THE GATOR FIJI Published jointly by the men of the Undergraduate Chapter and the Graduate Association of the Upsilon Phi Chapter of the Fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta at the University of Florida December 2009 FIJI MEN KICK OFF SECOND YEAR BACK IN HOUSE By Warren A. Smith (1962), President, Graduate Association Board of Directors The 2009-2010 school year has started off with a bang and the Upsilon Phi Fijis continue to make a name for themselves on campus. In our second year back in the house we are near capacity once again with nine returning and thirteen new brothers in the house. Rent collections remain high, a good indicator of the financial security of the chapter as a whole. We would like to welcome Marci Brown, our new House Mom this year. Marci is an Alabama gal, but has been a Gator as long as she can remember. She went to high school down in the Orlando area at Lake Brantley High School. She at- tended Guilford College in Greensboro, NC, before transferring to Florida. Marci was a special education major. She has been a House Mom since 2003, and also presently works for the University Athletic Association. Stop by when you’re in Gainesville and welcome Marci to Fijiland! (Continued on page 2) LETTER FROM THE CHAPTER PRESIDENT By Andrew Nelson (2011), Chapter President Brothers of Upsilon Phi, The spring semester of 2009 was a great step forward for our chapter. During that semester, we took on many new challenges while excelling in old ones. It was the first time we participated in Dance Marathon. This great cause has raised millions for the Children’s Miracle Network and Shands’ Children’s Hospital. It was a very heartfelt and gratifying experience being a part of something so great. We have begun a great tradition that will hopefully continue on for many years. It was also the first time the brothers of our young chapter have been able to experience a formal weekend. The weekend trip was planned by sophomore, Zach Foster, and was a huge success. The brothers enjoyed a weekend on Daytona Beach and a beautiful formal sit down dinner with a dance after(Continued on page 3) INSIDE THIS ISSUE OF THE GATOR FIJI: Intramural Sports Update Philanthropy Success Remarks from the Purple Legionnaire Lost Brothers We need help! Welcome Pledges! Pig Dinner Info and Registration Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 8 \r\nPAGE 2 T HE G AT OR F I J I INTRAMURAL SPORTS UPDATE By Matt Van Dusen (2011) Our spring semester of intramural sports got off to an amazing start after being moved from Fraternity Blue (for smaller/ weaker fraternities) to Fraternity Orange (the best of the best). The basketball team lead by Ryan Ivey, Bijan Banapour, and Corey Clawson compiled a record of 4-1 in the regular season. They won their first playoff game against the #9 seed AEPi, before losing to the #1 seed Tau Kappa Epsilion. The team returns the entire roster for next season and looks to be in the running for a championship in the near future. Another sport in which we participated in was in fraternity soccer. Our soccer entered the season with high hopes being ranked as the #2 fraternity team. The team went 4-1 in the regular season. They also went on to win their first playoff game against AEPi before losing to the eventual champion Phi Delt. The soccer team is also returning its entire roster and looks to be one of the top teams going into next season. Look for them to bring a cham- pionship home in the near future. The last sport in which we participated in was softball. The softball team experienced the most success this season winning the championship. The team lead by graduating seniors Greg Garcia and Ronnie Cosse went on an unprecedented run as the #8 seed. Though they compiled a record of 3 -0-1, they were given a poor seed and played their way through the top two teams, Beta Theta Pi and Sigma Phi Epsilon, on their way to the championship game against Theta Chi. In the game, they found themselves down 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh when senior Greg Garcia hit a ball off the fence which drove in 2 runs winning the game and sending the fans pouring out onto the field to celebrate. After winning against Theta Chi, they played for the All Fraternity Championship (Blue League vs. Orange League) winning easily over Pi Lam 11-0. Winning fraternity league gave the softball team the chance to play for the all campus championship which they lost 9 -8 but all were excited seeing that with such a young team that the future looks bright. Now with the teams enjoying so much success and so many more teams vying for championships, we are looking for any donations possible to help us purchase more of the beautiful dri-fit jerseys we have now. Currently only about 50% of intramural participating brothers have these jerseys and we would love to get every brother one. If you are willing to sponsor further intramural success, please email me at tmac1988@ufl.edu. Fiji Men Kick Off Second Year Back in the House continued... (Continued from page 1) Brother Kenn Kowalske reminds us to make sure and mark your calendars now for the weekend of February 5-7, 2010 for our next Pig extravaganza! Anyone who missed this past February’s gathering really missed a great weekend of brotherhood and fun. Plan on bringing your wife or significant other (we do have functions for them) and make it a weekend to remember. Your board is already fully involved with plans for the 20092010 school year, and I can report banner even higher all over the UF campus. We have a fantastic group of undergraduates back in the Fiji House. All they really need is more graduate support from loyal brothers like you! Stop by the house when you’re here for any reason—and see for yourself. “Mark your calendars now for the weekend of February 5-7, 2010 for our next Pig extravaganza!” that the newly elected slate of officers for the chapter will have our full support as we raise the Fiji Perge! \r\nT HE G AT OR F I J I PAGE 3 UPSILON PHI AAA SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS Academic Achievement Awards (AAA) are just one benefit the Phi Gamma Delta Educational Foundation provides to undergraduate brothers - a $250 check to new initiates for achieving at least a 3.0 GPA during their pledge term. Phi Gamma Delta is the only national fraternity or sorority to offer this blanketed scholarship that helps get our new brothers focused on their academics. Thanks to those donors who support the Phi Gamma Delta Educational Foundation. Since its inception in 1999, AAA scholarship has awarded 80 Upsilon Phi brothers, including this list of current brothers who received the AAA this year: Taylor D. Gray Bijan B. Banapoor Michael C. McGrath Matthew Van Dusen Ryan S. Ivey Alex J. Hilbert 2012 2012 2012 2011 2012 2012 RED CROSS PHILANTHROPY A SUCCESS By Alex Cordeiro (2012) Our first annual FIJI Fastball philanthropy event was a flying success. The entire Upsilon Phi Chapter put forth full effort and all were eager to assist in the first of our new event. We had over 225 women in attendance from 11 of the 16 Panhellic Sororities. The overall winner this year was Alpha Omicron Pi, with sec- ond place going to Chi Omega, and third going to Delta Gamma. Through the event we were able to donate over $530 to the American Red Cross. While our contribution to the American Red Cross this past year is something Upsilon Phi can be proud of, we are pulling out all the stops in planning to make the 2nd Annual FIJI Fastball the great philanthropy we all know it can be. The main goal for the next event is to significantly increase our donation to the Red Cross. This is where the chapter looks to our grad brothers for assistance. If you can personally donate money toward supporting FIJI Fastball 2010 and the Red Cross, your efforts would make a huge impact. Also business sponsors are needed at this time as well. Let’s not forget, “ Service is the price we pay for the space we occupy in this earth.” Please make a contribution towards FIJI Fastball 2010. Letter from the Chapter President continued... (Continued from page 1) wards. The weekend was a lot of fun and we cannot wait until next year’s event. We also had many successes in old endeavors. We initiated six strong gentlemen who will represent the name of Fiji well. Our intramurals also flourished. Our success was lead by a championship victory over all fra- ternities in softball. Many fans came out to support our dominating team. Soccer also competed well, making it to the second round of the playoffs. We are excited to jump back into 7-on-7 flag football. This past summer was filled with recruitment and house improvements. New tile was added to the upstairs and the upgrade is amazing. I hope to see many of you for the home football games. It will be a truly great semester. I hope that everyone is having a fabulous 2009 and as always, I love all of my brothers and I am forever proud to be a Phi Gam. Perge! \r\nPAGE 4 T HE G AT OR F I J I REMARKS FROM THE PURPLE LEGIONNAIRE By Charlie Holloway (Rose-Hulman ‘96, Kentucky ‘97) - Purple Legionnaire Brothers, As another academic year has come and gone in the Sunshine State, the Upsilon Phi Chapter can celebrate many successes and many firsts. If you have not kept up with all that the chapter has been involved with, you are truly missing out. Please indulge me while I recap some of the highlights for the year. Like the mighty Gator football team, our FIJIs managed to bring home a few titles of their own. This fall, the Phi Gam flag football team pushed deep into Orange Division playoffs before falling just shy of their ultimate goal. Building on that drive to win, the softball team did capture the division championship in the spring, going on to win the allGreek title as well. Not only does Phi Gamma Delta culture teamwork, she also strives to develop individual greatness. The FIJI team, consisting of Brothers Ronnie Cosse and Greg Garcia, captured the university cornhole crown this past spring as well. The Florida men proved that they could work hard, but also managed to have some fun. The social calendar included numerous fraternity and sorority philanthropies, exchange dinners, and socials. The first ever FIJI Fastball tournament was held on February 1, with all proceeds going to the American Red Cross. March included several Upsilon Phi’s participating in Dance Marathon, as well as a Black Diamond Ball held in Daytona Beach. Pledge Class Zeta was initiated on April 3, adding seven new Brothers to our chapter and bringing the total new members for the year to 21. Upsilon Phi at UF has much to be proud of. As much as I regret to deter from all there is to celebrate, I must humbly ask a somber favor. On April 8, Russell G. Williams, II (Kentucky 1974) passed ad astra due to complications from a brain tumor. Brother Williams served as Kentucky’s Purple Legionnaire since 2005, was a member of the UK Board of Trustees, and was a very good friend of mine. I ask that you remember the Upsilon Kappa Brothers and the UK community in your thoughts and prayers. Fraternally, Charlie Holloway Rose-Hulman’96, Kentucky ‘97 AD ASTRA Upsilon Phi was notified of the death of two brothers earlier this year: Kenneth L. Fleming 1974 and Michael F. Fonteboa 1985 We extend our deepest condolences to their families. \r\nT HE G AT OR F I J I PAGE 5 LOST BROTHERS We currently do not have addresses for the following brothers. If you have contact information for a brother listed below, please email address@phigam.org. Robert E. Caldwell 1937 Charles N. Quina, USA 1937 H. Frederick Gale 1941 Hallett H. Germond 1941 Nicholas Tricarico 1942 David T. Sawyer 1943 J. Barney Carter 1944 Thomas W. Hicks 1944 Francis H. Jack , III 1944 Zenas H. Pilcher 1945 C. Grady Bush 1946 William A. LeMaster 1947 John S. Brady , II 1948 Jose J. Rodriguez 1948 Carlos Castleblanco 1949 Caesar J. LaMonaca 1949 Harry K. MacDougall, Jr. 1949 James M. McKay 1949 Robert H. McVay 1949 John W. Andrews 1950 Tom F. Brown 1950 Thomas H. Chapman 1950 Otis O. Clemons 1950 Samuel D. Hyman 1950 Thaus M. McDonald 1950 John A. McKay , Jr. 1950 William J. Shupe 1950 W. Hoke Kerns 1951 James B. McDonald, II 1951 Felipe Munoz 1952 William A. Ross, III 1952 Claudio Veliz 1952 Robert C. Ellyson 1953 Robert B. Hagan 1953 Herbert R. Fields , Jr. 1954 Harold E. Lewis 1954 Donald V. Smith 1954 Richard S. Breed 1955 Roger W. Cole, Jr. 1956 John W. Faltz , Jr. 1956 George D. Barnes 1957 Robert W. Cameron 1958 Richard O. Hessler 1958 Russell S. King , Jr. 1958 Andrew P. Helseth, PE 1959 William M. Holtz , Jr. 1959 John T. Ebert 1960 David A. Lowe 1960 Ronald D. Meyer 1960 John W. Ulrich 1960 James B. Young 1960 Don R. Eckerson 1961 George W. Phillips 1961 Robert O. Richardson 1961 Peter Scheel 1961 Charles A. Blum 1962 Clifton C. Chew 1962 Stephen D. Gold 1962 James R. King 1962 Richard H. Ogle 1962 Robert D. Lindberg 1963 James B. Nelson 1963 Dennis A. Starcher, Jr. 1963 Michael S. Baker 1964 John W. Ditsler 1964 Dale W. Reece 1964 Robert A. Bezuch 1965 Joseph M. Emery 1965 Alexander A. Galenes 1965 John T. Knight 1965 Jason C. Outler , III 1965 Peter A. Portley 1965 Edgar O. Rawls, Jr. 1965 Robert E. Townend , III 1965 John W. Edwards , Jr. 1966 Joseph T. Keenan , Jr. 1966 John L. Zambito 1966 Allan R. Guarino, USAF1967 Thomas L. Kimball 1967 Samuel R. Lamb, II 1967 Duane S. Owen 1967 John C. Topper 1967 Douglas J. Wronske 1967 John K. Dodson 1968 Edward W. MacLean 1968 Jeffrey W. Alford 1969 William J. Gay , II 1969 Richard M. Hayes 1969 Brian D. Hill 1969 Robert O. Lightfoot 1969 Stephen D. Peck 1969 Samuel C. Perry 1969 Thomas L. Robertson 1969 James R. Doyle 1970 James D. Friedrich 1970 Robert C. Mildrum 1970 Thomas W. O'Brien 1970 David W. Spahr 1970 Gary J. Spinks 1970 Paul A. Kuester 1971 Lewis A. Lancaster , Jr. 1971 Luis Perez 1971 Steven G. Powell 1971 Gregory L. Wolfe 1971 Steve A. Young 1971 Michael A. Broadhurst 1972 Douglas P. Brodhead 1972 James L. Butterfield 1972 David T. Hanson 1972 Julian D. Jensen 1972 Thomas R. Jepson 1972 John L. Meltzer 1972 Keith R. Sawicki 1972 Thomas C. Turturro 1972 John W. Leach 1974 Lloyd D. Purdy , Jr. 1974 Arthur F. Thibodeau, Jr. 1974 Michael G. Yankovich 1974 John G. Baker 1975 Richard A. Brodhead 1975 Kenneth I. Geist 1976 Joe Waechter 1976 Edward R. Barnard, II 1977 Mark W. Eckert 1977 Henry L. Hegert 1977 James E. Loos 1977 Thierry M. Ross 1977 Craig J. Kosuta 1978 Mark W. Lancaster 1978 Stephen F. Procko 1978 George A. Risk 1978 Mark T. Savoff 1978 Thomas N. Tysall 1978 James H. Hartenstine 1979 Christopher F. Kenward 1979 Luis A. Perez 1979 David V. Anas 1980 Larry K. Martin 1980 James B. Mosier 1980 Ronald J. Pecoraro 1980 Ronald C. VanSickle 1980 Michael J. Flanigan 1981 Ronald W. Herbanek 1981 Robert C. Hollowell 1981 John E. Ryznic 1981 Benjamin T. Chen 1982 James P. DiMartino 1982 Nathan A. Sinclair 1982 Robert E. Vest 1982 Eric P. Watson 1982 Steven L. Hogan 1983 John J. Kahoun 1983 Keith A. Schoonmaker 1983 Mark A. Shaw 1983 Jeffrey W. Thomas 1983 Mark W. Young 1984 William P. Blount 1985 David A. Cyril 1985 Steve R. Henry 1985 Jon B. Lindeman , Jr. 1985 Mark D. Cameron 1986 David P. Souza 1986 James F. Brown 1987 Steven T. Cush 1987 David M. Rosean 1987 Garrett M. Brennan 1988 Jeremy R. Brown 1988 Marc W. Libby 1988 Mark W. Murray 1988 John A. Nagy 1988 Joseph L. Scarpa 1988 Michael R. Stephenson 1988 Ronald A. White 1988 Luis R. Carney 1989 Daniel B. Moisand 1989 Charles T. Staats, Jr. 1989 Thomas F. Novak, Jr. 1990 Donald R. Duvall 1991 Frank A. Fattizzi 1991 David H. MacDonald 1991 Kevin P. Barrett 1992 Jon R. Bryant 1992 Glen H. Chancy 1992 Russell W. Fuller , Jr. 1992 Brandon W. Shearer 1992 Michael T. Abbott 1993 Samir Chokshi 1993 J. Chrisopher Hayek 1993 John D. Bicket 1994 Michael B. Craven 1995 William R. Scara, Jr. 1995 Patrick A. Altiere 1996 David A. Ballesteros 1996 Matthew C. Zirzow 1996 Michael A. Autell 1997 Saurin D. Chokshi 1997 Erik A. de la Iglesia 1997 Michael L. Infante 1997 C. Brent Jensen 1997 Joshua A. Johnson 1997 Brett A. Manley 1997 Matthew R. Rousseau 1997 Jason M. Testa 1997 K. David Welling 1997 John M. Kuehn 1998 Stephan T. Johnson 2003 Matthew D. Johnson 2005 Vladislav Yurovsky 2005 P. Michael Crowfoot, Jr. 2006 D. Blake Haley 2006 \r\nPAGE 6 T HE G AT OR F I J I WELCOME PLEDGES! For the year of 2009, Upsilon Phi has welcomed a total of 22 new pledges to our group. Pledge Class Zeta (spring) and Pledge Class Eta (fall) have each brought their own spirit to our chapter and we welcome our new brothers! PLEDGE CLASS ZETA - SPRING • • • Kyle Folterman was the pledge class President, a freshman hailing from Melbourne. He is majoring in Hospitality Management and hoping to own his own restaurant one day. Also participating in the intramurals soccer team for the Fraternity, he hopes to • play a major part in the team in the upcoming years and hopes to win the all Fraternity trophy. Mike Knox was the pledge class Recording Secretary. He comes from the magical Orlando. Mike enjoys spending his time at the house and par- some decision with choosing Fiji. Being an architect major, he’s always working, but he finds time to chill at the house. ticipating in sports with a few of the other brothers. These six pledges were installed in January of this year: • Zach Lewis was the pledge class Treasurer. One of the three people of PCZ who plays for the Fraternity soccer team, Zach enjoys spending his time playing sports and hanging with brothers in the Fraternity. • Chris Coley is the oldest member of Pledge Class Zeta. A sophomore from Ocala, Chris is an active player of the fraternity soccer team and shows his skills on and off the field. David Harmon was the pledge class Historian. David moved from Miami where he quickly became accustomed to the college life. Alex Hilbert was an active member of the Pledge Class Zeta. Coming from Oviedo, he chose to come to the U of F over UCF and made an awe- PLEDGE CLASS ETA - FALL Sixteen pledges were installed on Sept. 1, here are a few introductions: swimming the 50m and 100m freestyle strokes very successfully. high school and also enjoys photography. • • Matthew Perry Meyerson, a freshman from Coral Springs, who is an amateur guitarist. • Alex Pacheco, freshman from • Royal Palm Beach, who was active in speech and debate in Mitch Purse, a freshman from Palm Harbor, studying pharmacy and enjoys playing bass guitar in his very scarce spare time. Adam Smythe, from Palm Harbor, who was very active as a swimmer in high school, • James DeFonte, also from Palm Harbor, is a freshman who spends much of his time in the gym and is one of the strongest in our chapter. (Continued on page 7) \r\nT HE G AT OR F I J I PAGE 7 (Continued from page 6) • Matthew Tranter who is a very skilled basketball player, is also from Palm Harbor. • Matthew Bartlett is one of the tallest pledges who was quite active in lacrosse in high school. • Brian Tobin, a junior, has already become an asset to the chapter’s flag football and indoor soccer teams with his quickness and agility. • Zach Anthony, who is quite a ladies man, is from Ocala. • Miraj Patel is also a freshman from Ocala, who is very motivated in his studies and involvement, was also a drum major. • Sol Kim, from Ocala, played soccer throughout high school and is a committed scholar. Pledge Class Eta - Installed on September 1, 2009. • Jeffrey Davis is also a member of pledge class Eta who is a very successful racer. • Zachary Malinowski is the pledge class president and is a judo master. SOCIAL CALENDAR UPDATE By Jon Reaves 2011, Social Chairman Brothers, buses out to Jacksonville where we boarded a SunCruz Casino boat for an evening cruise out into the most fun to hang out with. Beyond our events with Amongst the excellence in sororities, we do have tailgates at scholarship and involvement on the house before every campus, the gentlemen of home football game and I Upsilon Phi still find time highly encourage all to relax and truly enjoy “I highly encourage all graduates graduates to come by 7 our years at the UniverRow and parto come by 7 Fraternity Row and Fraternity sity of Florida. Our social take in the festivities calendar is the busiest it’s with your fellow brothers. partake in the festivities with ever been with numerous Hope to see you all soon. your fellow brothers.” mixers with individual sororities as well as date functions where brothers have an opportunity to bring any Fraternally, the waters of the Atlantic. At all of date of their choice. During the our social events, brothers rememJon Reaves first weekend of October, the Phi ber to act like FIJI gentlemen but Social Chairman Gams and their dates took charter still show the ladies of UF who is \r\nT HE G AT OR F I J I PAGE 8 NORRIS PIG DINNER - FEBRUARY 5-6, 2010 Pig Dinner 2010 will be held February 5-6, 2010. The Friday night Pre-Pig Festivities will be held at the University Hilton located at 1714 SW 34th Street starting at 7:00PM until ???. As usual, dress is casual and there will be heavy hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar. The Saturday morning Fiji Golf Classic will be held at the University Golf Course. Shotgun start at 9:00 AM. Dan Getson is back for another round as the Tournament Master. The annual House Corporation meeting will be at the House on Saturday starting at 2:30 PM until about 4:00PM. Pig Dinner will also be held at the University Hilton with doors opening at 5:30 PM for registration. Cash bar and appetizers will be on hand until the formal order of the evening begins at around 7:00PM. Cost is $75 and the Pig is pleased to accept cash, check, and all major credit cards. There are a block of rooms reserved at the University Hilton (352-371-3600) listed under Phi Gamma Delta. We are also working on some additional blocks in other nearby hotels and will keep you posted as they develop. For those of you wanting to stay in the Hilton…make your reservations early! So call a brother you have not seen in a while and get him to come. It is going to be a great weekend. Feel free to e-mail me with any questions or suggestions at kenn.kowalske@ipaper.com PERGE! Kenn Kowalske (1980) Pig Dinner Early Registration Form Where: University Hilton Hotel & Conference Center 1714 SW 34th Street, Gainesville, Florida 32607 (Phone: 352-371-3600) When: Saturday, February 6 2009 (First Weekend in February) - Doors open at 5:30 PM ____ I’ll be there Friday, February 5 (Pre-Pig Festival) AND Saturday, February 6. ____ I’ll be there Saturday only. ____ Please register me for the Saturday morning FIJI GOLF CLASSIC which will be held at the University Golf Club, home of the Florida Gators Golf Team. ____ I’ll be in exile and unable to attend, however, please update my contact info and keep me informed on future events. ____ I’ll be in exile and unable to attend, however, please update my contact info and accept the en closed donation to the Florida Chapter to be used for house renovations. Please make checks payable to the All-Florida Phi Gamma Delta Chapter House Corporation Name:__________________________________________________________________________________________________ Address:________________________________________________________________________________________________ E-Mail Address:_________________________________________________________________________________________ Phone:________________________________________________ Graduation Year ________________________________ Please return this form using the enclosed envelope to: Kenn Kowalske, 2010 Kennwood Grove Lane, Auburndale, Fl., 33823. You can also contact Kenn at - office:(863) 559-9587, e-mail: kenn.kowalske@ipaper.com Design, printing and mailing services provided by the International Fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta.