Gamma Tau of Phi Gamma Delta GAMMA TAUK Summer 2009 PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS John Crupie (2010), Chapter President Brothers, As we close out another school year, Gamma Tau can once again celebrate its tradition of success at Georgia Tech. Coming off a house GPA of 3.02 in the fall, we look to continue our academic excellence and extend our streak of 26 years above the all-men’s average. Gamma Tau took home the IFC Athletic Trophy for the 11th time in the past 12 years, and the brothers are eager to begin another phase of FIJI Intramurals. This year, we were very successful philanthropically with our Habitat for Humanity Fall Break trip and our 2nd Annual FIJI Run for the Kids. We are looking to make next year’s Run our most successful event yet, so watch for information this summer on how you can help. The IFC Dean Dull Trophy for most outstanding fraternity has been restructured and will now be awarded after the fall semester. Gamma Tau looks to rank highly again this year. Many thanks to the graduates who returned to Creighton-Vail Hall to attend our 83rd Annual Pig Dinner. The dinner was highlighted by a house renovation update and the unveiling of our new graduate social chairmen, Franz Russler and Kirk Poucher (2006). We hope that with the addition of this new shared position, we can continue to build our relationships with past Gamma Taus and strengthen our graduate brother involvement. The new chairmen have already been a huge asset to our graduate relations. They have helped reschedule the Couser to the end of summer to make it easier to attend both Pig Dinner and the golf tournament. Your input is always welcome and can be posted at www.gtfijigrads.com or at the new Gamma Tau FIJI Grads group on LinkedIn. As we look forward to another year, our efforts shift toward fall rush 2009. As fraternity life changes over time, so too has fraternity rush. We have found that in order to remain competitive among the fraternities on campus, we have had to become much (Continued on page 2) 83rd PIG DINNER RECAP On March 28, graduate and undergraduate brothers got together to celebrate Gamma Tau’s 83rd anniversary at Creighton-Vail Hall. The event was at- tended by 73 graduate and 50 undergraduate brothers. The program included a video of the past year’s highlights, a presentation on Run for the Kids, a presentation on graduate giving, and graduate brothers discussing future house plans, specifically the possibility of a new house. (Continued on page 3) What’s News? • We need your help finding lost brothers! • Recruitment is the main focus for the fall semester. • Graduate involvement is needed to get the house construction underway. • Make plans to attend the July 25 Couser Golf Tournament. Inside this issue: Recruitment Focus 2 Graduate Spotlight 3 House Construction Update 4 Lost Brothers 5 Couser Golf Invitation 6 Undergraduate Spotlight 7 \r\nGAMMA TAUK Page 2 SUMMER AND FALL RECRUITMENT This fall’s rush may be one of the most important our chapter has faced. One of our largest pledge classes will be graduating, and we need a new large pledge class to continue to be one of the biggest and strongest houses on campus. With the implementation of a new summer bid team, we believe that we will achieve our goal of a pledge class of 25. Summer rush is currently underway, with many rush events planned, including weekly cook-outs, Braves games, lake house trips, and white water rafting. We are very grateful for all the support the graduates give us. If you know of any contacts for this fall’s rush, please send an email to Dan Mantenfel dmantenfel@gmail.com or Jordan Jones jhjones88@gmail.com with their contact information. Also, if you have any questions regarding rush or the schedule, please feel free to contact us. FAREWELL SENIORS This spring, Gamma Tau said goodbye to the following outstanding seniors: Danny Baker Brad Bouchard John Bowen Damian Brychcy David Chambers Pericles Demestihas Ryan Doherty George Ewing Christopher Fehn Christopher Gerard Jameel Khan Andrew Kohrs Paul Sansom James Waring Perry Williams Again, thanks for the help in keeping Phi Gamma Delta the best fraternity on campus. Jordan Jones (2011) Dan Mantenfel (2011) Rush Chairmen WELCOME SPRING PLEDGES This year’s spring rush yielded a pledge class of five freshmen. They are: Michael Coltharp Jordan Gallivan Faraz Jamal Philip O’Brien Tanner Weil PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS continued... “We are looking to make next year’s Run (for the Kids) our most successful event yet, so watch for information this summer on how you can help.” more aggressive and progressive in our rush techniques. This summer, Rush Chairmen Dan Mantenfel (2011) and Jordan Jones 20’11) will kick off our updated Rush program. We will be hosting weekly Rush events and for the first time in many years will be awarding summer bids to rushes. We have been working throughout the year to build our rushee contact list, but we need as much help from the graduates as possible. Please contact Jordan jhjones88@gmail.com or Dan dmantenfel@gmail.com with the names of any men you know who will be attending Georgia Tech in the fall. You involvement is more than appreciated. On behalf of the brothers of Gamma Tau, I would like to thank you for your ongoing support and interest in the chapter. We look forward to seeing you this fall and, with your guidance, look to continue our tradition of excellence at Georgia Tech. Fraternally, John Crupie (2010) Perge! \r\nPage 3 GRADUATE SPOTLIGHT ALEX DEMESTIHAS (2005) golfing, driving golf carts, and being able to truly step away from everything and relax for a second. A phrase I use far to often is … “SPACE.” FIJI brothers I keep in contact most with … Justin Kennon, CW Pearce, Collins Westcott, Jonathan Haag, my brother Peri. If I weren’t doing this interview right now, I’d be … trying to figure out some other way to keep me occupied on a 10hour flight to Greece. I’m very good at … breaking expensive electronics, keeping up with great friendships, getting speeding tickets, having a continuous desire to see and do as much as I can. I’m very bad at … driving, What do you do for a living … I have my own residential construction and land development company, based out of Marietta. I have previously built high-end homes, but I am now turning my interest to green construction. While the economy has been slow, I have been also getting my MBA with a concentration in Real Estate Development, which I will finish in December. My role in HC and my involvement in the house construction initiative … I began the initiative a couple of years after graduation by first attending BCA meetings. Once enough interest was shown in pursuing construction of some sort, I led us through an intensive assessment process through our architectural consultant, Janice Wittschebe. From there I have facilitated many group meetings to get us to the exciting point we are at today. I have no specific position on House Corporation, but I do work with them when dealing with this house construction initiative. What accomplishments am I most proud of … being able to start my own business so soon out of college. Describe your pledge class and the activities you did. My pledge class is an incredibly diverse group that never hesitated to jump in and get things done, while always pushing the limits of fun, lawful activities, and consumption of beverages. We’re a seriously bonded group though, having many pledge class activities since our initial semester. 83rd PIG DINNER RECAP continued... (Continued from page 1) Graduate Brothers at Pig Dinner Several awards were given out. Many graduate brothers received their Silver and Golden Owl awards for being initiated 25 and 50 years ago, respectively. Thomas Bell (1955) was again awarded the Charlie Brown Award for most consecutive Pig Dinners attended. Alex Demestihas (2005) was awarded the Outstanding Graduate Brother Award for his hard work with the house assessment and his leadership with the new house plans. The program was over just in time to see Villanova make it to the Final Four on a last second shot, and many graduate brothers socialized afterward with the undergraduates. Thanks to everyone who was able to make it. You can view and post pictures at www.gtfijigrads.com/ gallery. \r\nGAMMA TAUK Page 4 HOUSE CONSTRUCTION INITIATIVE UPDATE The House Corporation and the House Construction Initiative Committee are inspired and motivated by all the positive feedback resulting from the Pig Dinner discussion and the survey sent prior to it. We are aggressively working on discovering and investigating our financial and fund raising options, including professional fund raising companies other fraternities and sororities on campus and at nearby schools have used. Future notifications will be sent out to those who signed up at Pig Dinner to assist and become involved in this process, as well as on our graduate website, www.gtfijigrads.com, and in our professional group page at LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com). Our next major meeting will be in July, and we will be discussing our fund raising strategies. Please look to these sources for an announcement on the date and time for this meeting. We are continuing to seek assistance from our graduate base. If you would like to be more involved in any aspect of this process, from construction, fund raising, or graduate relations, please contact me at the information below. Similarly, if you have any questions or comments regarding this process or any of the decisions we have made, please feel free to contact me. We’re looking forward to a very productive summer and the extremely exciting progress on our Fraternity house. Fraternally, Alex Demestihas (2005) alex.demestihas@gmail.com cell – 678.644.0757 “We are continuing to seek assistance from our graduate base.” FOOTBALL SEASON PREVIEW Several graduate and undergraduate brothers took advantage of the opportunity to get an early preview to Georgia Tech’s football team for 2009. Brothers tailgated and then made their way to Bobby Dodd Stadium to join a crowd of 8,500 watch the Gold team hold off the White team, 31-28. Standout performers included quarterbacks Tevin Washington and Jaybo Shaw, who each had three touchdowns. The event was a good showcase of what promises to be an extremely exciting football season. Football Ticketing has changed and we need your help! The Athletic Association has changed the ticketing policy and in doing so, FIJI's beloved block seating behind the north end zone is in danger of being removed. Many steps have been taken by the students to stop this, but our voice has not been strong enough. Please log on to www.gtfiji.com/football to read more in depth of what is happening. You can also find contacts for FIJI and for the Athletic Association to call and voice your dissatisfaction. The administration has let us know that alumni are the key to solving this problem. \r\nPage 5 HELP US FIND LOST BROTHERS We currently do not have addresses for the following brothers. If you have information on their whereabouts, please email address@phigam.org. James D. Hedges 1929 Walter Krueger , Jr. 1930 James P. Silver 1959 James B. Alderman 1960 William R. McLellan 1974 David E. Pollard , Jr. 1974 Joel K. Wood 1988 Jeffrey L. Crumley 1989 Kenneth D. Foster 1931 Jerry M. Figgins 1960 Joseph A. Troncale 1974 Eric C. DiPietro 1989 Peter H. Buckley 1933 John A. Parker 1960 J. Ross Willis 1974 Ronald J. Harper 1989 James H. Morgan 1933 Walter K. Schumacher 1960 James T. Voglino 1975 Sean M. Kitzmiller 1989 Robert B. Caterson 1934 David D. Grimes 1961 John R. Walsh , Jr. 1975 John P. McCartin 1989 John B. Hale 1934 Richard E. Hazlett 1961 John H. Clark 1976 Kirby C. Pruett , Jr. 1989 Robert A. Carson 1935 Ben H. Holcomb 1961 Charles E. Harrell, Jr. 1976 Thomas R. Pugh, Jr. 1989 Charles H. Reed 1935 John R. Rust 1961 A. Mc Kinley King 1976 Craig T. Tootle 1989 William C. Park , Jr. 1936 Thomas W. Wickersham 1961 James K. Quina 1976 John W. Drury 1990 Anthony L. Kocsis 1937 John H. Willoughby 1961 Ray P. Flowers, III 1977 Derrick R. Duell 1990 Edward C. Guilford 1938 Thomas J. Beaird 1962 Joseph C. Harrison 1977 Anthony S. Mathews 1990 W. Marlan Smith 1939 William C. Lovejoy, III 1962 Howard W. Wells, Jr. 1977 Gregory S. Warren 1990 William C. Mahoney , Jr. 1940 Michael M. Larrowe 1963 D. Eric Adams 1978 Jonathan W. Babb 1991 Frank O. Shoemaker , Jr. 1940 John B. Marbury, Jr. 1963 William R. Hogan 1978 John E. Brown 1991 Daniel B. Williams 1940 James H. Porter 1963 William D. Leisy 1978 Christopher S. Janke 1991 Stanleigh F. Elam 1941 Robert J. Walker 1963 Gregory T. Raley 1978 Christopher R. Payne 1991 Franklin B. VanValkenburgh 1941 James B. Cole 1964 Don P. Hudson , Jr. 1979 Todd A. Borah 1992 Robert O. Dodd , Jr. 1943 James R. Downing 1964 Allen M. McEniry, USA 1979 Raymond L. Sheppard, Jr. 1992 Lionell H. Nelson 1944 Robert P. Murray , Jr. 1964 Steven C. Ward 1979 Thomas J. Bryant 1993 James C. Brooks 1945 Greg A. Potter 1964 Richard E. Edwards, Jr. 1980 Jonathan H. Shand 1993 Alfred L. Hendry 1945 Mario J. Torre 1965 Howard L. Liverance 1980 Timothy J. Shippy 1993 Robert M. Johnston 1946 Charles L. Cushing 1966 Timothy O. Macy 1980 Daniel L. Spinetto 1993 Cleaborn S. O'Kelley 1946 William B. Henninger 1966 Charles E. Joseph 1981 Scott F. Oran 1994 James B. Abbott, III 1947 Ben H. Mitchell 1966 Steven M. Andrews, USA 1982 Wallace H. Pruitt , Jr. 1994 Richard C. George 1947 William M. Palmer, Jr. 1966 Wayne D. Boor 1982 Jeffrey M. Banker 1996 Wilbert E. Stevenson , Jr. 1947 Jimmy L. Woods 1966 Robert A. Lally 1982 Stephen J. DeLancey 1996 Billy W. Williams 1947 Richard M. Hill 1967 Steven H. Ramsey 1982 Taylor M. Dowdy 1996 Wayne G. Shear 1948 Steven G. Nienow 1967 William L. Yeager 1982 Daken L. Engmann 1996 Claude S. Swift 1948 Wallace L. Paton , Jr. 1967 Mark J. Judson 1983 Justin C. Honaman 1996 George M. Youmans , Jr. 1949 David A. Roehm 1967 Richard W. Miller 1983 Fredrik J. de Geer 1997 William K. Melton 1951 Stephen P. Lester 1969 Kevin D. Ryan 1983 C. Dustin Johnson 1998 Samuel H. Scott , Jr. 1951 Terry D. McKnight 1969 Daniel D. Venable 1983 Neel R. Joshi 1998 Walter S. Flynt , Jr. 1952 John H. Owens, III 1969 Marble J. Hensley , Jr. 1984 Edward E. Schneider 1998 Charles J. Pfeiffer , Jr. 1952 G. Patrick Putnam 1969 Miles Mercer 1984 Steven Zachok, III 1998 William A. Ross, III 1952 James S. Moore 1970 Timothy C. Whiffen 1985 C. Shane Carver 1999 Adrian D. Bolch, Jr. 1953 Sherman D. O'Brien 1970 David G. Zurn 1985 Anthony C. Watson 1999 Jan Bundsen 1953 Michael T. Woodall 1970 Timothy S. Chasteen 1986 Nicholas D. Johnson 2000 Orlando J. Caluff 1953 Ricke G. Kirk 1971 David R. Pace 1986 Brian L. Davis 2001 Frank N. Handal 1953 Kurt S. Nelson 1971 Jeffrey A. Beech 1987 J. Kenneth Morgan, III 2001 Martin J. Kaiser 1954 George L. Smith, Jr. 1971 Alfred L. Christianson 1987 Jeffrey R. Brewer 2002 James W. Thompson 1955 John G. Holey 1956 Ronald H. Benson 1972 Stephen J. Farrell 1972 Brian S. Fogle 1987 Jon M. Jenkins 1987 Christopher W. Holster 2002 Allen S. Lin 2002 Russell D. Jessee 1957 Stanley W. Lowe, Jr. 1973 Ronald F. Kirk , Jr. 1987 Douglas A. Shook 2002 Donald L. Towns 1957 Alan L. Trahern 1973 Darin S. Yates 1987 Michael A. Bartolo 2004 James E. Gentry 1958 Foster E. Brown 1974 Jeffrey C. Butler 1988 Kurt S. Rowland 2004 John W. Dewhirst 1959 Robert M. Heine 1974 Dirk L. Farrow 1988 Benjamin J. Foltz 2005 Irl V. Everett, III 1959 Robert W. Hooper 1974 Nicholas R. Guida 1988 Will H. Lanier 2005 Jerry R. Mitchell 1959 J. Wesley King, Jr. 1974 Jack W. McDaniel, Jr. 1988 N. Inchull Lee 2005 \r\nGAMMA TAUK Page 6 COUSER GOLF TOURNAMENT 2009 The undergraduates of the Gamma Tau Chapter would like to cordially invite all graduates to attend this year’s Couser Golf Tournament Saturday, July 25, 2009 Location: The Trophy Club of Apalachee in Dacula, Georgia Following will be a BBQ buffet and awards ceremony at the course Cost is $65 Please pre-pay by sending a check to the house or by sending an online payment via PayPal to treasurer@gtfiji.com. You can RSVP online, as well as get more information and directions, at www.gtfijigrads.com. We hope to see you there! GAMMA TAU LEADERSHIP Chapter President John R. Crupie 2009 jcrupie@gmail.com Chapter Treasurer C. Patrick Darsey 2009 Patrick.darsey@gmail.com Chapter Historian Matt P. Clickner 2009 matt.clickner@gmail.com Corresponding Secretary Patrick D. Sugar 2010 sugar.patrick@gmail.com Recording Secretary T. Patrick Callahan 2009 tpcallahan86@gmail.com Section Chief Thomas A. Adams 1970 (Emory University) tomcompu@yahoo.com Purple Legionnaire Troy D. Coons 1997 troy.coons@uscm.org House Corp President Marc D. Perla 1992 mperla@sorbtech.com BCA Chairman/President Stephen A. Pyburn 1996 Stephen.Pyburn@turner.com \r\nPage 7 UNDERGRADUATE SPOTLIGHT PATRICK DARSEY (2009) one experience. However, if I had to choose one I’d have to choose one that spanned about 10 weeks. Last summer I was lucky enough to travel around Europe with 11 other brothers for Tech's study abroad program in Oxford. I'll always have the memories here from Tech, but traveling on the other side of the world with my best friends was something I'll always treasure. I figure I’m pretty lucky to experience something like that. My major is... Industrial and Systems Engineering. I graduate... in December of 2009, finally…four and half years is long enough. I’m very “socializing.” good at… I’m very bad at… basketball. My most memorable experience at Gamma Tau is... this is a pretty unfair question. It's pretty hard to put your finger on Patrick Darsey was also just named Greek Man of the Year. He was selected out of 2,000 Greek men. The award is based on fraternity participation and contributions to the Greek Life community and Georgia Tech as a whole. Congratulations Patrick! On campus… I try to get involved in a number of things, but not too many that they take away from one another. I'm treasurer for the Interfraternity Council and was just relieved of a position on the executive board of the Student Foundation Board of Trustees (by another FIJI). I've always tried to do things that better FIJI's image on campus and of course to better prepare myself for the future. I think it has all paid off when I was recently awarded Georgia Tech's Greek Man of the Year this past spring semester. You know, I figure you don't learn anything useful in classes anyway, so you might as well learn by getting involved on campus... In Gamma Tau… I try to do the same. As a pledge, I knew I was going to get much more out of this brotherhood than I imagined, so I told myself I'd be as involved as possible to pay the house back. I've tried to do that, whether it be as treasurer now or when I was making t-shirts or planning the parties as social chair a couple of years ago. I think I speak for the majority of us here when I say that this Fraternity has and will always be the cornerstone of our college experience. Not only has it provided a social outlet from the day-to-day grind of Georgia Tech, but it has led to leadership skills and life lessons that can never be taught in a classroom. After graduation I'll be... hopefully doing some business consulting for one of the big firms here in Atlanta, or any of their offices in the world for that matter. My backup plan is to get a financial analyst or accounting job with some of those same firms or few others. If that doesn't work, perhaps another Island Party…? The Gamma Tauk is published at least twice annually by the Gamma Tau Chapter of Phi Gamma Delta at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Editor in Chief: Chris Padgette (2011) Contributing Writer: Morgan Doty (2011) \r\nNonprofit Org Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity 1201 Red Mile Road Lexington, KY 40504 US Postage Paid Lexington, KY Permit # 540 Information Update - Tell us about you! Please detach and return with your contact information so we can update our records. We will feature graduate updates in upcoming newsletters. If you want to share your recent news, fill in the news section for your information to be published. Name________________________________________________ School/year__________________________ Address_________________________________________________________________________________ City/State/Zip_____________________________________________________________________________ Phone (H)______________________________________(W)_______________________________________ E-mail__________________________________________________________________________________ News to share with classmates: _________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ Occupation ___________________________________ Employer ____________________________________ Spouse’s name __________________________________ Anniversary Date ______________________________ Children/Grandchildren Names and Ages: __________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ DONATE I am pleased to make a contribution to Gamma Tau of : $1,000 $500 $250 $100 $50 $25 Other ________ I would like my donation to be used in the following area: _______________________________________________ Donations can be sent to: Gamma Tau Chapter, 841 Fowler St NW, Atlanta, GA 30313. Please make checks payable to Gamma Tau Chapter of Phi Gamma Delta. Design, printing and mailing services provided by the International Fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta.