PHI GAMMA DELTA IMPORTANT DATES: Ace of Diamonds S P R I N G EI Open October 8, 2011 2 0 1 1 Let’s Go to Cambridge and Look at a Roasted Pig EI Open May 2012 (tentative) Pig Dinner October 2012 (tentative) INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Pig Dinner 1 Announcements 2 State of the Chapter 4 On March 19, Phi Gams from Atlanta to Chicago came to Evansville to celebrate the annual Epsilon Iota Frank Norris Pig Dinner. Held at the beautiful Cambridge Country Club, brothers reunited to catch up on the many goings-on in their lives, reminisce, and recapture some of that joy that comes from seeing old friends from one’s college years. The weekend kicked off Friday night, where upwards of two dozen Epsilon Iota grads and undergrads took over the Newburgh branch of Turoni’s. Over pizza, a long table of boisterous twenty-somethings talked about times past and the bright future. Matt Snodgrass (2005) told tales of his growing baby, Xander, while Phil Crone (2006) impressed with his talent for rolling up the corporate ladder at Humana in Louisville, KY. After finally leaving the Turoni’s wait staff to close the restaurant for the night, Phi Gams adjourned to the Fraternity house on UE’s campus to see the recent upgrades to the basement. The fun and frivolity continued the next day with a golf outing at Quail Crossing in Newburgh. One bent golf-cart axle later, it might be time to find a new golf course to pa- The Pig. Remember when it was just a pile of ashes with a snout? Looks like progress. tronize in 2012. The main event began, as always, at Cambridge at 5:30. As attendees trickled in, a crowd began to form around the TV showing second round games of the NCAA tournament, which in a happy turn of events, was conveniently situated above the bar. Some time after, first-time emcee Shane Setnor (2005) got everyone to their seats. A few jokes and a muchimproved Exile’s Toast later, dinner was served. As always, one freshman dug into his dessert too eagerly and it was promptly smashed. Later in the evening, keynote speaker John C. Schroeder (Wabash 1969) echoed the thoughts of previous speaker Jeff Fettig (Indiana 1979). Brother Schroeder elaborated on the fact that in many cases, when presented with a new hire, if that person makes a good FIJI, he nearly always makes a good employee. He also praised the chapter for its great work in maintaining an excellent reputation with the university, of which he is a trustee. After the keynote speech, Jeremy Buente (2008) was awarded his second Graduate Brother of the Year award for the continued hospitality he shows the undergrads, including the cooking of ‘brinner’ for the undergrads every month. After leaving Cambridge, the party continued at downtown bar RiRa, where we stayed until the lights were turned on. Special thanks go to John H. Schroeder (Wabash 1942) and Don Korb (Wabash 1945) for their much-appreciated attendance, John C. Schroeder for an excellent keynote speech, Brother Setnor for doing whatever it is he does (Emcee’rs emcee), and undergrad chairman Brad Kastrup (2011) for organizing the event. We all look forward to next year’s Pig Dinner, where maybe at least one Alpha can attend and tell us how great his pledge class is. \r\nPAGE 2 Have You Heard the Good News? • • Purple Legionnaire Rob Smith (2003) proposed to his girlfriend Stephanye Givens. They will celebrate their marriage this September. PL duties will presumably be unaffected by these developments. Dom Thompson (2002) and wife celebrated the birth of their second child, Brady, in November. Growing family of Dom Thompson, wife Erin, daughter Anna, and new son Brady. • • • • • • • • ACE OF Geoff Keller (2008) got engaged to Ashli Heck in October. Follow him to the Springfield Aquarium, where the wedding may be held. Ray Baker (2008) and fiancé Becky Miller plan to marry on New Year’s Eve of 2012. Ricky Alexander (2007) announced his engagement to his fiancé Jessica Eggleston in March. Tommy Matthew Topper was born to proud parents Mandy and Tom Topper (2004) in March. They will be moving to St. Louis in the summer, where Tom will be studying to become a Physician’s Assistant. Jeremy Buente (2008) married his wife Samantha in October. Alex Kramer (2005) and wife Jana welcomed their son Will in December. Josh Holland (2006) and his wife Erica are expecting their second child later this year. Jeremy Tarr (1998) and his wife Katie celebrated the birth of their daughter, Kaylee, in September. DIAMONDS \r\nSPRING 2011 PAGE Ben Wolowski and his wife Caitlin at Ben’s graduation from IU school of law. • • • • Ben Wolowski (2007) graduated from IU School of Law in December. He is now employed by the state of Illinois in the Appellate Defender’s Office. The cool new thing to do is to have a baby in August.. Will Snider (2006) and wife Sarah, Kevin Hay (2006) and wife Kathryn, and Joe Setnor (2007) and wife Laura are all expecting their first-born children this August. Shane Setnor (2005) and his wife Blair rang in the new year with a wedding bash in Richmond, VA. Postwedding polling found that the best part of the event was driving through West Virginia. Erik Kummer (2005) and fiancé Toni traveled to Hawaii in October for sun, swimming, and fruity cocktails. Also marriage. From left, Josh Zars (EI 2006), Paige Zars, Erik Kummer, and Toni Kummer at Erik’s Hawaii wedding. 3 \r\nState of the Chapter Brothers, The Epsilon Iota Chapter has seen many changes over the past couple of months, the biggest of these changes being the election of a new cabinet. Our new chapter officers come from four different pledge classes and have an assortment of majors from mechanical engineering to finance. Treasurer Ross Pietzrak (2012), Recording Secretary Jordan Stoltz (2013), Corresponding Secretary Lee Pankau (2013), Historian Drew Elliott (2012), and myself as president will be serving for 2011. We have also decided to move elections to December as opposed to mid-April. The previous cabinet decided that it would be in the best interest of future cabinets to have elections moved to December, where new officers will be able to quickly benefit from the annual FIJI Leadership Academy in January. The FIJI basement has seen many changes over the past months as well. The basement walls were painted to feature the words “Phi Gamma Delta” and “Perge!”, as well as the crest and the diamond. The laundry room was turned into a computer lab and study room. Three computers, two printers, a copy machine and scanner are available for the brothers’ use. The study room is a very quiet and productive atmosphere until someone finds it necessary to wash their clothes. In January, the chapter initiated 10 brothers of the Delta Deuteron pledge class at International Headquarters. A couple of weeks later, we pledged four gentlemen: Russ Finn, John Gentry, Jordan Chapman, and Dan Caruana. They have done well in their pledge program so far, and we look forward to having them as brothers in the Epsilon Iota Chapter. By the time you receive this letter, we will have had our annual philanthropy, Hot-Tub-AThon on April 8-9. So far, the chapter has raised over $8,000 and is expecting that amount to reach over $10,000. This year’s event will have featured a benefit concert by a student band and the winner of UE’s recent Battle of the Bands, “Stockholm Robot.” Within hours of the conclusion of Hot-Tub-A-Thon, students will have returned to the house for FIJI Isle. After a long weekend, we’ll have celebrated our philanthropic and social accomplishments by removing 10 tons of Isle sand from the pit. A lot of preparation and graduate help and generosity have gone into this weekend, so we’re sure everything will go as planned. April 16 marks another big weekend for the Evansville campus, Bike-Race Weekend. Kevin Brown (2012), Dave Lustro (2013), Matt Mueller (2012) and I are hoping to finish in the top three and improve on last year’s fourth place. Hopefully, we will see you at some of these upcoming events. Fraternally, Bryan Hamann (2012) Perge! Phi Gamma Delta 227 S. Lincoln Park Dr. Evansville, IN 47714 Visit Epsilon Iota on the web at www.fiji.evansville.edu “Not for college days alone.” Max Weinberg of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band playing drums at UE, with Nick Seibert (2012) accompanying on trumpet.