Has it really been 30 years?
May. 14th, 2013 10:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
poltr1Last month was the 30th anniversary of my initiation into the Delta Chi Fraternity. I know, I don't strike people as the typical fraternity man -- good-looking, rich, charismatic. But our group didn't fit the traditional mold, either.
So, how did I fall in with this band of brothers? It started with my sister. She joined Chi Omega Womens' Fraternity in the fall of her freshman year, in 1979, at SUNY/Buffalo ("UB" for short). In the fall of '82, she was dating a guy from Sigma Phi Epsilon. I think I went to one of their parties that fall, and met several of their members. Soon afterward, they broke up. (I've heard that had I pledged Sig-Ep that semester, I would have been blackballed because of this breakup.) The following semester, she was dating a guy from Delta Chi. So I checked them out.
The D-Chis were a bunch of regular guys. There was plenty of cultural diversity -- Juan from Ecuador, Riffin from Haiti, "Nick the Greek" from downstate NY, Woo Huyn ("Teddy") from South Korea -- that I didn't see in the other groups. They had different majors, and different interests. One of the guys was into D&D, a few were into progressive rock. And a few of the local alumni formed a housing corporation and purchased a house about 3 blocks from the UB Main St. Campus, in a residential neighborhood that had plenty of students living there. The house was painted bright yellow -- the paint cans said "Voltage Yellow" -- so that it would stand out. After liking what I saw, and thinking I could fit in, I pledged.
During the time I was an associate member, I learned about the history of the fraternity, the Greek alphabet, and learned about the chapter's members. We had team-building activities as well. One was a brothers-vs.-pledges game of "Capture The Flag" where the playing field was the chapter house. We had to retrieve an artifact from the house and take it to Baird Point -- a geographic point of interest on the UB Amherst Campus -- and get a picture of us with the artifact. And we accomplished our mission that night.
I won't get into details about the initiation ritual, other than that it took place on a Saturday night, and where we held it. The chapter was able to obtain the use of the Moot Court room in O'Brien Hall, the home of the UB Law School, for the ceremony that evening. Since Delta Chi was originally a law fraternity when we were founded in 1890, it was very appropriate for the setting. It was one of the more significant things I've done in my lifetime.
I stayed with the chapter for 5 years, until I graduated in '88. I served as the chapter 'C' (corresponding secretary) and 'E' (alumni secretary), produced an alumni newsletter, made a couple of composite photos of the brothers, went on several road trips to other chapters (Cornell, Penn State, Miami U, Hobart). After graduation, I served as the group's 'BB' (alumni advisor) for 2 years. I attended the National Convention in 1990 -- the fraternity's centennial -- and met one of our more famous alumni: Kevin Costner.
Sadly, the Buffalo chapter closed in 1991. We did not have an IFC, and we couldn't compete against the other fraternities in terms of size.
I've not been active as an alumnus since moving to Dayton, mostly because the closest chapters to me are Miami U (in Oxford) and Ohio State (in Columbus). A few years ago, I attended a Regional Conference at Miami University, and went through their alumni initiation ritual. And last month, I visited the Miami chapter for an annual alumni golf scramble. I couldn't afford to play, so I hung out at the chapter house, and watch soccer and baseball on the large TV.
My goal for this next year is to return to the Miami chapter house and offer to lead three one-hour seminars: Masculine Archetypes, Personal Mission Statements, and Resolving Differences. I'd teach them some of the things I learned through my affiliation with the Mankind Project. These were lessons and techniques I wish I had as an active member. We didn't have a large group of local alumni from which to draw experience. Many of them were busy with their careers and families, and didn't spend a lot of time mentoring us.
As one of my New Warrior brothers once said, "Boys cannot teach boys how to be men." I'm hoping the current members could get some benefit from my experiences.
So, how did I fall in with this band of brothers? It started with my sister. She joined Chi Omega Womens' Fraternity in the fall of her freshman year, in 1979, at SUNY/Buffalo ("UB" for short). In the fall of '82, she was dating a guy from Sigma Phi Epsilon. I think I went to one of their parties that fall, and met several of their members. Soon afterward, they broke up. (I've heard that had I pledged Sig-Ep that semester, I would have been blackballed because of this breakup.) The following semester, she was dating a guy from Delta Chi. So I checked them out.
The D-Chis were a bunch of regular guys. There was plenty of cultural diversity -- Juan from Ecuador, Riffin from Haiti, "Nick the Greek" from downstate NY, Woo Huyn ("Teddy") from South Korea -- that I didn't see in the other groups. They had different majors, and different interests. One of the guys was into D&D, a few were into progressive rock. And a few of the local alumni formed a housing corporation and purchased a house about 3 blocks from the UB Main St. Campus, in a residential neighborhood that had plenty of students living there. The house was painted bright yellow -- the paint cans said "Voltage Yellow" -- so that it would stand out. After liking what I saw, and thinking I could fit in, I pledged.
During the time I was an associate member, I learned about the history of the fraternity, the Greek alphabet, and learned about the chapter's members. We had team-building activities as well. One was a brothers-vs.-pledges game of "Capture The Flag" where the playing field was the chapter house. We had to retrieve an artifact from the house and take it to Baird Point -- a geographic point of interest on the UB Amherst Campus -- and get a picture of us with the artifact. And we accomplished our mission that night.
I won't get into details about the initiation ritual, other than that it took place on a Saturday night, and where we held it. The chapter was able to obtain the use of the Moot Court room in O'Brien Hall, the home of the UB Law School, for the ceremony that evening. Since Delta Chi was originally a law fraternity when we were founded in 1890, it was very appropriate for the setting. It was one of the more significant things I've done in my lifetime.
I stayed with the chapter for 5 years, until I graduated in '88. I served as the chapter 'C' (corresponding secretary) and 'E' (alumni secretary), produced an alumni newsletter, made a couple of composite photos of the brothers, went on several road trips to other chapters (Cornell, Penn State, Miami U, Hobart). After graduation, I served as the group's 'BB' (alumni advisor) for 2 years. I attended the National Convention in 1990 -- the fraternity's centennial -- and met one of our more famous alumni: Kevin Costner.
Sadly, the Buffalo chapter closed in 1991. We did not have an IFC, and we couldn't compete against the other fraternities in terms of size.
I've not been active as an alumnus since moving to Dayton, mostly because the closest chapters to me are Miami U (in Oxford) and Ohio State (in Columbus). A few years ago, I attended a Regional Conference at Miami University, and went through their alumni initiation ritual. And last month, I visited the Miami chapter for an annual alumni golf scramble. I couldn't afford to play, so I hung out at the chapter house, and watch soccer and baseball on the large TV.
My goal for this next year is to return to the Miami chapter house and offer to lead three one-hour seminars: Masculine Archetypes, Personal Mission Statements, and Resolving Differences. I'd teach them some of the things I learned through my affiliation with the Mankind Project. These were lessons and techniques I wish I had as an active member. We didn't have a large group of local alumni from which to draw experience. Many of them were busy with their careers and families, and didn't spend a lot of time mentoring us.
As one of my New Warrior brothers once said, "Boys cannot teach boys how to be men." I'm hoping the current members could get some benefit from my experiences.
