THETA FIJI THETA CHAPTER OF PHI GAMMA DELTA AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA s FALL 2012 Several Exciting Projects Moving Forward at Theta Chapter New Members Welcomed to House Corporation A s we begin the 2012-13 school year, Theta Chapter is stronger than ever. The undergraduate brothers have recruited an outstanding pledge class that will continue Phi Gam excellence at The Capstone. Football season is here and we encourage everyone to join us at the Chapter House, enjoy a pre-game buffet, and visit with old friends. I would like to welcome Sid Phillips ’83 and Jonathan Wells ’03 as the newest members of the House Corporation. We are working on several exciting projects, one of which is construction of a new Chapter Room, which Jim Andrews ’81 is taking the lead on. With our growing active membership, the current Chapter Room is inadequate for formal meetings. The idea is to build up on the existing Alumni Hall. To the right you will see the initial rendering of this proposed new Chapter Room as the second story to the Alumni Hall. We believe it will not only be beneficial for the undergraduate brothers but also aesthetically pleasing. If you are interested in being involved with this project, please contact Jim. Additionally, Neal Hutchinson ’84 is spearheading our effort to improve Pig Dinner and make it an event you will not want to miss. Please share your ideas with Neal. Several long-standing House Corporation members are assuming an emeritus role. I ask everyone to join me in thanking George Nolen ’70, Baker Crow ’78, Winn Kelley ’78, TJ Willings ’78, and Jim Richardson ’79 for their years of service. This group has spent countless hours promoting Theta Chapter and making it stronger—both as undergraduate brothers and as alumni. Theta Chapter would not be where it is today without their efforts. Theta Chapter of Phi Gamma Delta House Corporation President Hughston Nichols ’03 hnichols@hwnn.com Recently, I was grilling out with several pledge brothers and their families. As I looked at our children playing, I realized that four of the boys could be Theta Chapter pledge brothers in 2027. I’m sure this group is not unique and many of you know potential Theta brothers. Maybe it is a son, nephew, grandson, or family friend. My point is this: we all have a vested interest in Theta Chapter, past, present and future. We all share the history of Theta, and we all want nothing but the best for the future of Phi Gamma Delta. I thank you for the opportunity to serve as president of the House Corporation and ask that you please join me in doing everything we can in the present to continue Theta Chapter’s success for generations to come. Fraternally, Hughston Nichols ’03 House Corporation President hnichols@hwnn.com Perge! Would You Like to See Changes to Pig Dinner? We need your input. What would you like to see at Pig Dinner? • A different date? The last several years Pig Dinner has been the weekend of the A-Day game. • Would you prefer an earlier date? • Friday night versus Saturday night? INSIDE: • Would you suggest a different venue? • Do you have any ideas for speakers? • Would you attend other events on a Saturday? We are starting to plan next year’s Pig Dinner now. Please e-mail your thoughts to thetapigdinner@gmail.com or call Neal Hutchinson ’84 at (205) 871-8686. Vice President and Treasurer Clay Morris ’83 Immediate Past President Jim Andrews ’81 Members Tommy Keene ’70 Billy Bates ’78 Donny Troiano ’79 Jim Watson ’79 Mike Ballard ’80 Sid Philips ’83 Chass Horton ’83 Neal Hutchinson ’84 Thornton Hydinger ’84 Chas Pell ’85 Taylor McElroy ’95 Jonathan Wells ’03 Joe Griffin ’06 Mike Roy ’06 Purple Legionnaire Billy Pritchard ’10 Joseph Siegelman ’10 Emeritus George Nolen ’70 Baker Crow ’78 Winn Kelley ’78 TJ Willings ’78 Jim Richardson ’79 Successful Summer Lands 41 Pledges Page 2 • Alumnus Spotlight Page 3 • Alumni News Page 4 \r\nPAGE 2 THETA FIJI Successful Summer Lands 41 Pledges for Phi Gamma Delta Theta Chapter Focuses on Academics and Philanthropy for the Upcoming Year T he men of Phi Gamma Delta wrapped up another successful semester in May and look to expand on the legacy of Theta Chapter in the coming school year. We ended the summer successfully with 41 pledges from a wide variety of states (25 from in-state and 17 from eight other states). Over the last year we excelled in academics, philanthropy, and campus involvement, with our successes helping us achieve the Greek Excellence Dr. Robert Whitt Cup for Fraternity of the Year, as well as the Greek Excellence Award for University and Communications Relations. We continued our success in the classroom during the spring, finishing with a GPA of 2.97, ranking fifth among fraternities on campus. Theta Chapter is placing a major focus on academics and philanthropy this year. During the fall we will keep Phi Gamma Delta among the academic elite. project where we will gather all of the leftover game-day food in Bryant Denny Stadium and donate it to the West Alabama Food Bank. This is our first year with this project and we are very excited about it. We look to build upon last year and make an impact on campus and in the community through philanthropy over the next year. We led again in on-campus involvement during the spring, with several members being elected to leadership positions on campus. When elections roll around this year, we will strive to continue to fill these leadership roles with Phi Gams. We look forward to seeing everyone this fall for football season. Join us at the Chapter House before each home game for a pregame tailgate. Come and help us cheer on the Crimson Tide to another National Championship this year. Roll Tide! The undergraduate men expanded on our dedication to philanthropy, both on campus and in the surrounding community, in the spring. We raised over $5,000 for St. Jude Hospital through our philanthropy event with the women from Delta Delta Delta and also logged over 400 hours working as mentors at at-risk elementary schools. We have paired with the women of Alpha Gamma Delta to start a philanthropy ALUMNI NEWS Chapter Eternal Willis C. Darby Jr. ’45 passed on to Chapter Eternal on December 21, 2011. He was born in Birmingham, Ala., and graduated from Thorsby Institute High School. In 1945, during World War II, Willis graduated from the University of Alabama. While at the University of Alabama, Willis was the house manager of Phi Gamma Delta. After graduating, he received his law degree from Harvard University in 1948. Willis began his career with the National Labor Relations Board where he worked until 1956. He was preceded in death by his son, Willis III, and sister, Susan. He is survived by his wife, Priscilla; brother, Claude; son, Tony; daughters, Jackie, Annette, and Beth; and seven grandchildren. Yancey E. Lovelace Jr. ’01 entered Chapter Eternal unexpectedly of a pulmonary embolism on July 6 at the age of 36. Yancey attended the University of Alabama where he was president of the Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity. He will be remembered by his family and friends for his tender heart, contagious laugh, and wonderful sense of humor. Alumni Update Blucher H. Cooper ’54 went skydiving to celebrate his 80th birthday. He resides in Atlanta, Ga. E‑mail: blucherc@bellsouth.net Robert P. Goodsell ’56 gathered for a reunion with 12 pledge brothers from 1956-57 in May 2011. The housemother gave them a tour of the house. Robert lives in Atlanta, Ga., with his wife, Connie. They have three adult children, Rob Jr., Alex, and Constance. (Continued on page 4) Fraternally, Burnham Hawk ’13 Chapter President bshawk@crimson.ua.edu Perge! Theta Chapter Has Another Outstanding Recruitment Alumni, Submit Your Recruitment Recommendations Now T he Chapter has just wrapped up another outstanding year in recruitment with 41 pledges from eight states, including 22 from Alabama. Congratulations to Chairman Z. Jones ’13 and Assistant Chairman Paul Erhardt ’15. Both of these young men did an outstanding job. way for you to remain involved and contribute to the continued success of the Chapter. Now is the time to submit your recommendations—we anticipate having over 200 names on the recruitment list by the end of September. The best way to make a recommendation is online through our website, www.thetafiji.net. Also, please encourage candidates to make an effort to come by the Chapter House for one or more football game days. It’s a great way for the Chapter and candidates to get to know each other. As you know, recruitment is a process that never ends. We are well on our way to establishing our recruitment list for the 2013 pledge class. The recommendation of current high school seniors from our alumni is essential to our recruitment program. It is also a great We would be remiss if we didn’t acknowledge the many years of \r\nPAGE 3 THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA ALUMNUS IS LIFETIME LOYAL TO PHI GAMMA DELTA Spotlight on Joe Gamble, Upsilon Phi ’48, Theta ’50 J Chapter House, 1914 oe Gamble, Upsilon Phi ’48, Theta ’50, has the experience of membership in two chapters. His parents were raised in Alabama. In 1916, a few years after they married, they moved to Iowa, where his father practiced law until his death in 1946. Joe was born in Iowa in 1926 and lived there full time until 1937, when his parents bought a home near Monticello, Florida, as a place to retire to. He lived there part of each year until 1947, and went to school in Iowa and Florida from the fourth grade through the ninth grade. In the 10th grade he entered Riverside Military Academy in Gainesville, Georgia, and graduated in 1944. Chapter House, 1966 FIJI hard work and dedication of two recently “retired” members of our Recruitment Advisory Board, T.J. Willings ’78 and Winn Kelley ’78. Their contributions to the current success of Theta Chapter cannot be overstated. Feel free to contact us with any questions or comments at www.thetafiji.com. To recommend someone for membership, look at the bottom of the website for the link to our form. We look forward to another great year in recruitment. Perge! As he wanted to be a lawyer and live in the South, which, for him, was north Florida, his father advised him to go to the University of Florida, where he would meet more of the people he would be working with. Joe was familiar with Phi Gamma Delta, as John Geneva, Alpha Iota ’50, a friend in Iowa, had joined the chapter at Iowa State, and James Montgomery, Upsilon Phi ’49, a friend at Riverside, had joined the chapter at Florida. Joe joined Upsilon Phi, enjoyed the fellowship, and served as historian and rush chairman and as one of the Chapter’s delegates to a joint section convention in North Carolina. After his father’s death, his mother returned to Alabama, where Joe’s married sister was living. In February 1948, Joe graduated from the University of Florida, moved to Tuscaloosa, and entered law school at the University of Alabama. The members of Theta Chapter affiliated and welcomed him in March 1948. While he was in law school, he served on the Law Review and attended the 100th Ekklesia of the Fraternity. After graduating in 1950, he practiced with a firm in Birmingham until 1960, when he joined the law department of Liberty National Life Insurance Company. He served as the corporate secretary of Liberty National and its parent company, Torchmark Corporation, from 1976 until 1986 when he retired and opened a solo practice. In 1998 he retired from practicing law. Joe served as a member of Theta’s House Corporation for 35 years from 1956 until 1991 and from 1963 to 1965 as a member of the committee responsible for raising the funds and planning the new house when the old one burned. Theta has honored him three times as the Graduate of the Year and three times as the Pig Dinner speaker. He has attended most of the Pig Dinners at Theta since 1948, including the100th, 125th, and 150th, several Pig Dinners at Upsilon Phi, including their 50th in 1991, and one at Alpha Upsilon at Auburn where he was a speaker. A Pig Dinner highlight was his meeting Riverda Jordan, Yale 1893 (for whom the Jordan Scholarship Bowl is named), the speaker at the Upsilon Phi dinner in 1946. Joe attended the chartering of the chapters at LSU in 1948 and Auburn in 1962 and 10 Ekklesiai from 1948 through the 150th in 1998. He and his wife, Jane, have been happily married for over 37 years. She is a graduate of Alabama and a member of Alpha Gamma Delta. Joe is a lifelong Episcopalian, active in St. Mary’s for over 60 years as a Sunday school teacher, member of the Outreach Committee and the vestry, and junior and senior warden. He served 15 years as a director, and twice as president, of the Travelers’ Aid Society in Birmingham, a United Way agency, and about 10 years as a director of the Birmingham Hospitality Network, which hosts homeless families for a week, on a rotating basis, among a network of a synagogue and 14 churches. Joe spent most of his career as a desk lawyer writing, reading, or commenting on documents. His hobby of model trains offers a complete change of pace, allowing him to enjoy building and operating a layout depicting a part of Alabama in 1915. The Theta House Corporation and the undergraduate Chapter are extremely honored to have had such a dedicated alumnus commit so much of his time and effort to the Fraternity. We are thankful for his hard work and hope he returns to Phi Gamma Delta as often as he desires. \r\nFootball Tailgates Alumni and Families Are Invited F ootball season is upon us, so it’s time for alumni, family, friends, and potential new members to make plans to stop by the Chapter House. Tailgates begin two hours prior to kickoff, with plenty of food, beverages, and entertainment. We promise a good time will be had by all. So check the football schedule and make plans to visit the house to see old friends or make new ones. We look forward to seeing you this fall. Go to the Facebook page or www.thetafiji.com for detailed game-day schedules. 2012 Alabama Football September 22 September 29 October 27 November 10 November 17 November 24 THETA FIJI PHI GAMMA DELTA THETA CHAPTER P.O. Box 131385 Birmingham, AL 35213 Address Service Requested Florida Atlantic Mississippi Mississippi State Texas A&M Western Carolina Auburn ALUMNI NEWS (Continued from page 2) William F. Hill ’57 retired in 2011 as owner of The Hill Architectural Group. After retiring, he became involved with a new company that develops columbariums. William lives in Florence, Ala., with his wife, Sylvia. They have two daughters, Karen and Mary. E‑mail: w‑hill@comcast.net C. Crisman Brown ’69 is owner of The 501 Group in Birmingham, Ala. He serves as communications director for Canterbury United Methodist Church and is director of Alabama LifeStart for the Children’s Hospital of Alabama. Cris and his wife, Judy, live in Birmingham. They have two adult children, Matthew and Laura. E‑mail: ccbrown@charter.net Scott B. Couch ’87 serves as the groundwater protection chief for the state water resources control board in Sacramento, Calif. He and his wife, Stephanie, have two sons, Benjamin and Jacob. They reside in Sacramento. E‑mail: sbairdcouch@gmail.com E. James House III ’87 joined First Bank in August 2011 to develop a community bank-lending channel in Memphis, Tenn. He lives in Memphis with his wife, Katherine. They have two children, Jim IV and Olivia. E‑mail: jhousenbc@aol.com Phillip F. Bowling Jr. ’04 is an X‑ray technician at Brookwood Medical Center. He is also a firefighter and EMT for Rocky Ridge Fire Department. He resides in Vestavia, Ala. E‑mail: bowlingjr21@ gmail.com George I. O’Rear Jr. ’04 moved back to Birmingham after living in Little Rock, Ark., for two years where he worked for Crews & Associates investment firm. He now has his own Crews & Associates office in Birmingham. He has one son, Cooper. E‑mail: gorearjr@crewsfs.com Peyton Yarbrough ’09 attends optometry school at the University of Alabama‑Birmingham. He will graduate in 2014. E‑mail: cpyarbrough@gmail.com www.ThetaFiji.com ATTENTION: This newsletter is intended for Phi Gamma Delta alumni and parents. If your son is still attending The University of Alabama, he will receive a copy at the Chapter House. If he has graduated, please send us his permanent address to update our records. Thank you. WELCOME, 2012 PLEDGE CLASS Westin Amick* Memphis, Tenn. (Brother Matthew Amick ’12) Coulter Anderson Dallas, Texas Matthew Anderson* Homewood, Ala. (Brother Robert Anderson ’14) Tyler Barker Memphis, Tenn. Jason Bellows* Memphis, Tenn. (Brother Ryan Bellows ’13) Clay Bright* Nashville, Tenn. (Father H. Clay Bright III ’83) Chess Clements Montgomery, Ala. Reeb Cochran Fort Worth, Texas Kohler Damson Huntsville, Ala. Stuart Falls Tuscaloosa, Ala. Spencer Gruber Memphis, Tenn. Tucker Helms Montgomery, Ala. Mark Hollenbeck Little Rock, Ark. Forrest Hook Montgomery, Ala. Hunter Hospes Vestavia, Ala. Cole Ihrig Tyler, Texas Garrett Jones* Huntsville, Ala. (Brother Parker Jones ’12) Sawyer Knowles* Montgomery, Ala. (Brother Win Knowles) Hunter Ladd Fort Worth, Texas Jonathan Laufe Pittsburgh, Pa. Gabriel Lipson* Nashville, Tenn. (Brother Jordan Lipson ’14) Visit our website to find updates on alumni events, Chapter activities, and to recommend someone for membership. Reed Loeffel* Nashville, Tenn. (Brother William Loeffel ’12) Connor McCarthy Denver, Colo. Hayden Melkerson Huntsville, Ala. Louis Miller Brewton, Ala. Douglas Nabors Mountain Brook, Ala. Brooks Neely* Vestavia, Ala. (Brother Ross Neely ’12) Ryan O’Connor San Antonio, Texas Davidson Payne Huntsville, Ala. Walker Phillips* Mountain Brook, Ala. (Father Sidney T. Phillips ’83) Corbin Potter Vestavia, Ala. Cole Preston* Homewood, Ala. (Brother Charles Preston ’13) Robby Romagnoli Orlando, Fla. Georgie Salem Vestavia, Ala. Collin Shuttle Louisville, Ky. Robert Smith* Huntsville, Ala. (Father Bob Frank Smith ’88) Forrest Taylor Montgomery, Ala. Tucker Thames* Mobile, Ala. (Father Joseph Thames ’72) Scott Waterhouse Boston, Mass. Alex Way Tuscaloosa, Ala. Harry Woosley Nashville, Tenn. Theta Chapter Facebook Page Go to www.facebook.com and search for Theta Fiji, or click on the Facebook link on our website.