. Mills, we came away with some great information and a renewed sense of hope. I’ll go into more depth at Pig Dinner, but things are looking good! As always, thanks to my fellow board members for all their hard work. I couldn’t do this thing without you. Also, if you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or would like more information on anything mentioned in this article, feel free to drop me a line at ttufiji@hotmail.com. Thanks brothers, and I look forward to seeing all of you at Pig Dinner! TFI Board/Committee Members Fraternally, Matt Leonard ‘01 Perge! President - Matt Leonard Treasure—Tom Caldwell VP Information Management –George Titsworth VP of Expansion -Justin Cumby VP Property Management and Chapter Relations – Zeke Shaver VP of Fundraising –Brent Ellis TFI President Matt Leonard VP of Graduate Relations– Bill Scott Councilor –Lee Wray 28 TH A NNIVERSARY P IG D INNER 4/18/2009 April 18, 2009…..This is a very special date in the history of the Theta Tau chapter of Phi Gamma Delta. This date marks the 28th Anniversary Frank Norris Pig Dinner in Theta Tau history, but that is not all. This years Pig Dinner with also be very special in another way. After years of talking, dreaming, thinking, and hard work, Theta Tau is on the verge of a new chapter house. This will be a place for us to come back to year after year, a place to reunite with your brothers and most importantly a place for Theta Tau to call home. This year we will unveil the architectural plans for the new house and present our strategy to complete this endeavor. To help us celebrate this great time in our chapter we invite the brothers to bring their wives and significant others to this years dinner. So make plans to attend this great day in Theta Tau history and bring your family. More details will be coming along very soon, so watch your email and your mailbox. Councilor (Section Chief) -Brian Douglas Purple Legionnaire –Bo Byers Chapter President - Jon Vaughn Webmaster –Justin Givens Coordinator of Online Donation Program - John Solis \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE FIJI P AGE 4 GRADUATE SPOTLIGHT HAL BALTHROP ‘84 -What are you doing now? (What was your major and what did you pursue right after college and where has it lead you to now?) I am currently an Assistant Director for Metro Water Services (Tennessee's largest water and wastewater utility). I majored in Civil Engineering at TTU. After graduation I went to work with my current employer. I worked in consulting Engineering for a few years in the interim but ultimately returned to public service. I am also currently a Board Member of the State of Tennessee's Architects and Engineering Examiners. This Board reviews application for Architectural, Engineering, Landscape Architecture and Interior Design Licensure and Registration. -What are some of your favorite memories of being a Phi Gam? (As a pledge, brother and graduate). Memories of Phi Gam are many. The friendships, support of and from my brothers and the events we shared together are remembered fondly. As a pledge I remember working/cleaning around the old Fiji House (where my son, Halston, is currently living!) and the discovery of what Phi Gamma Delta meant to the Immortal Six and how that related to contemporary times. As a brother I recall and miss the creative theme parties, the hours of dancing (we sweated like pigs), singing old and new Fiji songs and the "discussions" that we had, at times, when we struggled with the alcohol issue (it was very little--the use of alcohol that is, not the discussion - ha ha) - looking back on this issue, although long and repetitive, it really helped us all gain an appreciation and hopefully, sensitivity and maturity for the other perspective. Despite any disagreements we always remembered our commitment to Phi Gamma Delta, to each other, and our responsibilities as brothers. As a graduate I enjoy seeing and hearing from those from days gone by. Enjoy sharing memories and the joys and challenges of being older and hopefully wiser! Although you may not have spent tremendous amounts of time with all you brothers as undergraduates I always enjoy seeing and hearing about all my contemporaries and Fijis since....their accomplishments, successes and even the times when things weren't so good somehow being able to share all these things through the perspective of our common bond. I encourage more graduate brothers to reconnect! -Why did you choose to pledge Phi Gam? (Has Phi Gam molded you into the person that you think a Phi Gam should be?) I was actually a pledge for Sigma Chi and was nearly initiated and decided to get out. This was primarily due to their recreational drug use - I was never into that scene although I did learn to enjoy beer (in moderation mind you) at the old Sigma Chi House....but what stood out to me then and continues to this day, is the caliber and spirit of the Theta Tau Phi Gams. You usually get involved in any elective activity because of those already involved whether they be family, friends, acquaintances or colleagues. Phi Gamma Delta at Tennessee Tech, from its colony days, has always had exceptional individuals in their membership. The Foundering Brothers and early membership that I had the good fortune to be a part of, established themselves as being a cut above the other organizations on campus and it showed. Al though not everyone agreed on every aspect of young adult life, there was mutual appreciation for what we all brought to the collective table. We were the mix bag of the "Breakfast Club" characters the jocks, the brains, the bad boys, the weirdoes and even the princesses (do not mean this negatively)- although not acceptable at the time, we had a couple of brothers that were in the closet with their sexual orientation but we welcomed them and they contributed to our more creative activities like "All Sing" and theme parties. Again, in looking back, our common bond of brotherhood enabled us to ignore or tolerate our differences - a very important life skill! -What were your thoughts about Halston coming to Tech and possibly pledging FIJI? (Do you plan on becoming a member of Phi Gam's Sires and Sons?) I am so proud of Halston! He is truly fulfilling my hopes for him - he is doing well in school, he is gaining independence as a young man and he voluntarily discovered, as I did, that Phi Gamma Delta is what he strives to be a part of and contribute to as he continues to evolve. I am looking forward to becoming a member of Sires and Sons and joining the ranks of the Crunks, the MacIndoes and any others that exist. \r\nV OLUME 30, N O . 2 P AGE 5 G RADUATE S POTLIGHT CONT G RADUATE S POTLIGHT CONT -How do you think the chapter has grown since you have left? (Where would you like to see it go?) I continue to be so impressed with and appreciative to be associated with Theta Tau. Although I have been less involved with the Chapter since my immediate graduate brother years, I look forward to re-engaging through Halston's involvement (as a Dad and not a creepy old guy from Old School - ha ha). Would like to see the Chapter get new digs -Any advice you have for pledges, new brothers, graduating brothers and graduate brothers? As Pledges and Brothers - enjoy the time you have while in school, focus on scholarship (wish I had more), enjoy your relationships (you make your lifelong friends during this time) and do not waste time on trivial matters. As a group, strive for consensus (this does not mean 100%) and forge ahead! If it is the wrong direction, back up, modify and continue to move forward....foolish pride is not constructive - demonstrating integrity to me includes being able to recognize and admit failure but more importantly, doing something about it! I have learned (the hard way at times) and I tell my children (just ask them - ha) that no one can take your integrity away but you can sure give it away! Graduating Brothers stay connected to your peers, demonstrate to undergraduates what we learned as brothers in Phi Gam in the world outside of college days and most importantly, don't feel like you have to come back as CEO or President of this or that. If you do great, we will celebrate with you. If you don't, don't feel like that you haven't lived up to some expectation that keeps you away - this happens to many. Whatever you do, be a contributor, not a consumer, and do it well! All contributions are important just think - what would our lives be like without the Garbage Man or the Janitor - these jobs are as honorable as any! Graduate Brothers - try to reconnect with TTU and Phi Gam. Kerri and I took our children back to homecomings over the years (when not in conflict with their activities) and shared our college experiences, including Greek life, with them helping them to gain insights - the good and the not so good. Although we are pleased with and support all of our children's choices we have especially enjoyed being able to share and relate to our TTU student's (Caitlin and Halston) experiences. If a parent, you too can have this potential - consider visiting TTU and Phi Gam as often as you can so that your children can "see" instead of "hear" of your experiences. Hal Balthrop ‘84 Hal enjoying Homecoming 2008 with Phi Gam Friends from the Class of ‘84 L-R: Jay Clark, Hal Balthrop, Mike MacIndoe, Todd Arrants \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE FIJI P AGE 6 H OMECOMING 2008 Another Homecoming has come and gone! Although the TTU Golden Eagles may not have triumphed over Jacksonville State, the weekend was still very much a success for Phi Gamma Delta! Our Undergraduate Chapter, paired with Kappa Delta, came away with another Homecoming Championship and even placed 1st in the parade! Congrats to them and Six Clicks for their efforts over the whole week! Another success was this year's added emphasis on Graduate activities. Many graduates found the FIJI Homecoming itinerary assisted them in making the most out of their visit to Cookeville. On Saturday morning the infamous Kazoo Band was increased in number with Section Chief Brian Douglas and several members of the recently graduated Beta Zeta pledge class joining their ranks! Following the parade, many graduates made their way over to the Phi Gam Tailgate Cookout provided by TFI and 1848 Club. The tailgate was a big hit with a large number graduates making an appearance to enjoy the fraternal fellowship and rekindle old friendships! Although an official count was not taken, we estimate that around 40 or more graduates were present over the course of the weekend with the graduates in attendance spanning from chapter founders to last semester's graduates! Overall the weekend shaped up to be a great Homecoming and hopefully the start of another great Phi Gam Tradition! Thanks to all the graduates who were able to make the trip and attend Homecoming! For everyone who wasn't able to attend this year, we hope to see you at the 28th Anniversary Pig Dinner and FIJI Homecoming 2009! Fiji /KD float Wins 1st Place in the float competition! \r\nV OLUME 30, N O . 2 P AGE 7 BCA C ONTINUES TO G ROW ! BCA Board of Chapter Advisors Our Board of Chapter Advisors continues to grow and offer assistance to the undergraduate chapter! This semester the BCA gained another motivated graduate wishing to volunteer his time to support our chapter. Brother Luke Denney has been appointed to the BCA with his primary focus on Pledge Education. Luke graduated in the spring of 2008 and had served the chapter as pledge educator for three consecutive semesters. His unique and successful experience in this area of chapter operations makes him an idea candidate for his new role. Luke has already begun to pass along advice and bring continuity for this semester’s new pledge educators! The BCA welcomes Luke and knows he will be a great asset for aiding the undergraduate chapter. The rest of the BCA members continue to contribute to the success of our chapter as well! Their time and efforts are greatly appreciated by the undergraduates that they are working closely with. It’s an exciting time for our chapter and having a number of involved graduates willing to volunteer their time really shows that Phi Gamma Delta is truly “Not for College Days Alone!” Thanks to Our Current BCA Members for Volunteering Their Time! • Bo Byers ‘06, PL, Chairman of the Board • JR Gillette ‘05, Finance • Mitch Robinson ‘05, Grad Relations • Paul Cronin ‘07, Grad Events • Luke Denney ’08, Pledge Education Luke Denny ‘08 the newest member of the BCA If Phi Gamma Delta molds leaders, then how does it recognize those that go on to excel in what they do? By awarding the Distinguished Fiji Award to deserving graduate Brothers! Do you know a graduate Brother who truly exemplifies the ideals of Phi Gamma Delta? A Brother who has gone on to "be all that he can be?" Maybe a pledge class member, a big bro or little bro? "The Distinguished Fiji Award will be presented annually at Pig Dinner to no more than five Graduate Brothers who shall be deserving of recognition for their faithful and unselfish service to Phi Gamma Delta or their special contribution to mankind and society at large." Pig Dinner 2009 marks the first year that our chapter will be presenting this special award, so help us make it great! The nomination form and more information can be found at our website: www.ttufiji.com/tfi All entries for this year must be received by April 1st, 2009! \r\nT HE G OLDEN E AGLE FIJI P AGE 8 F ALL R ECRUITMENT Once again Phi Gam has come out on top in Rush! This year's Rush Chairman Jordan Jozwik worked hard to make sure we were recruiting the future leaders of our chapter and his efforts paid off! This Fall's Rush was held during the 3rd week of school following the Sorority Recruitment. Our popular Phi Gam Golf Classic started off the week. It was followed by a very overwhelmingly successful Black Diamond County Fair Night organized by Rush Committee member, Dustin Pendel. The event included a hay ride to transport rushees and girls from their dorms to the house, line dancing, a watermelon eating contest, fair games, funnel cakes, candy apples, sno cones and much more! The final night of open Rush was our annual Fiji Is- land Night. Our brothers led by Senior Jared Medlen, who organized the night, pulled together possibly one of the biggest most extravagant Island nights that Theta Tau has ever put on! Complete with another hay ride, 3 water falls, ponds with live fish, a sunken sail boat, volleyball, virgin daiquiris, and amazing island food prepared and served by Grad Brother Dave Clifford and Undergrad Brother Spencer Bouton, our island night was a HUGE success! doe the son of Mike MacIndoe and Brad Weakley the brother of Jim Weakley. These recruits have now completed their pledge semester and those who successfully met our requirements are anxiously waiting to be added to our ranks! As the chapter is as excited to add them and preparing to recruit the next promising group of pledges on TTU’s campus! The chapter put a large effort into rush again this year and it really paid off. The Chapter extended 31 bids and received 23 back with most of the unreturned bids planning to pledge in the upcoming spring semester. Three of our new pledges are Legacies from our very own chapter! Halston Balthrop the son of Hal Balthrop, Michael MacIn- F ROM THE T HETA T AU P AGES OF H ISTORY …. The Phi Gamma Delta Magazine—Winter 1980 We are indeed pleased to carry the name of a Delta Colony of Phi Gamma Delta onto the campus of Tennessee Tech. We have 15 founding Brothers, and are led this year by: Carl Martin ‘81, President, Russ Bradley ‘81, Treasurer, Matt Graves ‘82, Recording Secretary, Dan Crunk ‘80, Corresponding Secretary and Lee Wray ‘81, Historian. Our first quarter was hectic, yet full of success and rewards. To introduce ourselves to campus, we held an open house after the first football game. The next week was rush. Though scared and inexperienced, we pledged 15 men! One of our pledges has also been elected VP of Junior IFC. Trophies are already coming in as we took first place for the Homecoming float we built with Kappa Delta. Though we did not fare well in football, we rebounded to place second of 13 fraternities in wrestling. Plus, we took individual first places in five of twelve weight classes. In social activities, we held various parties, and hosted three sororities at dinners. Phi Gams are taking a strong lead in campus activities. Lee Wray ‘81 Colony Historian \r\nV OLUME 30, N O . 2 P AGE 9 I MPORTANT D ATES ! • December 12th—January 15th TTU Winter Break • January 2nd– 4th Fiji Academy (St. Louis) • January 17th IHQ Chapter Retreat • January 20th-23rd IFC Spring Recruitment 28th Anniversary Pig Dinner April 17-18th • 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 an upcoming issue please contact: Kyle Smith Graduate Relations Chairman sksmith21@tntech.edu 931-980-8269 (Cell Phone) IMPORTANT DATES: Spring Rush: January 20th – 23rd 28th Anniversary Pig Dinner: April 18th, 2009 V ISIT U S ONLINE WWW. TTUFIJI. COM PERGE`!