Compiled by Bob Barney Shortle ‘74
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Brother Alumni:
On behalf of the undergraduates of the Delta Psi Chapter of the Sigma Chi Fraternity, we would like to thank you all for attending the Dedication of the Bill Pomeroy Chapter House. Your dedication to this chapter is truly remarkable, and has lead to our success. Our undergraduates should strive to emulate you all in your continued generosity well past your undergraduate years.
Sincerely,
Louis Zanette III
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute ’15
Biochemistry/Biophysics
Sigma Chi Fraternity – Public Relations Chairman
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Fantastic job planning and executing! I wasn’t aware of any hiccups or flies in the ointment at all. Sincere thanks for all you did. Us old farts really felt at home all weekend.
You deserve a good break – have some wine with ice in it! If you have or get any good pictures of the party, please forward them on…
The whole thing really makes one proud to be a Sig!
In Hoc,
Rod Blumenau ‘65
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I second what Rod says and want to add that the help given by the actives in getting gear to and from the cars is greatly appreciated. On Sunday, they simply stopped their work session and grabbed gear to bring to the cars. We old guys really were glad they did.
Lou Chiappetta ‘65
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We second that emotion. Everyone in the planning and work during the weekend made it quite an experience. Looking forward to 2015.
Woody and Brenda High ‘67
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Rod and Oedipus: Seeing everyone interacting was the best thanks I could get. I had a great time and I hope everyone else did. It was a huge effort as you know with so many alums and undergraduates working tirelessly to pull this off. Pictures? Yes, there will be hundreds if not thousands including video, all made by people whom Bill Pomeroy hired for the weekend. Someday, these pictures and video will be viewed by the Class of 2065 and say, “Wow, can you believe the band played “Long Tall Texan?” I didn’t know the song was a 100 years old! LOL. I think the dance floor would have been more crowded around midnight except for the fact that festivities had started at 9 a.m. – The 3-to-3 party is only 12 hours; this was a 15-hour marathon! But a great one. I attended the House Meeting the next day and the undergrads were very appreciative of everything the alums have given them and done for them for the past 3 years to make the Pomeroy Chapter house a reality and Homecoming/Dedication a great success. The closeness they have with each other and their love of Sigma Chi is really awesome to observe. You Mother’s should think about coming back for Initiation or even a general 2 p.m. Sunday House Meeting sometime and see how well they perform the ritual and ritual house meetings. The Blue and Gold of 1965 continues on with these young men. Thanks again for your participation oin Homecoming and Dedication festivities. I think you guys were a big hit and like the Rolling Stones, you guys get BETTER with age. In Hoc, Ruff – had several beers yesterday after golf on Long Island!
Robert F Hutnick ‘72
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Brothers:
Although I am disappointed that I could not stay to party with you, I am extremely pleased that I was able to attend the morning dedication ceremony at the new Delta Psi house. The facility is unbelievable! I will not attempt to thank everyone involved (there are so many) – they were all acknowledged during the ceremony. It was a PROUD day for Delta Psi – our chapter has come a long way since we were there (highest GPA?!?). It was great to see all of you (and others) in Troy – it was a needed distraction from my situation at home. As I have been since 1971 – I AM PROUD TO BE A SIGMA CHI! (even more so now that we have a Grand Consul named Greenberg-who would have thought!).
In hoc,
Jeff Cooper ‘74
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Bob, Thanks for your continuing newsfeed.
I attended both the RPI 50th Reunion and the Delta Psi Dedication and thought the weekend was excellently planned and supported at all venues. I was never so proud to be a part of each institution and this weekend I saw them bonded together in a common mission for improving the personal development of the upcoming generation. I found all the speeches rewarding, well targeted and never overbearing.
I complement the current chapter members on their current high level of achievement and encourage them all to continue to seek even higher levels of excellence.
In Hoc,
Tom Lofft 1963
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It was a great weekend, not just to see the physical house, although that was worth the trip, but to see how this chapter has turned around from one on the verge of extinction to the best house on campus and one more accomplished in awards than the one we participated in as undergraduates.
I am not happy that I contributed to some embarrassing trivia, but I am glad that it might have earned a footnote to this occasion.
James Munger Banghard ‘69
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Recap, the short version from Dedication Refreshments Chairman John Leroy Pfaff ‘71
“WOW’, “AWESOME”, “AMAZING”. These were the most often spoken comments I received as people were leaving the house late Saturday night. One seventy year old wife of a brother from the class of ’63 said, “Best party, ever. Oedipus and the Mothers were great”.
Yes, it was fantastic. Eight out of 14 of us were there. Fonse, Kid, Demik, Ernie, Denny and Jim Davies, you guys missed a fabulous weekend. We all missed you and hope that we will be able to see you in the not too distant future. In addition, Pat Rist and her husband, Joe Brown were there with Tate and Cramble, who the school counts as the Class of ’71.
Since I was in charge of, and purchased the “refreshments” and supplies, I can report that we went through 925 8 oz. plastic cocktail/wine tumblers, almost 1,000 16 oz. beer cups, all the Scotch, all the Crown Royal, large quantities of red and white wine and about 50 cases of beer (equivalent to about 7 and 1/4 kegs). All I can say is that those old farts can really drink.
I arrived in Troy late Thursday morning and the tent was being laid out on the east side of the house (old driveway side). Ruff wisely had the tent company add another section to the tent so it ended up being 40′ x 100′, big enough to handle about 300 people, comfortably, including room for the caterers. This isn’t the final count but I believe we ended up with about 165 alums, 58 active brothers, 17 pledges, wives, girlfriends, honored guests and neighbors for an estimated total of about 350 people, by far the largest crowd ever to assemble at 58 Pinewoods.
Thursday afternoon, while Ruff supervised preparations at the house, Justa and I went shopping, using his pickup truck. First we went to Albany (a normal event on every Thursday, as I recall) and picked up the bar supplies (cocktail napkins, cocktail glasses, beer cups) and the wine. After unloading those supplies back at the house, we went to the market for the soda, mixers, and a dozen cases of water. Then we went back to the house to unload. I then thought we would make our final trip to the beverage center for beer. We picked up a mere 20 cases and went back to the house again. At this point, it was time for us to have a beer. Justa and I, Ruff and Jeanne went downtown to Brown’s Malt Room, a very respectable drinking establishment. There we were soon joined by Barney and Marion and Cramble and Sandy. After a couple of cocktails, we went to LaPorto’s, on 4th Street, for a very nice Italian dinner (thanks again, Cramble).
Friday morning, I visited with my cousin and showed up at the house around Noon. Things were pretty well organized there and I proceeded to empty the ice machine (350 pounds) into 6 or 7 coolers, ice down some beer and set up the bar in the basement chapter room, an awesome party room. Oedipus and the Mothers were practicing from 1 til 4PM. Alums started arriving around 3 for refreshments and tours and the weekend was officially starting. I finally left there around 10PM to get some sleep for the big day.
I got back to 58 Pinewoods a little before 9 AM. After quickly scoping out the general situation and setting up the bars in in the living room and party room, I realized I had greatly underestimated the required amount of beer. Fortunately, Brother Chuck Golden and an undergrad made a beer run and picked up 10 cases of beer and 10 cases of water.
The festivities kicked off on time at 10:30 PM, with all our dignitaries in place on the porch and about 250 chairs on the front lawn. Ruff, Cos, Jim Moonachie, and Justa gave out the appropriate kudos, and we heard from the head of the Troy Town Council, who is also a neighbor. Dr. Timothy Sams, the VP for Student Affairs gave a really nice speech, along with Mike Greenberg, our current Grand Consul. The highlight of the morning was, of course, hearing from Bill Pomeroy and dedicating the “Pomeroy Anvil”, on which is engraved with the Sigma Chi Crest and Creed on the front and lists of our Significant Sigs and Constantine Sigs on the back.
All this was followed by lunch in the tent and tours of the house. It was fantastic. At 3:30 PM the afternoon speeches began. There were more kudos presented by Mike Greenberg, who told us how awesome Delta Psi is compared to all other Sigma Chi chapters around the country. Turk did a great job leading us in the ritualistic dedication and around 4:30 RPI President, Shirley Jackson arrived and addressed the crowd, offering her congratulations and officially cutting the ceremonial ribbon with Bill Pomeroy and formally opening the house. It was then 5 PM, and while the cocktail party was still a half hour away, we improvised and started drinking early. Normally, this would be no problem, but the extra half hour caused us to run out of Scotch and Crown Royal, for which I offer my sincere apologies to those affected, especially Earth, Dudely, Mung, Annie and Cos.
By the way, there is a great Munger story coming out of this weekend that I am not going to tell you now. However, I can assure you it is now part of Sigma Chi party lore, right up there with such classics as Earth’s backward flip over the front staircase during a Parents’ weekend cocktail party, the Pfatty Flip after the Derby Day Queen judging, and other memorable events. Alright, maybe its not as dramatic as these, but Mung, you are responsible for bringing the cops to the house. I am going to let others tell this story or I’ll tell it another time, because I want to build up a little suspense. Anyway, we will be telling it many, many times in the future and having a good laugh. Sorry Mung.
Okay, where was I. Oh yeah, at 6:30 we shut off the hard stuff and proceeded to dinner in the tent. The beer and wine would continue to flow for the rest of the night. Oedipus started playing at 9 and they were terrific. The Rolling Stones got nuthin over them. This was a great christening for our new underground party room. In order to avoid a riot, at 9:30 I sent an undergrad out for more beer before the beverage center closed. Fortunately, it lasted till the bitter end. I left the house at around 12:30 AM, but there were still a bunch of alums hanging out consuming beer and wine with our younger brothers.
Ruff, Cos, Turk and I attended an EC meeting at 11 AM on Sunday and reviewed their goals and had a great discussion on the alumni’s wish to stay involved and sought their thoughts on what we could do in the future to help them best the best they can be. Beside financial support, the strongest chapters have strong alumni involvement. It is our opinion that this weekend will keep us inspired and involved. Keep tuned for more information and opportunities for us all to contribute our time, talents and treasure to worthy Sigma Chi causes.
Sunday afternoon, Ruff and I, along with 2 other younger alums, went to the weekly chapter meeting. It was a good show and the undergrads expressed their appreciation for all that went on, for the house and the awesome celebration. They are a great bunch of kids and are very worthy of our efforts. So, keep up with your pledges and thanks to each of you for your contribution. I believe that this weekend has already inspired a few pledges from brothers who were either not in the position to pledge before or who wanted to see if we could really pull this off. Our brother Jim Straw, who was in the class of ’67, was a 5th year architect when we were freshmen and is the bass player with Oedipus was one such brother. He made a wonderful pledge Saturday morning and allowed us to share that with everyone. Please feel free to join Jim in either making a pledge or increasing your pledge if you are in a position to do so.
Let me hear from you all. I can’t express how much it means to me to have been with everyone this past weekend, and I AM PROUD TO BE A SIGMA CHI.
In hoc,
Leroy
John Leroy Pfaff ‘71
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Recap, the long version, from Dedication Chairman Robert F Hutnick ‘72
All: Homecoming/Dedication of the Pomeroy Chapter House began early
for Jean and I as we positioned ourselves in Saratoga on Wednesday,
October 2nd, so I could be there for tent erection on Thursday
morning. Due to the increase of the expected crowd from 300 to 350,
we decided to get the 40 x 100′ tent instead of the 40 x 80′. It was
a good decision as we were able to fit 28 tables (280 people) in the
tent instead of only 24 tables and 240 people. Big Top Tent Rental
even brought two extra tables for us (I had only upped the order to
only 26). After the tent was erected and the rental stuff left, I
returned to Saratoga and got Jean and we eventually ended up at
Brown’s in Troy for pre/post dinner drinks with Justa, Leroy, Crambell
and Sandy, Turk and Barbara, and Marion and Barney. Jean & I left for
Saratoga as the group headed out for dinner. The bar was a little
noisy but it turned out that WE were the cause of it! Go figure! .
It poured Friday morning causing me to cancel my plans to play 9 holes
at Frear Park. But the ’78 boys including PJ Rohan, Steve Noe, and
three others decided to go out anyway. Dan “Dudley” Hudson was there
and he played too. Rain ended around 11 a.m. so though the ground was
wet, the Sigs played. Meanwhile, Jean & I headed over to the House
around 1 p.m. Friday afternoon as Rod Blumenau and Oedipus and the
Mothers moved their band equipment in and began rehearsing in the
subterranean Chapter AKA Party Room. The Official Welcoming of Alumni
began and tours of the new Pomeroy Chapter House ensued as the alumni
rolled in all through the afternoon and night. Jean and I left for a
2-hour dinner break to the Red Front, where Barney tried to charge
Jean and I $31 each for 5 slices of a 6-slice $12 pizza and one ice
tea and water! I took over the money collecting and factored in
Marcea and Jack Belletate and the Campbells, who sat at another table
but had their order put on our table’s tab, causing the excessive
charges! We returned to the House for a few red wines and ice,
courtesy of Social Chairman Leroy Pfaff, but left rather early in
order to get ready for the big 15-hour day on Saturday.
Saturday dawned and Jean & I headed for 58 Pinewoods at 9 a.m. The
House looked great because the undergraduates, led by House Manager
Andrew Greenstein, had gotten up at 6 a.m. for work sessions!
Overall, 160 Delta Psi Sigma Chi Alumni attended, 100 alumni guests
(wives, fiancées, and girlfriends), 52 undergraduate Delta Psi Sigs,
16 pledges, and 30 assorted guests, including RPI President Shirley
Jackson, the City of Troy Council President, Dr. Sams, Vice President
of Student Life and an undergraduate favorite, Mike Greenberg, 68th
Grand Consul of Sigma Chi, and Ted Pitts, Grand Praetor of our
Province. Chris Brunette, Delta Psi’s cook (think Ruthie but a
35-year old handsome male), had coffee and doughnuts ready for
arriving alums and guests. Chris helped out throughout the whole day
and was invaluable in performing every job possible to make sure that
this was a successful event. Kudos to Chris. The undergrads are VERY
fortunate to have him. He can also cook very well as evidenced by
Homecoming 2011’s dinner which he made for the alumni!
The “stage” (front porch) was set for the Opening Ceremonial Speeches.
RPI provided decorations for the porch, lectern, and sound system,
including providing a sound engineer, who stayed all day! RPI also
paid for half of the printed invitations you received AND collected
all the money for Homecoming/Dedication. This saved us a LOT of time,
energy and nearly $1000, as we then were exempt paying tax since RPI,
a tax-exempt institution, paid the two caterers!
With the massive 12-ton Pomeroy Anvil to the left of the speakers
(next to the driveway, which was moved to the west side of the house,
I called the group to order at 10:30 a.m. and briefly welcomed
everyone telling them that lunch was only one hour away and that the
program would move swiftly to accommodate my eating schedule. LOL. We
had about 250 – 275 in attendance for the morning show with 220 chairs
set up in front of the porch and another 50 Sigs and guests standing
behind them or on the front sidewalk. I introduced Bob “Beo” Bedard
’75, who then introduced our first speaker, Bob “Justa” Eckart ’73,
our Chapter Advisor. Justa welcomed all and thanked the neighbors,
the City of Troy, and RPI for all the help they provided in the
construction of the $2.8 million Pomeroy Chapter House (PCH). The City
Council President spoke next followed by Jim Manocchi ’75, the Master
Builder of the PCH. Foss Hooper then delivered the introduction for
Bill Pomeroy ’66, who told the crowd about the history behind the
Pomeroy Anvil and his backing of the $2.8 million construction of the
PCH. Dr. Timothy Sams, Vice-President, Student Life, spoke next, and
was well received, especially by the undergrads present. He was
followed by Sigma Chi’s 65th Grand Consul and Delta Psi Sig, Bob “BJ”
Jones ’73, who then introduced Sigma Chi’s 68th Grand Consul, Mike
Greenberg, Illinois Wesleyan ’82. Joe Karpie ’14, Consul, was then
introduced and he delivered the Chapter Consul’s Address. After
Consul Karpie, I adjourned the morning session for lunch, to be served
in the tent adjoining the PCH. We had beef brisket & Mojito chicken,
served by Dinosaur Barbecue of Troy, NY. Delicious! As were the sides
of whipped sweet potatoes, baked beans, and macaroni and cheese!
A break in the action occurred from 1 – 3 p.m. as tours continued
throughout the day and alumni re-connected with each other.
Undergraduate and alumni volunteers conducted the tours. The 1 p.m.
RPI-Merchant Marine Football Game was cancelled due to the U.S.
Government Shutdown so most alumni hung around talking after lunch.
Jean and I returned to our hotel during this time to put on a tie and
jacket and get back for the afternoon “show.” At 3:30 p.m., I again
called everyone to order explaining that the faster we get through the
afternoon program, the faster we get to the cocktail party! How true.
BJ again introduced Mike Greenberg, who opened up the speeches.
Brother Greenberg was followed by Bill “Turk” Wurst ’71, President,
Phi Epsilon Phi House Corporation, who made a short speech and then
led the Official Sigma Chi Ritual Dedication of the Pomeroy Chapter
House. Turk did a GREAT job! As part of the Ritual Dedication, we
had seven Delta Psi Sigs “play” the parts of the Seven Founders. They
stated the seven founder’s traits and then spoke a brief paragraph
(the ritual presentation is available if you’d like to see it; just
email BJ at bjones@synetron.com). Playing the Seven Founders were:
John Pfaff ’71 (Runkle – Courage); Beo (Bell – Wisdom); Larry Mentz
’68 (Lockwood – Integrity); Bob “Barney” Shortle ’74 (Jordan –
Ambition); Steve Noe ’78 (Cooper – Self Control); Alan “HJ” Hanbury
Jr. ’74 (Scobey – Courtesy); and, Kevin Marvin ’15, House Tribune
(Caldwell – Fidelity). Following Turk’s remarks and the ritual, Justa
declined to speak, thereby expediting the proceedings (Justa was also
getting sick with flu-like symptoms!) After Consul Karpie’s final
remarks for the day, Foss Hooper ’66 introduced Bill Pomeroy for his
2nd and last remarks. This time, Foss and Bill decided to talk about
Bill’s successful battle against cancer several years ago. It was a
very moving talk. I believe a video of the entire weekend will be
available, since Bill had a videographer and photographer at the
Dedication Ceremonies abnd throughout the whole weekend! BJ, Paul
“Cos” Cosgrave ’72, and Jim Manocchi then talked about the “Bridge to
Excellence Campaign” that was used to collect the $1.8 million in
alumni donations that were used to construct the PCH and the need for
further funding. Barney wrapped up the first half of the 2nd session
with a talk on the Delta Psi Order of Constantine’s, whose names are
engraved on the back of the Pomeroy Anvil along with the names of all
the Chapter’s Significant Sigs. The Sigma Chi Creed graces the front
of the Pomeroy Anvil. It is a VERY impressive monument and one that
will be discussed by all for many decades to come. You’ve got to see
the Anvil and the Pomeroy Chapter House if you haven’t seen them
already. WOW! MOM! WOW!
And so at 4:24 p.m. the first half of the second round of afternoon
speeches came to a close, per my “agreement” with RPI’s Geoff Seber,
Associate Advancement Officer, Office of Alumni Relations, who
assisted us with Delta Psi’s Homecoming/Pomeroy Chapter House
Dedication. Sigma Chi Nick Fortune ’13, who interns at the Alumni
House, was also invaluable throughout this one-year run-up to the
actual Dedication. It turned out that Delta Psi brought back 35% of
all the Greeks returning for Homecoming in 2013 and 15% of the entire
returning RPI alumni. Delta Psi’s returning alumni were three times
that of any other organization! Greek returning alumni represented
63% of retuning RPI alumni! Wow! As we awaited President Jackson’s
arrival, alumni stood and talked among each other. Though it was
cloudy all day, the rain held up until after the speeches and all were
safely inside at the cocktail party. President Jackson arrived at
about 4:30 p.m. and made her way to the front porch. After being
seated, Pro Consul Ben Richardson ’15, who introduced Chuck Carletta
’14, Grand Marshall, for his remarks. After his speech, Cos presided
over the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony in which President Jackson and Bill
Pomeroy cut the ribbon, officially opening the Pomeroy Chapter House.
Cos then introduced President Jackson for her keynote speech. The
President spoke of the great cooperation between RPI and Sigma Chi and
all the Greek fraternities. Following her remarks, Cos adjourned the
group 15 minutes early for the now 1.5 hour cocktail party with hors
d’ourves served by our dinner caterer, Moscatiello’s.
The cocktail party proved to be an excellent one and ran nearly two
hours! Several brothers, though, questioned Leroy’s choice of using
female bartenders. Did Beth know about this arrangement? Was there an
interviewing process? And why did Leroy tip the bartenderesses,
Marilyn and Lizzie, $400, which was double the amount Al “Ding”
Arbeiter ’72 tipped the Ivonivich Vodka Girls at Cos’ Great Southern
Trip V? This was the second most talked about subject of the weekend!
The best was yet to come . . .
As the cocktail party wound down and Leroy had to go out and get more
booze several times, it was time to call the classes BY SENIORITY into
the tent. Ruff rose to the occasion and using his trustee Belmont
Stakes megaphone, he began calling all Sigs 1966 and sooner to dinner.
Much to his surprise, there was no waiting on the two Moscatiello
food lines after the initial call so the call went out to 1970 and
before. Again there were no lines! Wait! The older Sigs were sitting
at their tables expecting waiter service! AHHH! Using his handy
megaphone, Ruff gently yelled, “Guys, this is a buffet! Get up and get
your food!” Chaos now ensued when the older alums and newly called
alums merged at the food lines. Then the undergraduates made their
way on line. “Stop right there!” Ruff yelled. “Back” he added, in
lion-taming voice through the megaphone! The undergrads were no match
for Ruff and soon retreated inside the House as the call of the
classes continued. Whew. With dinner almost over and coffee and
dessert being served to the elder Sigs, the third and last session of
speeches using the House’s speakers was to commence in the tent when
it was determined the system was broken! AHHH. So, Ruff determined
that he’d cancel the speeches and go right to the Sweetheart Song –
except the noise level for 300 Sigs was deafening! What to do?
Undeterred, Ruff to the rescue. Using his dependable megaphone, Ruff
went Paul Revere-like from table to table yelling, “SWEETHEART SONG;
SIGS TO THE OUTSIDE AND LADIES ON THE INSIDE.” Twenty eight tables
later, the “Circle” was formed and Larry “Grizzle” Frey ’71, Larry
“Gremme” Nelson ’68, and Turk, lead the Sigs in one of the largest, if
not THE largest Sweetheart of Sigma Chi ever performed at Delta Psi.
Quite impressive! Following the song, it was time for the band party
as Oedipus and the Mothers took their positions in the new
subterranean Chapter AKA Party Room. Many Sigs headed back to change
or changed in one of the many House bathrooms.
It was a good band party as the older ’60 alums took over much of the
dance floor. HJ, Munger, and Ruff did the first official Gator at the
PCH. There was even a songfest near midnight “As Marge was closing
the door . . .” Meanwhile, up on the first floor, alumni had broken
into groups and continued the 5 p.m. cocktail party from 8:30 p.m. to
midnight. Several groups stayed out in the tent – which was later the
scene of “donut baseball.” Silly string was found on the tent in the
morning (we may have to pay for a new tent panel!) but at least no
police showed up FOR THE NOISE LEVEL, that is . . . but . . . .
around midnight, as the Youngkins, Hanburys, Ruffnicks, and Bangharts
AKA Mungerites or Mungarians, headed for their cars, James William
Munger AKA Jim Banghart “discovered” that his car was not where he
thought he left it! And his wallet was in the car, a Beamer (BMW).
AHHH. After going to the hotel, I think, for the registration in
Annie’s purse, Mung called the police to report the “stolen” car. A
police car showed up at 58 Pinewoods causing Chris Heinbokel, Delta
Psi Risk Manager, to think that they were there for the noise level.
Fortunately, they were not. Mung explained the “stolen” car and where
it was stolen from. But, much to his chagrin, the car was miraculously
“found” minutes later by the crack Troy police not far from where it
was “missing”, as it was a the other end of Pinewoods where Mung
parked it the prior trip. George “Earth” Wurm, Dudley, & John “Chuck” Golden
observed the police “finding” but declined to stop due to their
brilliant job of drinking all of the scotch and Crown Royal that the
ex-refreshment chairman, Leroy Pfaff, had purchased! This was the
second time that the Earth-Dudley duo had drank the well dry, the
first being at Great Southern Trip! Anywho, Mung’s car was recovered
– he evidently had forgotten where he had parked it! This earned Mung
“Top Story” for Homecoming 2013/Dedication of the PCH Weekend. Way to
go Mung! The next day Mung bypassed breakfast at the Hilton Garden
Inn to avoid the brotherly ribbing that would have ensued . . . LOL
PS: Jean ended up calling Mung while Annie and he were traveling back
to Jaffrey, NH. Mung declined to discuss “the incident” and left
Annie the task of ‘splaining what happened. OK, Mung. Truth be known
– Jean lost her car key – fortunately, Mark Skarulis ’96 (GREAT yellow
jacket, Mark!) found it and we got it back. Hence the joke, “Help me
find my keys and we’ll drive out of here” and not “Help me find my car
and we’ll drive out of here.”
We had stayed until midnight – 15 hours (3 hours MORE than the 3-3
party!) but the next day, Sunday, I woke up early (6 a.m.) and thought
about how I left the propane tanks on in the tent! So I came out to
shut off the tanks and secured the tablecloths that had been left on
the tables for Moscatiello’s. After church and breakfast, I went back
out to the House to attend the first ever alumni-undergraduate
Executive Committee (EC) Meeting. Turk, Cos, Leroy, Ken Sobel ‘12, and
Josh Gilbert ’09 attended for the alumni. Each House officer
explained what they did and what they were up to. Cos asked the
undergrads about the ways that the alumni could help them in the
future, including leadership seminars, mentor programs,
resume-distribution to alumni, etc. I think it was noteworthy that
not only are the alumni helping the undergrads financially (building
them a $2.8 million Pomeroy Chapter House), with rush (Alumni Rush
Dinner), and physical house alterations (August alumni work sessions),
but the alumni were now proposing to increase their support to other
areas in which the undergraduates would designate. Several action
items were agreed upon and you’ll be hearing more about them in the
coming weeks as these initiatives get vetted and developed.
After a lunch of leftovers from Dinosaur Barbecue and Moscatiello’s
(VERY GOOD!), the house had their ritual Chapter Meeting in the
Chapter Room AKA Party Room downstairs. All of the chapter wore ties
and most wore their jackets due to the coldness of the room. The
meeting was run very well and the reports by the various officers
initiated a lot of bantering and good-natured ribbing back and forth –
much like our old house meetings. Three alumni attended besides
myself: John Leroy Pfaff ’71, Dave Trumpoldt AKA Davey Navy ’88, and
former Consul Joe Pumper ’13. Most impressive during the GOTO was a
plea by a senior undergrad that when the final hand shaking takes
place, he asked his brothers to look him in the eyes when they shook
hands and to mean what they say to him – or, don’t bother to shake his
hand at all. VERY COOL. And very effective, which we later found out
during the final goodbyes. Three brothers lamented about NOT being
there the following weekend for the House’s first party – yes, it’s
still “ruff” to miss anything going on at the House especially the
House’s first party! And as we ended the meeting with final comments,
the undergrads thanked the alumni for Homecoming, and the alumni
thanked Kevin Marvin for all his work coordinating the weekend. You
could really feel that the Chapter is coming together very well. I
think with the year they spent in the apartments set their fraternal
cohesiveness back a little. However, I think that the Chapter IS
making rapid progress to rectify this and that this group of guys can
be as good if not better than the men who occupied Delta Psi in the
last 4-5 years. One brother thanked all the brothers for getting him
through some hard times. Consul Karpie responded that all the brothers
were there for anyone having any problems and that they should seek
their brothers help. Again, spot on. We adjourned the meeting about
3:30 p.m. and I returned to my hotel for dinner and bed, exhausted but
extremely happy because of the way the weekend unfolded but mostly
because of the fact that these young boys were becoming Sigma Chi men
– just like we did four decades ago and others before us and after us.
Delta Psi Chapter IS an outstanding Chapter and when I reached Long
Island on Monday, October 7, I received an email from Justa that Grand
Consul Mike Greenberg, on further review of the Chapter’s Petersen
Application from last year, decided to award Delta Psi their 4th
consecutive Petersen Outstanding Chapter Award! Yes, Grand Consul
Greenberg also saw the same thing that many of the returning alumni
saw Homecoming/Dedication Weekend – an outstanding chapter of
undergraduates supported by outstanding, active alumni. This is what
Sigma Chi is about – friendship, justice, and learning. And the
making Sigma Chi men from freshmen boys.
Regrets? I have a few, but too few to mention! No, my only “regret”
is that so many Sigma Chi’s showed up that I didn’t have time to spend
more time with them all. I had 2 minutes with Bert Maier ’95 to
discuss life, Becce, and his two children! Not enough time. So, to
all, my regret is that I didn’t have more time for each of you but as
they say, “It is what it is.” And for those who didn’t make it back,
you missed a good party and you missed reinforcing those bonds of
brotherhood. We may have mini-Homecomings in 2015 and/or 2016, but it
won’t be for another seven years at our 70th Delta Psi Founding
celebration in 2020 that we will again have so many Sigs back at Delta
Psi. My thanks to all those who helped us put on this
Homecoming/Dedication – it truly was a fraternal endeavor by many,
many alumni and undergraduates combined. Be well and stay well. So
mote it be. In Hoc, Ruff
========
To recognize a couple of others on the “list”, PJ Roughan ‘78 and Matt Ludemann ’78,
PJ took on the role of treasurer for this endeavor (somehow he always finds himself around the money). I work with PJ and saw firsthand the number of hours he put in engaged in getting the mortgage, paying bills, assisting with the pursuit of the exempt tax status, and I am sure generally overseeing the finances of the project. Matt stepped up to help push through the mortgage, bringing to bear his expertise as a lawyer to assist getting this done. No doubt my brief words don’t do justice to all that you contributed. Thanks to both of you.
To the others on the list please accept my thanks and gratitude as well. I felt exceptionally proud to be part of Sigma Chi and especially the Delta Psi chapter.
Stephen P. Noe
=========
And Finally, the long version thank yous from Dedication Chairman Robert Ruff Hutnick ’72,
All: I’m finally back “home” in Virginia after my 13-day road trip to
Troy and Long Island. I just wanted to give everyone a final
postscript on the Homecoming/Dedication of the Pomeroy Chapter House
Weekend and to thank all of you for making it such a great success.
Most of you know that I’ve been busy keeping up with my Sigma Chi
brothers for over 40 years. Why? Because they are my friends AND
they’re more than that; they’re also my brothers. And the way you keep
friendships for 40 years is to be a friend – to be in communication
with them and to see them whenever possible. And if that’s not
possible, then to at least write or email or call them every once in a
while to see how they are REALLY doing and how their family is doing
too. Two weekends ago was one of those rare opportunities for us all
to renew those fraternal friendships and I hope you had as great a
time as I did doing just that. There were 160 Delta Psi returning
alumni – 15% of the total RPI alumni returning and 35% of the Greeks
returning. We had three times as many people as any other RPI group
who returned for Homecoming. Greeks made 63% of returning RPI alums.
Way to go, guys.
I thought it was a great weekend and I loved seeing the Pomeroy Anvil
for the first time – not anything which I imagined – so much better.
We will be known as “The Anvil House” for decades! But as nice as the
House is – and the $2.8 million Pomeroy Chapter House is probably the
nicest on campus – it will always be the brotherhood first. That us
what makes Sigma Chi unique. As a “church” is not a building but the
people making up the church, what is important to God is NOT the
church building but the people inside. Likewise, what is inside the
four walls at 58 Pinewoods is what is important and not the building
itself. And we should be very proud of the young men who now occupy
the Pomeroy Chapter House and call themselves Delta Psi Sigma Chis.
I thought the undergraduates really stepped up to the plate and did a
great job Homecoming/Dedication Weekend. My point-of-contact at the
House was a Junior named Kevin Marvin ’15, Tribune. I must’ve sent
him a 100 emails and he responded to each one and took the appropriate
action on each. He got all the brothers to pitch in and help with
work sessions, parking, chair moving, garbage removal, etc. The
second “almost undergrad” who was invaluable to me for the past 12
months of preparation for this day was alumnus Nick Fortune ’13, who
is doing an internship at the Alumni House. Working with RPI’s Geoff
Seber, Associate Advancement Officer, Alumni Relations, Nick fielded
150 emails from me. RPI not only provided the sound system we used
all day but they also decorated the front porch with bunting and
flowers and provided the lectern. They also collected the fees for the
day and paid our caterers, thereby saving us collection time and
exempting us from paying NY State taxes.
I thought that Pro Consul Benjamin Richardson ’15 did a great job
opening up the the 2nd part of the afternoon session and introducing
Grand Marshall Chuck Carletta ’14. I also thought that Consul Joe
Karpie ’14 did a great job delivering his speeches both at the morning
and afternoon sessions and in running the EC and Chapter Meeting on
Sunday.
I hope you noticed how clean the house was. The undergrads convened
their work sessions at 6 a.m. on Saturday morning. I was there and saw
them come down and get to work. Andrew Greenstein, House Manager, led
this effort. Also receiving kudos is the house cook, Chris Brunette,
who spent all day Saturday making sure the party ran well by working
with the caterers, emptying garbage cans, when necessary, making the
endless urns of coffee and putting out the desserts. He also saved
all the leftover food for the undergrads. There was also talk of
giving some of the extra food to a local food pantry for the poor and
homeless. We also owe a TON of thanks to our Chapter Advisor, Bob
“Justa” Eckart ’73, who works tirelessly as the Chapter Advisor and
was second in importance to the construction and realization of the
Pomeroy Chapter House (PCH) to Jim Manocchi ’75, Co-Chairman of the
Building the Bridge to Excellence. Jim devoted all of his
non-working hours to fund-raising and construction of the PCH for the
last three years. We owe a lot to both of these key individuals and
to House Corp President, Bill Wurst, Co-Chairman “Bridge to Excelence
Paul Cosgrave, House Corp Board Members John Pfaff (Refreshment
Chairman for Homecoming/Dedication), Bob Bedard, Ken Sobel, and Jim
Rossetti, former board member John Murray, Al “HJ” Hanbury (house
construction), Larry Frey (hot water heaters) and Larry Heininger
(landscaping), and all those not mentioned who gave their time,
talents, or money that made this endeavor possible, especially Bill
Pomeroy himself.
“Special thanks also to Bob “BJ” Jones ’73, 65th Grand
Consul, for getting Pennington and our architect who specialized in
building fraternity houses, for doing the Dedication programs, and for
collecting money for the undergraduates so they could attend for free!
Thanks also to Bob “Barney” Shortle ’74 for his many emails, editing
of the Delta Psi Sig, and promoting fund raising and
Homecoming/Dedication, and thanks to John “Chuck” Golden ’71 for
working on the four-page advertisement for Homecoming/Dedication
Weekend.
Also thanks to PJ Rohan ’78 who took on the role of treasurer for this
endeavor (somehow he always finds himself around the money). Steve
Noe worked with PJ and saw firsthand the number of hours he put in
engaged in getting the mortgage, paying bills, assisting with the
pursuit of the exempt tax status, and generally overseeing the
finances of the project. And thanks to Matt Ludemann ’79 as he
stepped up to help push through the mortgage, bringing to bear his
expertise as a lawyer to assist getting this done. No doubt my brief
words don’t do justice to all that you contributed. Thanks to both of
you. Also Chris Heinbokel, Risk Manager. Colin Burbage, Steward,
assisted Chris Brunette in the kitchen. Both Colin and Chris were
very active the whole weekend.
And the list goes on and on . . . If I left anyone
out, I apologize. This was supposed to be just a recap of
Homecoming/Dedication!
I went back out to the House to attend the first ever
alumni-undergraduate Executive Committee (EC) Meeting. In attendance
were: Bill “Turk” Wurst ’71, House Corporation President, Paul “Cos”
Cosgrave ‘72, Significant Sig, ex- Rensselaer Alumni Association (RAA)
President, and co-Chairman of the Delta Psi “Building the Bridge to
Excellence” Fund Raising Campaign for the Pomeroy Chapter House, John
Leroy Pfaff ’71, House Corp. Board Memeber, Ken Sobel ‘12, House Corp
Board Treasurer and Consul, Delta Psi ‘12, and Josh Gilbert ’09
attended with me for the alumni. Each House officer explained what
they did and what they were going to do. Cos asked the undergrads
about the ways that the alumni could help them in the future,
including leadership seminars, mentor programs, resume-distribution to
alumni, etc. The undergrads said they would think about this and get
back to the alumni. I think it was noteworthy that not only are the
alumni helping the undergrads financially (building them a $2.8
million Pomeroy Chapter House), with rush (Alumni Rush Dinner), and
physical house alterations (August alumni work sessions), but the
alumni were now proposing to increase their support by offering our
talents in other areas important to House leadership. Several action
items were agreed upon and you’ll be hearing more about them in the
coming weeks as these initiatives get vetted and developed.
After a lunch of leftovers from Dinosaur Barbecue and Moscatiello’s
(VERY GOOD!), the house had their ritual Chapter Meeting in the
Chapter Room AKA Party Room downstairs. All of the undergraduates
wore ties and most some wore jackets, possibly because of the coldness
of the room. The meeting was run very well by Consul Karpie and the
reports by the various officers initiated a lot of bantering and
good-natured ribbing back and forth – much like our old house
meetings. Three alumni attended besides myself: John Leroy Pfaff ’71,
Dave Trumpoldt AKA Davey Navy ’88, and former Consul Joe Pumper ’13.
Most impressive during the GOTO was a plea by a senior undergrad that
when the final hand shaking takes place, he asked his brothers to look
him in the eyes when they shook hands and to mean what they say to him
– or, don’t bother to shake his hand at all. VERY COOL. And very
effective, which we later found out during the final goodbyes. Three
brothers lamented about NOT being there the following weekend for the
House’s first party – yes, it’s still “ruff” to miss anything going on
at the House especially the House’s first party! And as we ended the
meeting with final comments, the undergrads thanked the alumni for
Homecoming, and the alumni thanked Kevin Marvin for all his work
coordinating the weekend and the entire brotherhood. You could really
feel that the Chapter is coming together very well. I think the year
they spent in the apartments may have set their fraternal cohesiveness
back a little. However, I think that the Chapter IS making rapid
progress to rectify this and that this group of guys can be as good if
not better than the men who occupied Delta Psi in the last 4-5 years.
One brother thanked all the brothers for getting him through some hard
times. Consul Karpie responded that all the brothers were there for
anyone having any problems and that they should seek their brothers
help. Again, spot on. We adjourned the meeting about 3:30 p.m. and I
returned to my hotel for dinner and bed, exhausted but extremely happy
because of the way the weekend unfolded but mostly because of the fact
that these young boys were becoming Sigma Chi men – just like we did
four decades ago and others before us and after us. Delta Psi Chapter
IS an outstanding Chapter and when I reached Long Island on Monday,
October 7, I received an email from Chapter Advisor , Bob “Justa”
Eckart ’73, Order of Constantine, that Grand Consul Mike Greenberg,
on further review of the Chapter’s Petersen Application from last
year, decided to award Delta Psi their 4th consecutive Petersen
Outstanding Chapter Award! Yes, Grand Consul Greenberg also saw the
same thing that many of the returning alumni saw Homecoming/Dedication
Weekend – an outstanding chapter of undergraduates supported by
outstanding, active alumni. This is what Sigma Chi is about –
friendship, justice, and learning. And the making Sigma Chi men from
freshmen boys.
Regrets? I have a few, but too few to mention! No, my only “regret”
is that so many Sigma Chi brothers came back for Homecoming/Dedication
that I couldn’t spend more time with them all. I had 2 minutes with
Bert Maier ’95 to discuss life, Becce, his wife, and his two children!
Not enough time. So, to all, my regret is that I didn’t have more
time for each of you but as they say, “It is what it is.” It was a
great gathering and I enjoyed reinforcing our bonds of brotherhood.
We may have mini-Homecomings in 2015 and/or 2016, but it won’t be for
another seven years at our 70th Delta Psi Founding Anniversary in 2020
that we will again have so many Sigs back at Delta Psi at the same
time. I especially enjoyed talking with the four Sigs who returned
from the 1950’s. That was pretty cool. They were: Edward Ziemer ’51,
Founding Father, Charles Hodges ’55,AKA CHOOCH, Robert Boehringer ’55
AKA SMILEY, and Carl Thurnau ’57. I do regret that we never got to
award Ed Kellogg ’60 his Significant Sig Award (I wish I was aware of
it). My thanks to all those who helped us put on this
Homecoming/Dedication – it truly was a fraternal endeavor by many,
many alumni and undergraduates combined. Be well and stay well. So
mote it be. In Hoc, Ruff
Sigma Chi Fraternity 