RAINSTORM The B 2014 2013 PHI GAMMA DELTA ALPHA IOTA \r\nLetter from the President Greetings fellow Phi Gams, First and foremost, the undergraduate chapter thanks you all for setting the bright examples that we work diligently to follow, and strive to even improve for those to come after us. If in 50 years the graduate brothers of Phi Gamma Delta give themselves as our graduate brothers do now, the chapter will be thriving with tradition and the brotherhood, somehow, even stronger. Imagine what the immortal six would think if they knew the traditions are alive and growing today. Their work was done in silence and secrecy due to the nature of Greek organizations at the time, but the outcomes were that which pushed mankind to higher places. Imagine what Edward “Pa” Prince (1902) would do for the men at 325 Ash Ave if he were alive today. Our tradition of the Norris Pig Dinner is coming once again on April 26th – 27th. Your brothers would love to see you there to reconnect once again and celebrate our Fraternity’s traditions. So that the mankind can benefit and so that the world is a better place we build upon our brotherhood and never cease adding to it and support our brothers as they become better men, our chapter just happens to be the way that we do it. Our brother Nate Burger (’16) has been charged with the duty of recruiting new Fijis to our chapter. We all believe in Nate, but the recruitment team cannot do it alone. Spread your great experiences of Fiji, and continue making new ones. It takes the whole brotherhood to recruit. If you know of a man that is fit to be a gentleman of Phi Gamma Delta at Alpha Iota or elsewhere, please contact Nate at (712) 212-5471. The continued success of the men here seed from you, our graduate brothers. With the chapter house near capacity and the undergraduates at 84 members and climbing, we can’t possibly point out everyone’s great achievements. Our brothers are the presidents of other clubs on campus (David Moore ‘15, Dustin Blount ‘16), we play key roles in university community service efforts (Dance Marathon, Relay for Life) and we’re pursuing the careers of our dreams (Bobby Dunteman ‘16, Alex Menke ‘16). With Greek Week, VEISHEA, Norris Pig Dinner, Spring Break and more ahead of us, we are planning for yet another busy spring semester. The traditions of Greek Week are continuing this time with our team including the women of Alpha Omicron Pi and Phi Beta Chi as well as the men of Theta Xi. Our Greek Week leaders are working hard to prepare our chapters for the competition that brings all of Greekland together. Brothers, once again your undergraduate brothers thank you. 107 years of success don’t come from just one generation of proud Fijis, but from many generations of proud brotherhood, persistence and determination. Fraternally, Trenton Purdy ’16 President Pergé! 1 \r\nRecruitment Update Recruitment this year was headed by Thomas Peetz (15’) and Nicholas Wells (16’). Our recruitment season began in April with Greek Getaway. We had ten different incoming freshmen stay with us over the two days, and eventually signed five of them, which was on par with the great precedent set by last summer. We spent the month of May on the phones, calling potential new members and trying to get them to stop by during their orientation sessions, or even stay with us rather than in the dorms. Our time on the phones proved to be well spent, as we brought our total up to 15 by the end of June, when orientation sessions end. Next, we travelled to Illinois, stopping on our way to Chicago in Peoria for a night to meet with a PNM from that area. Once in Chicago we met with all the potential new members that we knew in the area. To entice them, we invited them all to a White Sox game that evening. After our trip to Illinois we had twenty one signed men. Once school started, we began finding interested men around campus. Many of the men that we had spoken with over the summer that were unsure of Fiji, had changed their mind and wanted to sign. Two weeks after the semester began we ended Fall Recruitment with thirty two good guys in the class of 2017. In July, we began our travels around the Midwest. First, we drove up to Minneapolis where we stayed with Dan Donatucci (‘12), who graciously offered us a place in his home. We spent three days in Minnesota meeting with guys we have talked to on the phone or through email. The following weekend, we traveled to Shellsburg, Iowa to play paintball with a few guys from that area. Paintballing was a huge success; we had 22 potential new members attend in all. We would like to thank the graduates for everything they did for us, they were a great help. We would also like to note that if any of you have sons, nephews, or even grandkids that are attending Iowa State to please have them consider Fiji and get their contact information to us so we can show them around the house. Yours Truly, Thomas Peetz ‘15 2 \r\nGraduate Relations 106th Annual Norris Pig Dinner The 106th Annual Norris Pig Dinner is fast approaching and there is a lot to be excited about this year. Gather up your fellow brothers and come to this year’s Pig Dinner, so we can get a big turnout this year! Pig Dinner is scheduled for Saturday, April 26th, 2014 at the Ames Golf and Country Club. On Friday, April 25th there will be a dinner gathering for people that want to start their weekend off early being back in Ames. That night will be a great time to catch up with fellow brothers at the new Blue Owl Bar in Campustown where we have a block of time set up just for FIJI’s. On Saturday, there will be a lot going on at the house including brunch, House Corp meetings, and, of course, the annual photo. Then, at 6:00 PM, there will be a cocktail hour at the country club before dinner begins at 7:00 PM. Peter McNally (’90) will be our Toastmaster this year. Cost for registration is $85 when registered before April 1st or $100 when registered any time after April 1st. Please RSVP through our mail invitations or by going to eventbrite.com. It would be great to have as many people as we can for this year’s Pig Dinner. If there are any questions or concerns please contact me at stahulak@iastate. edu or aifijigradrelations@gmail.com. Sincerely, Grant Stahulak ‘16 3 \r\n2013-2014 Cabinet Historian: Mike is a junior Corresponding Secretary: from Cedar Rapids, IA majoring in Chemical Engineering with a minor in Nutrition Science. He hopes to work in the food industry or go to graduate school after attaining his Bachelor’s degree from Iowa State. He is also extremely proud of his super power is his ability to cook minute rice in 57 seconds. Caleb is a sophomore from Bloomington, MN majoring in Construction Engineering. This semester, he is helping write a “green” retrofit proposal for a national competition. He is also a firm believer Sean Connery was the best James Bond. President: Trent is a sophomore from Eden Prairie, MN majoring in Marketing and Supply Chain Management with a minor in Entrepreneurial Studies. He someday hopes to live in the Pacific Northwest. Recording Secretary: Treasurer: Isaac is a sophomore from Des Moines, IA majoring in Accounting. He enjoys excel spreadsheets and golfing in his free time while constantly trying to live up to his dad’s (Mark Cowan ‘86) high expectations. Patrick is a junior from Sibley, IA majoring in Kinesiology with an emphasis on Pre-Health. Upon graduating from Iowa State, he plans to attend medical school in pursuit of a career in anesthesia. Patrick is the proud owner of a 220-gallon saltwater fish tank that currently resides in Fiji’s basement. 4 \r\n2013 Fall Pledge Class By Eli McKeever ‘17 Last fall, Alpha Iota welcomed 27 pledges to 325 Ash Ave. Brought together by recruitment chairs Thomas Peetz (15’) and Nick Wells (15’), this group contains freshmen, sophomores, and juniors from a variety of backgrounds. From transfer students, to student athletes, legacies (Nick Arnold, Max Bush, and Matt Delanoit) to newcomers, we are a diverse group. Despite our differences, we were all brought together by our interest in the ideals of Phi Gamma Delta. Our semester began quickly and was spent in the company of the men of Alpha Iota: playing sand volleyball, grilling in the Pit, and getting to know each other. Soon, preparation started for Iowa State University’s Homecoming festivities. This included Yell Like Hell, a five minute skit performed with our Homecoming pairing, the lovely ladies of Delta Zeta and the men of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. The long weeks of preparation for this event helped bring the pledge class together and foster friendships with other Greeks. However, our interaction with other Greeks was not limited to Iowa State. In an effort to connect us to other Fijis, some of the brothers of Alpha Iota helped the pledge class to organize a trip to the Chi Deuteron Fiji chapter at Kansas State University. The experience was very rewarding, and resulted in the establishment of new friendships and a greater respect for The International Fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta. These events and more have helped to shape our pledge class into fraternity gentlemen, worthy to be called Fijis. \r\nScholarship By Peter Batdorf ‘16 This past semester has been one of academic shortcomings. We received a poor overall house GPA, however, a few outliers achieved scholastic excellence to give our chapter hope moving forward. Our house GPA average was 2.83, 0.06 below the All Men’s average. We always strive for excellence, but inexcusably we should be average. One factor of our GPA can attributed towards our New Member average- 2.69, the lowest freshman average our chapter has seen in years. This noted, we are greatly vamping up our freshman scholarship program so that next fall freshman GPA will be much higher. Although this GPA was a hit, we will take it in stride and look for ways to greatly improve our scholastic techniques. We are a brotherhood, through successes and failures alike. Despite our house GPA, there is some good news to lift our spirits. As a chapter, we had 15 members placed on the Dean’s List (3.5 minimum GPA for that semester). Furthermore, Brother Eli Krambreer (former President, Historian and Archon; Class of 2013) and Brother Derek Huser (former Corresponding Secretary, President; Class of 2014) were both inducted into the Order of Omega. This Greek honor society only takes those who are involved on campus, in the Greek community and receive a GPA of at least 3.4 cumulative. It is an honor that our chapter now has two brothers among their order. \r\nHomecoming The theme for homecoming 2013 was, Homecoming 101: Keeping the Traditions alive. Phi Gamma Delta paired with Delta Zeta sorority and Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. The efforts and time put in by all members led to a very fun and fulfilling homecoming. As a community service pairing, we participated in the ISU Blood Drive, the 5K Color Run, and sent emails raising awareness for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Aside from that, a traditional Yell Like Hell skit was composed which took a spin off The Princess and the Frog. The final component of homecoming this year was the tournaments. Our pairing competed greatly in various athletic competitions including basketball, soccer, and treds football. Robert Dunteman ‘16 7 \r\nPhilanthropy The gentlemen of the Alpha Iota Chapter ran it’s annual fall Philanthropy, The FIJI S’More Roast in October raising over $2300 for the USO. Beating last years total by over $100. Raising money for the USO means so much more for this chapter as one of our members, Francesco Coco, is a veteran of the Afghanistan war. He has brought back many stories and life lessons that has helped many brothers and pledges become the young, successful men that they are today. Patrick Conness ‘15 8 \r\nGreek Week After many years of participating and having a great time in Greek Week events, the brothers of Alpha Iota had a break through spring, garnering respect and recognition from the rest of the Greek Community. Led by Brice Ballentine (2014), Ricky Williams (2013), Jack Fletcher (2013) and Chris Teney (2013), the Fiji’s, with the help of Beta Theta Pi Fraternity and the newly reformed Kappa Delta Sorority, set new standards for Greek Weeks to come. The senior class set the standard by being incredibly involved in events, and leading the way through co-chairing. Seniors Chris Teney and Ricky Williams, acting as the Lip Sync cochairs, led the pairing to places no Fiji pairing has gone in nearly a decade: Lip Sync Finals. With the theme of “Monsters University” the skit starred Alex Menke (2016) as Frank N. Stein, Eli Krambeer (2013) and Evan Brooks (2013). Sacrificing much of his time and his basement, Senior Jack Fletcher spent much of his time designing and creating the Greek Week banner and All-Greek banner with the help of those willing to volunteer. Jack spent many a nights without sleep due to sheer dedication to the cause! Along with their Lip Sync success, members of Alpha Iota placed well in Greek Olympics by finishing near the top in Bed Race, Road Race, Dizzy-Dizzy-Duck and L.A.R.P. With many of the younger members in the house learning the ways of Greek Week and stepping up into vacant leadership roles through it, the house is poised to perform well for years to come while riding of the huge momentum gained in 2013. By Rickey Williams ‘13 \r\n \r\nReggie’s Sleep-out By Caleb Bonderer ‘16 Every fall a there is a community service event called Reggie’s Sleep-out which takes place in Drake University’s football stadium. People go on a Saturday night and sleep on the stadium’s turf, under the stars, to raise awareness for children’s homelessness in the Des Moines area. We have sent brothers and pledges to this for a few years now but had the highest attendance in 2013. Twenty-one guys related to 325 Ash Avenue drove to Des Moines on November 16th and volunteered their time and money for this event. 11 This is even more notable because at about 5am on the 17th, while everyone was outside sleeping, it began to rain. Despite this, the men of Phi Gamma Delta showed persistence and roughed it out for another two hours, when the event concluded. The event raised a total of $133,840 to fight homelessness. If you’d like more details on Reggie’s Sleep-out in general you can visit their website at www.reggiessleepout.org. \r\nMeet A Member Co-op With Cargill By Alex Menke ‘16 My name is Alex Menke and I am a sophomore majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Currently, I am away from Iowa State on an eight-month work experience co-op with Cargill Inc. The plant I am working at, in Eddyville, Iowa, is a corn milling and processing plant. Here my position is defined as a Project Management Engineer. In this role, I am given projects throughout the whole plant that vary from fixing an inefficient process to designing a new, safer way to perform maintenance work. Depending on the time of the year, this can be very difficult, because there are many spring projects under construction at Cargill. After a contractor is selected, construction begins. During this phase, I stay near the work area to make sure the progress matches up with what the design looks like. Overall, I am very happy with my position and what I am doing. I feel that it will be a great learning experience and will help put my engineering schoolwork in to perspective. After receiving the initial scope of the project, it is my job to acquire information and specifications about the project. This includes going out to the plant and investigating the project area, figuring out why the project needs done, who is affected by the malfunctioning process, and locating any drawings or sketches of the area. Then, I start to formulate possible solutions to the problem. This phase takes quite a while, because not only do I need to come up with new solutions, I need to consult the people that will be affected by this new solution in order to see what ideas they have about it. If needed, I will contact an outside engineering firm to create a final design. Once the design is decided upon and drawn up, it is then time to find contractors that will do the 12 \r\nTHIN LN THE WEIRD Pr ISTENCE. Beacsceun Ley ce csi A Ny} WILL NOT. THEWORED IS FUTL Lee EDI nicre PERSIST, Bah EtG ALONE cee Paes ON Ge Me ssa >: we ee. 30™ PRESID oN “THE UNITED STATES OF AM BRIG: \r\nIn Loving Memory Thomas Michael Foster June 27, 1942 - December 19, 2013 Iowa State Class of 1964 Thomas Michael Foster Loving husband for fifty years, dedicated father and grandfather, accomplished businessman, patron of the arts and international traveler passed away peacefully at his home in Novato on December 19, 2013 due to complications related to pancreatic cancer. Born in Ottumwa, Iowa on June 27, 1942 to John and Margaret Foster, Tom spent most of his youth in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Iowa State in 1964 and an MBA from Stanford University in 1968. He and his wife moved to Mill Valley in 1969 where they raised three children and became active members of the community. In his career, Tom quickly became a partner at a large accounting firm. He later worked as a financial consultant with various domestic and international clients. Tom also brought his business acumen to the Marin Theater Company, as its President, and to Bank of Marin, where he sat as a board member until his death. Tom greatly enjoyed the outdoors and spent time playing golf, sailing, skiing and hiking. Accompanied by his wife, he recently completed the Tahoe Rim Trail. Tom Foster is survived by his wife, Cynthia, their three children, David (Wendy), John (Gabrielle) and Katherine (Tom), and six grandchildren. The family suggests memorial donations to pancreatic cancer research. A celebration of life will take place in early 2014. Arrangements entrusted to Keaton’s Mortuary. \r\nAvpHa Tota =| = Put Gamma Detta” =| ~—- 3325 ASH AVENUE