Phi Gamma Delta Mu Upsilon 61st Norris Pig Dinner 2018 Brothers, The tradition of the Norris Pig Dinner constantly demonstrates what separates our Fraternity from the others. No other Greek organization has continuously run a successful annual graduate event like we do. Our sense of brotherhood and friendship displays that being a FIJI isn’t for college days alone. Brothers come from all over the country for a weekend of hanging with old buddies, meeting undergraduate members and celebrating our chapter’s excellence. 84 alumni ranging from class of ’59 to ‘17 attended the dinner. FIJI started off the weekend with a catered event at the Left Field Tavern where everyone reconnected while eating the tasty food. The Fijis then joined together at the house for a networking session Saturday morning. Undergraduate brothers had the opportunity to learn more about careers and establish valuable relationships with alumni. There were rooms in the house designated for different majors and fields of the work force. Following the networking session, the brothers then met for a House Corporation meeting to discuss the leadership success the chapter displayed after a challenging semester. The meeting also included financial updates regarding the house and potential additions to it. The 61st Annual Norris Pig Dinner was held at the Armstrong Student Center and was an enjoyable time for everyone. The newest pledge class chanted the song as they brought the pig up to the front of the room. Like always, each member of the newest class kissed the rear end of the pig. The youngest member of the class, Gianmarco Mignogni, was the last to kiss the pig on the rear end. After that, the oldest Fiji, Chuck Goodwill class of ’59, kissed the pig on the snout. Following the meal the two keynote Continued on page 2. \r\nPhi Gamma Delta – Mu Upsilon Continued from page 1. speakers, Ben and Sam Hicks (2016), gave speeches about what being a Fiji means to them and their favorite memories at Miami. The chapter president, Neil Shaw, also spoke and gave out a few gifts as thanks for all the help our chapter received this year. Last but not least, our Purple Legionnaire Allan Payne, spoke about how our chapter’s exceptional leadership has allowed us to be successful in the past and going forward. 2 With the conclusion of yet another successful Pig Dinner weekend, the Brothers of Phi Gamma Delta Mu Upsilon would like to thank Allan Payne, Pig Dinner Co-Chairperson Warren Soare, Mike McGurk, Mike Bevis and all of the chapter officers for helping with a great weekend. Perge! Pig Dinner Co-Chairperson, Blake Schlesner \r\n61st Norris Pig Dinner 2018 A large number of Fiji graduate brothers returned for Pig Dinner 2018. Because this dinner followed last year’s 60th Big Pig Dinner, we estimated that in this off-year about 75 grads would return to Oxford. We were pleasantly surprised that 84 grads attended (67 grads pre-registered and another 17 paid at the door) Others Fijis were in town on Friday or Saturday but were unable to attend the dinner. Our theme of “Bring Back a Brother” worked as nearly every graduating class was represented. This large turnout of Miami Fijis showed once again our strong bonds of brotherhood and friendship and that “Phi Gamma Delta is not for college days alone.” The FIJI graduate brothers on the House Corporation, Board of Chapter Advisors, and the Class Agents were helpful by encouraging their brothers to return for Pig Dinner weekend. We appreciated the assistance from the Miami Alumni Office to plan the dinner and International Headquarters to collect he money. Warren Soare worked on the dinner for eleven months but he was in a serious car accident which totaled his car eight days before the dinner. He was treated and released from the hospital but physically unable to return for Pig Dinner. Fortunately Mike McGurk took over as the Graduate Co-Chairperson. He coordinated the dinner with Blake Schlesner, the Undergraduate Chairperson, who began in December to work effectively on this event. Thanks to Warren, Mike and Blake for coordinating a great Pig Dinner! Plan now to return for Pig Dinner 2019 on 4/27/19. You can reserve a room for that day in the discounted PGD block of rooms in the Elms Hotel or the Sycamore Best Western. 3 \r\nA Letter From the President End of Slant Year End This past semester, the brothers of the Mu Upsilon Chapter of Phi Gamma Delta were happy to welcome 29 new members to our brotherhood. These individuals stand for our core values of what it means to be a Fiji. We are looking forward to seeing all of them grow as young men with the time they have at Miami and beyond. Our chapter continues to grow and remain one of the top on this campus. This would not be possible without the outstanding effort that has been put forth by our undergrads. Specifically, I would like to mention the hard work and dedication of the cabinet. Will Poston (2019), Graham DeLaney (2019), Michael Brigeman (2020), and Justin Sadler (2019) have been great leaders within this chapter. Not only these individuals, but also our House Corp, PL Allan Payne, and Life Coach Jim Menninger deserve recognition for their terrific efforts. The past year for the brothers of Mu Upsilon Chapter of Phi Gamma Delta has been tremendous. There continues to be great leaders within our own chapter as well as involvement in outside Fiji Basketball This past semester, the Fiji basketball team won their 4th Basketbrawl championship in the last 5 years. This single elimination tournament is a philanthropy event run by Kappa Alpha Theta. The Fijis won each game in decisive fashion and were led by senior and former Chapter President, Thomas Staley (2018). The championship basketball now resides inside the display case in the chapter house main hallway. 4 organizations. As our sights are focused on the upcoming year, we look forward to continue to be leaders within our Greek community of Miami. The brothers of Mu Upsilon have strived for greatness in the past, and we plan to continue on this path moving forward. Neil Shaw (2019) Chapter President Perge! Drop the Puck \r\nA Letter from the Purple Legionnaire Brothers: Spring semester was chaotic and frustrating as we again went through more hassles with Miami. That’s the negative. The positive is that we took a 28-man pledge class and we are now 105 strong. We have an intensely involved House Corporation, Purple Legionnaire and Life Coach. Graduate relations are much stronger than the last 20 years, as evidenced by 10 former chapter presidents attending our April Pig Dinner! For the past 2 years Jim Menninger (our “Life Coach”) and I have taken the Cabinet and succession planning u-grads to an outdoor camp to do zip-line, paint-ball, ropes, & knocker-ball. This Fall on Sept 14-15 we will be going to the “PVM Outdoor Wilderness Retreat”. On Friday night the 14th, we will be addressing Fall and Spring goals, particularly “rush,” academics, risk management, and House up-keep. Saturday will just “flat-out” be waaaaaay too much testosterone going on, particularly in Knocker-Ball. Mu Upsilon has excelled in Philanthropy with “Drop-the-Puck,” its signature event. Likewise, interfraternity sports has been our “playground” the last couple years (campus champs in basketball, hockey and softball). I asked Drew Davis of the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life (and an MU Fiji!) how we are known on campus. He said the Fijis are “socially influential”. Ummmmmmm, kinda’ like that. We definitively have things to escalate. We will be putting on a “full-court press” this fall in identifying upper-classmen for fall recruiting, and freshmen for spring recruitment. Our goal is a 40 man pledge class in January. Additionally, we will be offering much more leadership training this fall, and Jim and I will be doing mock interviews with any u-grads that want to be critiqued. Morale at Mu Upsilon is high. I wish every one of you could see it. I’m still hyped to work with these guys. Honestly, I see it as a blessing. Allan Payne Perge! Brothers Phi Gamma Delta Mu Upsilon Chapter Board of Chapter Advisors Meeting Your Board of Trustees protects the property at 130 East Street and the Board of Chapter Advisors plays a major role in assuring that Phi Gamma Delta remains strong and vibrant on Miami’s campus. So why do we need a Board of Chapter Advisors (BCA)? Miami has more oversight on fraternities than ever before. Many of your board members live pretty far away from Oxford and might only make it back for Pig Dinner or Miami’s Alumni Weekend. We need more onsite assistance frequently. Allan Payne does an excellent job as your Purple Legionnaire and is on campus weekly. The BCA reports to Alphonse and advises the chapter on specific areas like Pig Dinner, housing contracts and other committee areas. They will also meet with Jim Menninger our life coach at the house. Our BCA consists of the following brothers: Chris Anderson (Rose Hulman 1999) – West Chester, OH, will handle academics and scholarship Sam Hicks (2017) – Cincinnati, OH Ian Huron (2017) – Cincinnati, OH Matt Kuchers (1982) – Delaware, OH, Leadership development Other areas where the BCA will be of assistance includes admin, operations, finances, graduate relations, pledge assistance, public relations, ritual, and goal setting. This is an excellent step forward as we need the assistance. Drew Davis (2008) – Oxford, will be our risk management chair Most recently, Alphonse called a BCA meeting in July and addressed the major issues at hand. The group met on Saturday, July 21, and divided the Brian Gravitt (1991) – Mason, OH, rush chair Continued on page 7. 5 \r\nBrother Ted Goble Elected to Miami University’s Athletic Hall of Fame! It is a pleasure to announce the selection of Ted Goble to the Miami Athletics Hall of Fame! Ted and six others will be inducted the weekend of August 31-Sepember 1 with a banquet Friday night and recognition at halftime of the football game on Saturday. The many letters and testimonies of support were significant in the selection process. Thanks to all of you! We look forward to seeing you at the Hall of Fame Weekend! Love and Honor, Pete Lindsay (1972) I wish to give my strongest recommendation for Ted Goble to be recognized for his swimming accomplishments, leadership, and continuing financial support and limitless encouragement for Miami Men’s Swimming and Diving. Several of my teammates will be giving different aspects of Ted’s great endeavors from the day he stepped on campus to the current day in promotion of his selection. I hope to share a very important facet of his alumni support, to give this committee a full understanding of his love and support to Miami Swimming, far beyond his many great accomplishments in the pool. The MU Athletic Department has been recently promoting the strong image of “Graduating Champions”. Ted is a Champion. Not only with 4 MAC swimming events (Swimming allowed only 3 years of varsity eligibility until the early ‘70’s) , but also providing incredible team leadership and backing especially for the ’67 and ’68 teams which became and remain the only men’s swimming team to have won back-to-back MAC Championships. Other past team members will elaborate on these phases of Ted’s influences, past and current. Late in the 1990’s, Miami Athletics was at a crossroads - several men’s teams were going to be discontinued. The Board of Trustees asked for 6 the teams in jeopardy to develop a presentation to the Board in an open session. Ted found out about this and immediately contacted me and several other past graduates of Miami Swimming and Diving. He already had a plan in mind and gave this effort the motto “Save the Whale”, which had significance to those of us on the ’67 and ’68 championship teams. We developed an email list of well over 200 past and current swimmers and divers. The outpouring of dismay and disenchantment with Miami was incredible – how could a fine university eliminate an Olympic sport? The communication lines had been opened – teammates became teammates over the years, regardless of graduation date. Ted surely made 1000’s of visits, calls, and emails to MU swimming alumni from the 1954 initial year to that year’s active team, coached by Pete Lindsay, who was also strongly involved in the ’67 and ’68 teams. Ideas and plans for our defense presentation were bantered back and forth, but not everyone who desired to speak would be permitted to present. Letters, emails, and telephone calls were made to the Board and to anyone involved with the decisions. Hundreds of thoughtful letters of support were mailed to the Board. Ted led the charge, encouraging everyone to write, telling how important Miami Swimming was to each of us. One Board member showed the stack of swimmers’/divers’ letters at the John Russell, Hall of Fame swimmer and All American swimmer class of ‘68 and Ted Goble night of the defense and he stated that it was over 2 feet tall. It was a tough night; we were competing for survival against other varsity sports at Miami. Tears and anger were common emotions shown by those from all the teams defending their sports. Ted had laid out a plan so that those of us speaking swimmers would not be repeating the same testimonies – each of us had a specific facet to present as to why swimming was (and remains) a very important part of Miami. Miami Men’s Swimming and Diving presented our case solidly and successfully. Ted was told a few days after that evening that swimming was one of the sports that would not be cancelled. He contacted as many of us as he could as soon as he became aware. This was perhaps the best championship the MU Swimming had ever won – our survival. If Ted had not taken the reins and led us to an organized defense, the result would likely not be one of success. Those of us heavily involved with Miami Swimming realize that Ted Goble was the primary reason for its survival. Ted is undeniably a Champion. The “Whale” was indeed saved. \r\nBack to School 2018-2019 The 2018-2019 Miami University school year will be kicked off on Sunday, August 26, with an “All House Meeting” to be held in the White Star Café. All undergrads will be treated to grilled burgers, chips and bottled water supplied by the graduates. all FIJI values, goals and initiatives. House Corp president Mike Bevis will discuss how the House Corporation and Board of Chapter Advisors work together to assure Phi Gamma Delta remains strong at Miami. This will be the third annual “Back to School” all hands meeting. The Allan Payne, Purple Legionnaire will begin the meeting by reviewing rules and regulations for the house will be reviewed. The policies of no alcohol and no smoking in the house will be strictly enforced. We cannot afford any problems with the city of Oxford or Miami University. All undergraduate brothers are required to attend and all graduate brothers are invited. The meeting begins at 4 p.m. FIJIS Investigated and Interviewed During Spring 2018 On February 20, 2018, your board of trustees received an email from Phi Gamma Delta International stating that our chapter (along with three other fraternities) was being investigated by Miami University for serious hazing allegations. We were told to cease all pledge activities immediately until the university and the Fraternity can investigate. We were told: • No formal or informal pledge education meetings or activities could occur • Pledges were not allowed in the chapter house Needless to say, your board and Purple Legionnaire were both deflated and at a loss on what had just happened. We had just selected a pledge class of 35 and had also just begun the pledge training process. It is amazing that we eventually initiated about 27 brothers. Your board and Executive Committee met more frequently as we worked hard to save our chapter from any suspension or probation. Many meetings with both Miami and International occurred over the next two plus months. All pledges were interviewed by Miami and Phi Gamma Delta • No undergraduate brothers were and on the eve of Pig Dinner, allowed to communicate with Friday, April 27, we were cleared pledges and we were not allowed of any wrong doing. However, it to communicate with pledges seems to be the way of the world to inform them of the suspension today. Anyone can submit an of activities. anonymous letter or phone call stating that there is wrong doing in any fraternity. This policy will be Continued from page 5. duties for the upcoming school year. This photo shows them hard at work in the house library. Our two biggest areas of attention this year will be rush and academics. While the BCA members are not members of the board, they serve as an excellent breeding ground for future board members. If you know these brothers, please reach out and thank them enforced and we must work even harder to stay in good stead with the university and International. As we go forward, it is absolutely critical that our recruitment procedure work hard to find young men of good moral character. This is one of the imperatives that our Purple Legionnaire and BCA have on their list of priorities for 2019. Along with this, the university expects us to invest both time and efforts in volunteering and philanthropy in the community throughout the school year. Through the efforts of our graduate brothers, our Purple Legionnaire, our Life Coach, our Board of Trustees and our Board of Chapter Advisors, we will assure that our young men live to our values and make a positive impact on our college and our community. Mike Bevis (1970) President House Corp Gallery for stepping forward to help our house. It’s a different world out there today brothers. Different than we were at Miami. These BCA brothers are motivated to give the highest attention and mentoring necessary to help 130 East High Street be the best! Allan Payne (1969) Mike Bevis (1970) “Trapper and Ollies” Not for college days alone! 7 \r\nPhi Gamma Delta Fraternity Mu Upsilon at Miami University 1201 Red Mile Road P.O. Box 4599 Lexington, KY 40544 Nonprofit Org US Postage Paid Lexington, KY Permit # 540 THE END OF THE SLANT SUMMER 2018 MU UPSILON CHAPTER AT MIAMI UNIVERSITY Save the Weekend of April 27, 2019 Including Friday, Saturday and Sunday events (more information will follow). Mu Upsilon of Phi Gamma Delta presents the FRANK NORRIS PIG DINNER In the Marcum Center