The Deke Quarterly Vol.139, No.4 by Delta Kappa Epsilon Quarterly

DEKE THE

FALL 2021

QUARTERLY

DEKES IN AGRICULTURE

CHAIRMAN’S LET TER

Dear Brothers and Friends, Greetings. We are pleased to deliver this Fall edition of the DEKE Quarterly. I hope you enjoy it. In our last issue of the quarterly, we were treated to the cover story about Brother Teddy Tzanetos, Sigma Tau MIT ‘12. As you may recall, Brother Tzanetos works at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and is the Tactical Lead for Ingenuity, the helicopter that traveled to Mars aboard the Perseverance rover. Roll forward to this Quarterly and, as you have seen, the cover story is about Dekes in agriculture. It’s a unique opportunity to compare and contrast the stories of a NASA engineer and Dekes in agriculture. Whether the point of comparison is the science of agriculture and/or the paths that have brought these men to their current vocations, the stories are very interesting and the evolution of farming apparent. The evolution of Greek organizations is a relevant parallel. At our recent in-person Board meeting, a good deal of our agenda was dedicated to financial matters, risk, and insurance. The staff presented formal training modules and programming for chapters. This all underscored the fact that over the last few decades the business of Greek organization has changed. The business and the ‘science’ of Greek life has much more structure and formality. Some of these changes are based on our deliberate efforts to create relevant value for our undergraduates, and other changes are necessitated by external demands, specifically the campus environments within which we operate. To that end, our efforts seem to be working. The chapter news from first semester is very encouraging. 712 new members were recruited this fall. That’s 41% ahead of plan. Total active undergraduate membership is climbing toward 1,700 men, 1.2% ahead of plan. This is largely a result of much better enrollment within our Canadian chapters. All in all, a great result! I wish you, your family, and friends an enjoyable fall season.

In the Bonds,

Mason Morjikian Chairman of the Board Lambda-Kenyon ‘88

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

Fa l l 2021 V O LU M E 139, N O. 4

TABLE OF

CONTENTS 16

IN THIS ISSUE

MEET THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

DEKE BOARD IN TEXAS

24 COVER STORY

DEKES IN AGRICULTURE

STEVEN HOFFNER, FILMAKER ALPHA TAU-TORONTO

DEKE UNDERGRADUATE AWARDS

IN EVERY ISSUE

CHAIRMAN’S LETTER

HQ REPORT

AUGUST BELMONT II ALPHA-HARVARD 1875

DEKE NEWS

CHAPTER NEWS

MYSTIC CIRCLE

CHAPTER ROLL

IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ROBERT PEARY

PUBLISHED BY Delta Kappa Epsilon International 6921 Jackson Rd., Suite 400 Ann Arbor, MI 48103 (734) 302-4210 www.dke.org ∆KE BOARD OF DIRECTORS Mason Morjikian, Lambda ‘88, Chairman Neilson Brown, Beta ‘67, Vice Chairman David Helverson, Delta Pi ‘81, Treasurer Grant Burnyeat, Phi Alpha ‘68, Honorary President Cory Crenshaw, Tau Lambda ‘01 Christian Cummings, Epsilon Rho Duke ‘18 Semmes Favrot, Psi ‘82 Ray Reynolds Graves, Alpha Chi Trinity ‘67 Dan Johnson, Sigma Alpha ‘77 Ron Li, Phi Alpha ‘10 Stan McMillan, Gamma ‘89 John McNeil, Psi ‘79 Kevin O’Bryon, Tau Lambda ‘77 Terry Stewart, Phi Chi ‘69 John Yerger, Delta Chi Cornell ‘82 ∆KE HQ STAFF Executive Director: Doug Lanpher, Gamma ‘77 Director of Member Services: Trey Robb, M.Ed. Director of Chapter Services: Craig Dick, Phi Alpha ‘16 Director of Alumni Services: Turner Spears, Lambda Tau ‘16 Assistant Director of Chapter Services: Dustin Stewart Senior Coordinator of Fraternity Education: Cody Hike Chapter Consultant: Morgan McElroy, Phi Epsilon ‘21 Expansion Consultant: Logan Nantais, Delta Kappa ‘21 Archivist & Historian: Grant Burnyeat, Phi Alpha ‘65 DEKE QUARTERLY STAFF Publisher: Doug Lanpher, Gamma ‘77 Editor: Kevin Cuneo, Gamma ‘77 Assistant Editor: Michael E. Hilts, Gamma ‘76 Production Editor, Jeff Hamilton Gamma ‘78 CREATIVE DIRECTION & DESIGN Scott-Goodman Associates: Lester Goodman • lestergcreative.com Barbara Scott-Goodman • barbarascottgoodman.net THE DEKE QUARTERLY is published by Delta Kappa Epsilon in Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer. POSTMASTER: Send address changes & correspondence to: DEKE Quarterly, 6921 Jackson Rd., Suite 400, Ann Arbor, MI 48103 Manuscripts, literature, and letters should be addressed to the Editor. Submissions will not be returned. For change of address please contact ΔKE HQ and provide Full Name, Chapter, both old and new address. Copyright ©2021 Delta Kappa Epsilon w w w.dke.org

HQ REPORT Greetings Fellow Deke Brothers! 2. A Round of Clicks to our Mizzou Chapter. Earlier this semester, we got a phone call at the office from a woman who was married to a Deke until his passing. She was in a difficult situation, trying to help her daughter (a nurse) move out of her apartment in Columbia, Mo. Three moving companies had cancelled, and her daughter had to be out of the apartment. In desperation, she called our office to ask if perhaps the Missouri Dekes could help. We made one call to the chapter VP, Brandon Galante, and within a very short time, five Mizzou Dekes drove over to the apartment to help the daughter move. Brandon’s comment, “Happy to do it, Dekes help Dekes.”

Once in a while in this space I like to share a few random thoughts from across the world of DKE, and this is one of those times. So here we go.

1. Thoughts on the Place of Fraternities in Today’s World It’s been a real pleasure seeing our undergraduates bounce back from the pandemic this semester. And it’s also great to see the large pledge classes that we are bringing in this fall. This tells me that in spite of the fraternity-bashing that seems to be a constant theme in the media and academe, young Doug Lanpher, men still value the experience of developing Executive Director leadership skills and lifelong friendships with 3. Chapter Officers’ Academy Coming up in other young men. Fraternities began not too January. long after the development of the collegiate system in the US, Deke staff, in particular Cody Hike, are working hard on and I think there’s something very elemental in human nature putting together a great Officers Academy in January. It’s a about the need for male bonding (as well as female bonding) three-day event held in Washington DC and this is our fifth at that age. So what would happen if the “Abolish Greek Life” anniversary. It’s one of the highlights of the year for us, as advocates got their way, and suddenly, all fraternities were chapter officers from all over North America get to meet and closed overnight? Something else would arise to replace them, mingle with one another, and to share experiences about you can bet on it. And whatever that something is would similar challenges they face. In addition to the educationprobably not be as structured or as transparent as the current al content we present, the Deke Brothers are very good at Greek system; it would most likely consist of unsupervised, socializing with each other (Jolly Good Fellows) and in doing underground secret societies which have no leadership from so, learning about how other chapters handle problems that central organizations or adult advice to help them. How would they share in common. the colleges like that? I’m guessing not too much. Those who advocate getting rid of fraternities should perhaps think about Thanks for reading, and best wishes to all Dekes and your reform rather than removing them entirely. families as we head into the holidays. Is the Greek system perfect? Of course not. The fraternity system still has too many chapters where hazing is accepted; and the behavior of fraternity men is not always admirable. But for every negative incident we read about, there are hundreds more cases of fraternities doing the right thing, developing leaders, performing community service and philanthropy, and yes, holding fun social events in a responsible manner. See the next paragraph.

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

In the Bonds,

Doug Lanpher, Gamma ’77 Executive Director, Delta Kappa Epsilon

DEKE NEWS Ben Grannis on the shore in Massachusetts, ahead of the storm Henri; among his hosts along the way, Nancy and Biff Butler and the rampant lion.

Lambda Deke Bikes to End Distracted Driving Accidents

Kenyon Deke is pedaling on a solo bike ride across the U.S. and back. As Hurricane Henri spun towards Provincetown, Mass., on August 21, Ben Grannis, Lambda ’17, was leaving it. That wet day for Ben started an amazing 10,000-mile cross country bike ride to help halt deaths caused by distracted driving. As this Deke Quarterly went to press, Brother Grannis was riding through Oregon, and closing in on Seattle as October’s goblins took to the streets. After Seattle, Ben planned to slide down the West Coast to San Diego by Thanksgiving before heading east on a southern route to Jacksonville, Fla., by February. Having just concluded three years as a trip leader and logistics coordinator at Overland Summers, an outdoor adventure planner for youth, Ben engineered the two-way coast-to-coast ride to raise funds for the Text Less Live More Foundation. The organization promotes “digital wellness” with the goal of ending distracted driving. The orga-

nization was founded after 18-year-old Merritt Levitan was killed in 2013 by a distracted driver while on an Overland cross country bike trip. The driver was texting for four seconds. Ben’s westward path covers part of a 1976 BikeCentennial route and a ride his dad made in 1977. It takes him through mostly rural, low traffic areas on roads suited for bikes. He’s already ridden through Gambier, Ohio, where he visited the Kenyon campus, met current active members of the Lambda chapter, and chilled a while at the site of the first fraternity lodge ever built. With 34,000+ miles under his tires, Ben is an experienced rider, but this venture provides his greatest challenges yet. He has already chronicled having to find shelter from the hurricane, flat tires, knee trouble, and “navigating around poison ivy and a soy

bean field.” He didn’t mention the potential yet ahead— bears, mountain climbs, or early winter weather. Ben sleeps in a tent most evenings. But friends along the way provide him some more recuperating breaks and warm showers, as does the occasional splurge on a motel room. Welcoming hosts included three Lambda alums: Mark Robinson, ’81, in Old Lyme, Conn.; Mason McCool, ’17, Ben’s old Kenyon roomy in New Haven; and Walter ‘Biff’ Butler, ’68, near Louisville, Ky. Ben’s journey can be followed via his website, www.eyesupride.com.

Alpha Omicron Alumni Association Puts Down Roots

hapter pride is strong in one of DKE’s youngest associate chapters. While Alpha Omicron has only been active at the University of Colorado-Boulder since 2015, the group has produced a great nucleus of alumni who recently announced they’re starting an alumni association. A Delta Phi-Alberta Deke, Darren Kelly, ’91, now resides in Boulder and is eagerly leading the group’s formation to support Alpha Omicron’s growth and operations. Several alums have volunteered to advise undergraduate officers. High priorities include establishing a housing

association and organizing several undergrad-alumni social functions. The brotherhood get-togethers started this fall, with a gathering on campus at the start of the term, followed by a back yard BBQ featuring brats and burgers topped with, but of course, goat cheese. “Most of the active chapter attended and we were delighted to have a smattering of Deke alums in the Boulder/Denver area crawl out of the wood-work,” DK says. “We had old Dekes from Chicago, MIT, Louisiana and more. Anyway, after five years, we now have a nucleus of local Alpha Omicron alums in town to help continue to grow the Deke presence at CU Boulder. Next up is the ‘Woolly Goat Dinner,’ an annual send-off celebrating pledges’ heading on to their big adventure. Alums who want to attend this event, or participate in the alumni association are encouraged to email brother Kelly, Darren.kelly2@gmail.com

Alpha Omicron actives and a few alumni spent a fantastic day together to open the fall semester, thanks to planning by officers Titus Ellison and alumnus Darren Kelly.

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DEKE NEWS DKE Broadens and Deepens HQ Staff

ean compared to many international fraternities, the DKE staff grew this summer, helping prepare the fraternity for a strong comeback after 18 months of operations under Covid-19 constraints. Four men joined the DKE leadership team, boosting strength in both numbers and in professional quality:

Cody Hike took the newly created role of DKE’s Senior Coordinator of Education, his third professional role at a fraternal organization. Cody joins DKE after serving as Education Coordinator for Beta Theta Pi fraternity’s 139 chapters. Previously, he worked for

Dustin Stewart,

resume in fraternity leaderAssistant Director of ship. Dustin was a founder of Chapter Services, comes the SAE colony at Armstrong to DKE from Sigma State and served as chapter Alpha Epsilon, where he president, then worked for helped the fraternity SAE’s international staff afredesign its ter graduation. programs He served as for chapter chapter relations development, coordinator for health and the southeastern safety, and region, then as a diversity and district manager inclusion. guiding MidAt DKE, his western chapters main role is before tackling an to empower SAE-wide restrucDustin Stewart undergrads by turing that strove delivering programs that to make the fraternity more foster leadership dedata driven and transparent velopment and chapter while establishing key perforgrowth and to supervise mance indicators for chapter DKE’s chapter consulperformance. tants. Dustin was attracted Dustin grew up in to the opportunity at DKE Savannah and stayed in part because he “saw in Georgia into his significant familiarity and collegiate years. In engagement on the leader2017, he earned a poship team and a very evident litical science degree interest in brotherhood.” from Armstrong State He also recognized a strong University (now part customer service mentality of Georgia Southern) towards its chapters and its then earned a Masters members, one he intends to in International Studies keep with a priority he set for from George WashingDKE chapter consultants: to ton University. build relationships with our As an undergrad, he chapter leaders. “We intend held elective office in to be ‘just annoying enough’ student government to them so they will become for three years, serving ‘just annoying enough with as president his senior us’ in an effort to work toyear. He also got started gether for the betterment of building an impressive the organization.’”

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

Cody Hike and girlfriend Kathryn at Fenway, the last of the Covid limitedattendance games. Phi Delta Theta, the fraternity he joined as an undergrad at University of Southern Indiana, in Evansville. A native of Fort Wayne, he graduated from Southern Indiana in 2017, then earned a Masters in Student Affairs Administration at Ball State. He’s lived and worked all over Indiana but Cody is “a lifelong fan of the Boston Red Sox.” He followed them as a grade schooler and rooted heavily for them as underdogs to the ‘Damn Yankees.’ That included suffering through the Sox 2003 loss in the 11th inning of the 7th game of American League championship series. His role at DKE is to oversee development of course material for all DKE education programs, with both online and in-person courses emphasiz-

ing leadership development, chapter management, and health & safety. How will Cody measure success in his new post? One way will be to implement a standardized new member education program “that is used by all DKE chapters.” Besides giving a foundation in DKE history, traditional DKE values, and local chapter traditions, his approach takes on a more ‘continuing education’ theme, expanding beyond the usual 4-6 week education period preceding initiation. It will add post-initiation education to better assimilate new members and ultimately include career networking and personal development for all members.

Logan Nantais, Delta Kappa-Pennsylvania ’21, joined DKE as Expansion Consultant, with the primary job of helping restart DKE at the University of Washington. Brother Nantais relocated to Seattle to focus on that mission, but in keeping with the DKE staff tradition of wearing many hats, Logan also serves as consultant to other chapters. Brother Nantais grew up in Long Beach, California Logan Nantais and early on laid some groundwork for a possible future in law. Upon graduating high school, he interned in the Long Beach city prosecutor’s office before heading to U Penn.

While at Penn, Logan joined DKE and his passion for fraternity life grew quickly. Besides serving as his chapter’s social chairman, Logan worked in the IFC as VP of Administration and Finance. He also volunteered as an inaugural member of DKE International’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access committee. Even his senior thesis on the social life of college students centered on Greek Life. Logan’s resume is deep for a guy who just graduated. In 2019, he interned at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea; he was staff writer for Penn’s International Relations Journal; and he was a researcher for Initio, a Canadian company that focused on Covid-19 recovery and helping small businesses manage through the pandemic. One priority he has as chapter consultant: help the long list of associate chapters earn their charters. “Some have operated as associate chapters for several years; most don’t realize they’ve done most of what it takes to complete the challenge.”

Morgan McElroy, Phi Epsilon-Minnesota ’21, joined the DKE staff in July as a Chapter Consultant. Though he hails from Orange County in southern California, Morgan now resides in Saint Paul, a good central location from which to serve as DKE’s primary traveling consultant. He hit the road in early October to work with chapters face to face. In his case, the route to chapters was via planes, trains and automobiles, when he made his first visits to chapters in

Erie, Pa., and Syracuse, and Clinton, N.Y. Brother McElroy served as Phi Epsilon chapter’s recruitment captain, social chairman, and Vice President. He was a member of the IFC’s Judicial Board, an at-large member of the Student

Beta Phi Brother Battles Cancer with Lake Erie Swim

B Morgan McElroy Council, and founder of a new campus safety subcommittee. In that latter role, he worked with the university president, the Board of Regents, the Chief of Police, and the state legislature to bring changes that improved campus safety and prevention of sexual assaults. Morgan also worked as a communications intern for Karin Housley, who ran for U.S. Senate seat in 2018, a seat vacated by Al Franken. His work did not lead to a Housley win, but it does sound like he gained experience that could prove valuable in today’s U.S. politics: “I concentrated my education in Campaigns and Elections and the impacts of modern-day media and candidate marketing on voter psychology at-large.”

ryan Greller, Beta Phi ’03, completed a fourmile open water swim in the waters of Lake Erie on July 6 to raise over $15,000 for ovarian cancer research. He swam from Marblehead to Kelly’s Island and buoyed the hopes of two women close to him who were diagnosed with the disease last year— Jennifer, the wife of his Beta Phi brother and best friend, Jon Van Valkenburg, and his cousin Collen Greller. The solo swim benefitted two causes, K.I.C.K, which stands for “knowledge is cancer’s kryptonite,” and Hope for Heather. Readers interested in donating to the causes can visit www. kickbrca.org/donate and www.hopeforheather.org. “I’m proud of the tremendous physical feat as well as of the money and awareness he raised for the cause,” says Van Valkenburg. “As someone who has had his world turned upside down by my wife’s diagnosis, I am deeply grateful for what Bryan has done.” “Brother Greller undertook a monumental task, both organizing and participating in the swim,” says Eric

Dubowsky, another DKE brother from his 2003 class. Bryan hopes to expand his solo swim to a philanthropy event with multiple participants next summer, perhaps with involvement of local swim clubs.

Psi Chapter Shines in Scholarship

si chapter of DKE at University of Alabama has been among the fraternity’s strongest for many decades, with an excellent operations record that includes winning the Lion Trophy more than any other chapter – eleven times, for those who are counting. Among the outstanding aspects of w w w.dke.org

DEKE NEWS the chapter’s performance over the years has been their pursuit of academic excellence. Their efforts include instilling good study habits in each new member class, and by putting in place each year a very proactive scholarship chairman. This year, that role is filled by an honor finance major Skipper Snypes, ’23. “We run a study hall for our new members in a building near the Deke House, making sure it’s a good environment away from distractions for five nights a week,” says Snypes. This year, the crew he monitors is 36 members. The chairman meets individually with each pledge to go over his class schedules and academic program and helps guide connections to Psi upper class men who have a background in similar studies. The Psi chapter also has a scholarship committee and maintains a database to help

advise members of the best classes/professors to take for specific majors. “There is a minimum GPA for new members to maintain. Since that’s 2.2, it isn’t usually an issue for our members.” Instead, the goal is to cultivate a culture where the chapter maintains an excellent GPA average, which the Psi chapter has done consistently, well above 3.0, and usually better than middle of the pack among fraternity men on campus. Last fall, Psi men earned a 3.25 GPA, 12th of 33 IFC member chapters, and above the all undergraduate men’s 3.17 average. Their new member scholarship program clearly helped lift Psi to that level, since new members posted a 3.52 GPA.

Stanford Alums Sing Risch a Wedding Wish

ew events match weddings for bringing recent alums back together. Here, Stanford Dekes Brian Holman, ’16, Jason Risch ’16, and Parker Phillips, Joe Getsy, Chris Nguyen, class of 2015, celebrate Jason’s wedding this past August. They’re singing a Deke song; well, not a Deke song, but one they traditionally sang together in the chapter—the Rawhide theme!

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

Long-awaited congratulations to the new members of Zeta Chi DKE at Bentley. This “Covid 18” class of spring 2020 finally makes it through!

Recruitment Starts Strong in Fall

urner Spears, DKE Administrative Services Director, reports great recruitment news as Dekes returned to campuses this fall – in some cases, at chapters that have been inactive a semester or two due to Covid-19. By late September, DKE had already accepted more than 520 new members with several large chapters yet to complete recruiting. The early results created optimism for initiating well over 600 new members and eclipsing the original fall goal by more than 150 new members. “One key reason for these great results,” Spears says, “is the hard work of the undergrads during the summer. They put ‘365 recruitment’ to work, instead of waiting until they were back in school begin their heavy recruitment.”

DKE Adds Chapters at Texas Tech, Ohio State, and Washington

pirits were high throughout the DKE Nation to start the fall semester, as the fraternity welcomed three new associate chapters into the fold, at Texas Tech, Ohio State, and Washington. Those births increased the DKE roll to 61 active chapters this fall, 54 in the U.S. and 7 in Canada.

The DKE flag flies over the chapter house at University of Washington for the first time in two decades. Summer highlights included the initiation of 33 young men into the Tau Gamma chapter at Texas Tech, on Saturday, August 14, and the kickoff of a new member on-boarding program by DKE’s new Senior Coordinator of Education Cody Hike. By the end of August, Hike indicated that Tau Gamma appeared to be on its way to becoming a ‘well-oiled machine’ in chapter operations. Absent from the University of Washington since the early 2000s, DKE will once again makes its presence felt in Seattle this autumn. The expansion began a year ago with Kappa Epsilon chapter alumni renovating the Deke house and cultivating an interest group of 22 men. Now, with continued generous assistance of the alumni, DKE placed full-time expansion consultant Logan Nantais on campus to guide recruitment of new members and educating them about DKE traditions and standards. The University of Washington formally recognized DKE as a student organization at the end of August.

Beta Tau Deke Launches Mental Health Media Site

vocabulary to articulate their experiences. He fashions his blog as an “approachable place that fosters Former underdialog” and cregraduate DKE ates some of the Board member needed conversaCarl Haynes tion. (Beta Tau-Vic“We would never toria ’20) has talk to our friends launched an the way we talk Instagram blog to ourselves,” Carl on mental health. says, but it could The page, help if they did. @carl.e.haynes, “Too many of us Carl Haynes shares intimate impose ‘self-limdetails about his iting beliefs’ on ourselves, own many-year struggle which then actually does fighting depression and limit our actual abilities.” anxiety while simultaneously honoring a friend who Revving Up lost her battle with cancer Our Movember earlier this year. Carl says he hopes that Partnership sharing deep personal elta Kappa Epsilon conthoughts would help others tinues its partnership who might otherwise suffer with Movember as our frasilently and not seek help ternity-wide philanthropy. or support from others. He The mission of the Movememphasizes that many men, ber Foundation is to stop including fraternity men, preventable men’s deaths could use encouragement to with a focus on suicide open up about their vulnerawareness, tesicular cancer, abilities, and they should be and prostate cancer. reminded they are not alone In the DKE-Movember with such challenges. partnership, each chapter DKE’s fraternity-wide can create a team through philanthropy partner Mowhich they can fundraise lovember, for instance, reports cally and track the progress that 79% of all U.S. suicides in an online portal. Addiare men, and that a quarter tionally, DKE International of the population suffers has set a formal challenge mental health issues. The on the Movember website organization says there is a to raise $60,000 this acaserious lack of conversation demic year. To check DKE’s regarding mental health progress in the challenge and that many men are or to make a donation, visit reluctant to seek https://movemhelp because of ber.com/n/ social norms. DKE?mc=1 Brother Haynes Donors might adds that other consider supresearch shows porting DKE men don’t typEducation Coically have the ordinator Cody

Hike’s fundraising page; this can be found under the DKE HQ link, or more directly at https://us.movember.com/ mospace/14534327 For every $100 Cody raises, he’ll hit 100 golf balls next May 1, as a kickoff to Mental Health Awareness month.

HQ Launches Oral History Project DKE has launched a new project to help capture nuggets from our fraternity’s rich history – as told by you, members of DKE. The DKE Oral History book will be published by PCI, the same company that has been producing our DKE membership directories

for several years. Alums heard about the project from Executive Director Doug Lanpher last month, and PCI began contacting members in late September as well, by mail and phone to collect stories from Dekes of all ages. So, if you have a DKE story to share about how DKE made an impact in your life, we encourage you to respond to the contacts from PCI. It’s not just stories from your undergrad days, but any fond memory whether it’s that story you might safely tell now that you couldn’t own up to back then, an awesome DKE alumni gathering, or the difference a multi-decade friendship made in your life.

Deke Trivia. Did you know…? … that a Deke founded the first nation-wide 24hour tv weather channel? Frank Batten, (Eta-Virginia ’50) founded The Weather Channel in 1982 at his company, Landmark Media Enterprises, one of the largest privately held media companies in the U.S. In 2008, Landmark sold the Weather Channel to two private equity firms for $3.5 billion. Brother Batten, who served as Chairman of the Associated Press (1982-1987) and as vice chairman of Virginia’s Council of Higher Education, was

a significant philanthropist to educational causes. Among his notable gifts: $32 million to the Harvard Business School; $60 million to Graduate School of Business at the University of Virginia; $32 million to Old Dominion University. In 2007, two years before his death, he donated another $100 million to the University of Virginia to establish the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy.

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MEET THE DKE BOARD OF BRIEF PROFILES OF MEMBERS ELECTED TO THE DKE BOARD OF DIRECTORS IN THE PAST TWO YEARS. THIS SERIES WILL CONTINUE IN UPCOMING EDITIONS OF THE DEKE QUARTERLY.

Grant D. Burnyeat, Phi Alpha ’68

fter five decades in law, half in the Supreme Court of British Columbia, the Honourable Grant D. Burnyeat retired only because the court’s rules prohibited him from working past age 75. When the law had first come knocking with his acceptance into law school, Grant postponed his studies to pursue another passion. He headed to New York to become assistant traveling secretary for DKE. The next two years, he installed new chapters at Sewanee and Wake Forest, met prominent Dekes like George H.W. Bush and Dan Quayle before they reached the White House, and wrote DKE’s first comprehensive chapter operations and pledge manuals. He also frequently attended Broadway plays, a practice that built in him an abiding interest in theatre. Dedication to DKE ultimately led Grant to a 10-year term on the DKE Board, from 2009 to 2019. It was a crucial period when the fraternity struggled to survive, for which it relied heavily upon its committed volunteer Board. This past summer, Grant returned to the Board, elected as Honorary President. Grant chaired many of the Board’s committees, including those on the Constitution and History and Archives. Doug Lanpher, DKE Executive Director, described Grant as “the answer man for any of the frequent constitutional questions faced by the Board.” He also became the most prodigious buyer of DKE memorabilia. Keeping constant vigilance on eBay and other forums, Grant purchased and preserved scores of precious historical documents and artifacts. Some he sent on to DKE HQ, others he presents in museum-like display cases at the Phi Alpha house. “It always amazes me what DKE stuff is out there,” Grant says. That includes treasures he takes special pride in capturing: a program autographed by Robert E. Peary from the 1909 banquet celebrating his reaching the North Pole and a scrapbook of Yale’s 1846 graduates containing signatures and personal messages of 11 of DKE’s 15 founders. Grant’s first year as a Deke was far from typical for any fraternity man. “I had just been initiated and become treasurer when the city council indicated they weren’t

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

renewing the lease on our off-campus house. That had us scrambling.” Grant took a year off from school to secure land and raise funds to build a house on campus. The dust settled and he went on to serve as the chapter’s house manager and its president. He’s been a stalwart supporter of his chapter and DKE chapters everywhere, especially those in Canada. He was instrumental in founding chapters at University of Victoria and Simon Fraser University and revivals at McGill and Western Ontario. He served three terms as president the Phil Alpha alumni association and attended 25 consecutive Burnyeat initiations of the chapter’s members. Driven by a deep sense of civic duty, Grant has been influential as a supporter of the Vancouver community, the arts, and UBC. He was the law school’s representative in UBC’s student government, the Alma Mater Society, and was in its senate for six years. He became one of only two law school students ever elected as AMS president. In that role, he championed the siting of an aquatic center and a pub on campus. He was a director for both UBC’s Alumni Association and a founding director of the law school’s Alumni Association. His accomplishments deservedly earned Grant high recognition. He was named one of the 75 Outstanding Graduates in UBC’s first 75, given the UBC Alumni Achievement Award for Volunteer Leadership in 2009, and decorated with both The Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal (2002) and The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012). He was recipient of the Jessie Richardson Award as Theatre Patron of the Year in 2019.

David Helverson, Delta Pi ’81

hrough song every Deke claims proudly to be one, but David Helverson, elected to the DKE Board this summer, truly is the son of a D-K-E. His father, Alan became a Delta Pi member at University of Illinois a quarter century before him. Dave grew up seeing the imagery regularly—a paddle on the wall of the rec room and dad often wearing DKE sweatshirts. Still, Dave wanted a thorough appraisal before he pledged and rushed a dozen fraternities. “Illinois had one of the largest Greek systems in the country then, every kind of choice. I found the 17-man chapter of DKE had the right character for me. Perhaps ahead of its time by today’s measures, but I found the group incredibly diverse and inclusive.”

DIRECTORS Dave earned his BS degree in Marketing from the University of Illinois in 1981 and went to work as account manager for National Steel Corp. By 1986, he added an MBA from Loyola University, then spent 35 years building and growing a financial advisor practice in Wells Fargo’s Chicago office. Brother Helverson took the helm as Delta Helverson Pi’s president as a junior, then remained involved with the chapter as an early alumnus in the 1980s. Besides advising his chapter, Dave helped lay the groundwork to reactivate the Delta Delta chapter in Chicago. Dave then took a long break from fraternity—partly to concentrate on his financial career, but also to bury the pain of his chapter’s closing. “It had been one of the most heartbreaking experiences in my life.” Letters from DKE in 2013 brought Dave back. “They were the first I had received from HQ in 20 years, from a guy I recognized and respected as a chapter consultant when I was chapter president.” Doug Lanpher had become Executive Director those decades later, and he convinced Dave to advise the interest group who wanted to revive the Delta Pi chapter. Dave’s work the next few years put the chapter back on the DKE map and earned him the 2018 Henderson Cup for exceptional service to a chapter. That same year, Dave also completed a formal restart of the Delta Pi alumni association, which he still leads as president. When Wells Fargo or DKE aren’t commanding his time, Dave enjoys literature, gardening, golf, and music—especially classical and jazz piano. He bangs on the ivories and is currently president of the board of The Jazz Institute of Chicago.

T. Semmes Favrot, Psi ’82

ore than 32 members of Semmes Favrot’s family—starting with his grandfather, Henri Favrot, in the class of 1915 at Tulane—have taken the pledge. The tradition continues downline. Semmes’ oldest son, Tim, now a sophomore at Alabama, served as Psi’s pledge class president last fall. Semmes, who was elected to the DKE Board in 2019, graduated from the University of Alabama with a B. A. in history, and then obtained a law degree from Tulane University

in 1986. He has practiced law in New Orleans ever since. As a student at Alabama, he served as Vice-President of the Psi Chapter of DKE his senior year and has been the Psi Alumni Historian since 2010. In that role, he writes regularly about Psi chapter history for its newsletter, Sighs of Psi. His passion for DKE history inspired Semmes to do extensive research trying to discover the identity of the southern solider described in the poem “Brothers in DKE.” Written 30 years after the Civil War, it describes how Edwin Rogers was comforted in his last hours by an unknown fellow DKE after being wounded in the battle of Cold Harbor in Virginia. Semmes managed to track down Rogers’ pin through his descendants—and they loaned him the pin to present at DKE’s 175th Anniversary banquet in 2019. Semmes keeps in touch with the Rogers family, hoping to someday to create a permanent home for the pin at a special DKE location. “After taking 150 years to locate it, we want to keep it close, since the object is close to our hearts and a great example Favrot of the strength of the bonds of brotherhood.” With the rest of his spare time Semmes is an avid outdoorsman, football fan, and writer. He enjoys downhill skiing and last spring graciously hosted several Psi chapter members on a ski trip to Big Sky, Montana. It was a makeup for their spring break cancelled due to Covid. Semmes notes that he’s nearing publication of two books that he predicts few will have an interest in reading. If he’s a poor prognosticator, look for the review in a future issue of the Quarterly. Brother Favrot is thrilled at serving the DKE Board, and not just for a part in shaping the fraternity’s strategic direction. “It’s been a fabulous late in DKE life surprise for me. I thought I was done making new lifelong friends through DKE, but in the past couple of years, I started some great new friendships across the land.”

w w w.dke.org

CHAPTER NEWS

Beta Delta’s new member class after landscaping and cleaning up in a park near Athens.

Beta Delta – Georgia

“W

e have a lot of positive things going for us, just getting to three years old, and having chartered less than a year ago,” reports Brother Beta Brendan Koerner. “Our chapter’s infrastructure and selectiveness rivals anyone’s, and our members are determined to develop a chapter that stands out from the rest at Georgia.” Brother Koerner notes that the chapter confidently awaits results of its petition to earn its spot as a member of Georgia’s IFC. Meantime, they’re working to position themselves as one of DKE’s best chapters. The chapter rented a house in a good location and its members are very excited, knowing it will help in recruitment. The house sits in a cluster of other residences, so there may be room to grow in the same location as the chapter grows. And it is growing. This fall’s pledge class was 14 men, the chapter’s largest so far. Beta Delta has been busy this fall with communi12

ty service, having helped do landscaping in a park area in Athens (see photo). They’ve also volunteered with Books for Keeps, which donates books to children who might otherwise have none. The Dekes helped BFK to build shelves, sort and organize books to get ready for the organization’s annual Community Book Fair.

Iota-Centre

ranay Mupparaju, Brother Beta reports: The theme of the past two years at Centre College has been adapting to new circumstances, policies, and restrictions. Many of our brothers have been placed in unpredictable situations and have had to forgo years of their college experience as a result. It has not been easy. Yet, we’ve persevered, specifically thanks to the leadership of the Theta and Kappa pledge classes of the Iota Chapter. We are hopeful that this year marks the gradual return to normalcy. We are excited to re-establish our traditions and build upon

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

the foundation that the previous classes of the Iota Chapter put in place. As Covid restrictions ease, Iota will focus on carrying out more community service projects in Danville and Central Kentucky. Last semester, we were able to do a project with the Central Kentucky Wildlife Refuge, helping protect trees near water ways that beavers were damaging. We also uprooted and disposed of several invasive species that were beginning to take over surrounding flora. We’re looking to do more community service, aiming for projects that provide aid to people most in need and where we can many Iota members can participate, such as soup kitchens and shelters. Iota Dekes also plan to resurrect our philanthropy support of the Heart of Kentucky United Way. The primary fundraising effort for that is our Annual Founder’s Auction, which is supplemented by other on-campus events. This semester we also launched a new website: www.CentreDKE.com. Although Iota utilizes other

social media platforms, we wanted to create a more open place to share relevant news with the Centre College community, the city of Danville, and our DKE alumni. In the future, we also hope to use this site to promote our chapter successes in academics and perhaps for access to tools for us Iota brothers, ourselves—study tools, schedules, and “spotlights” for brothers to share their own successes.

Kappa EpsilonU Washington

elta Kappa Epsilon returned to UW this fall, ready to build a chapter consisting of gentleman, scholars, and jolly good fellows. The chapter recently bid a founding class of 17 members who will conclude new member education in November. The Kappa Epsilon men are proud to share in this exciting time of expansion for our brotherhood. They publicly shared some of their goals and values online: “We aspire to be a highly respected fraternity, focused on excellent chapter performance, popu-

Greeting visitors at Centre College’s Activities Expo and telling them about DKE were Iota chapter brothers JR Brockman, ’22 and Gavin Fields, ’24, and Yale Deke from 1968, George W. Bush.

lated with men of distinction whose behavior is exemplary in all respects and who go on to become leaders in their chosen fields.” KE looks forward to rewarding good academic excellence. “Supported by generous alumni, we have funds within the UW Foundation and the Deke Foundation

Some of the re-founding members of Kappa Epsilon chapter

from which our members can receive scholarships to cover tuition or pursue other academic interests.” We view giving back to the community a staple of fraternity life. As former President George H.W. Bush (himself a Deke) noted, “there could be no definition of success that does not include service to others.” Many of our members find helping those in need one of the most rewarding experiences of membership in Delta Kappa Epsilon. Finally, our fully renovated chapter house, located at 18th Avenue NE and NE 47th Street, has the amenities a modern fraternity requires and is wonderfully served by a bricked-in courtyard. Each member sleeps in a bedroom – we do not have a sleeping porch!

Nu Alpha – Northeastern

ohn Berry ’24, chapter Corresponding Secretary reports about an exciting new tradition started this fall at Nu Alpha. “The brothers of Nu Alpha wanted to create a tradition of our own that could be passed down to future brothers. The idea of roasting an alligator started as a joke. But it quickly took hold, growing into the centerpiece of the fall 2021 rush. But, getting a 7-foot alligator to Boston, let alone cooking one, is not for the faint of heart. Orchestrating such a complex event took adept planning and precision from the aptly named Gator Squad: Martin Henry Bulanowski, ’22, William Von Ahnen, ’23, and Jacob Horowitz, ’23. Equally important was alum Matthew Lowe, ’21, whose generous donation funded the majority of the event.” The chapter posted a huge thank you to everyone who attended its First Annual Gator Roast, which was a recruitment success and a lot of fun. “Potential recruits teetering between DKE and other fraternities were immediately convinced. As brothers showed up to lectures on Monday, they were showered with questions, as the event had gone viral.” The queries included the obvious, with the answer from Brother Bulanowski: “It tasted like chicken . . . with a fishy aftertaste.” The chapter extended 25 bids, of which 18 accepted, a number that would come

Nu Alpha’s New Member Educator William Von Ahnen, ’23, mans the grill for the First Annual Gator Roast.

close to doubling the active chapter roll. “A gator head now sits in the fraternity house fridge, ready to be taxidermized and hung on the wall to serve as a reminder to avoid sitting on the bench and doing the same old rush events. Dekes must be willing to step into the arena and secure to merit its due reward.”

Omicron-Michigan.

resident Jason Koty reports that the chapter bid 29 new members this fall and are very excited to welcome them to the fraternity. “Congrats go to Nolan Weiss, our Recruitment Chair, for leading the effort this year. New member education is wrapping up, with anticipated initiation in November. The Omicron chapter is unaffiliated with the University of Michigan, but it is joining the independent Ann Arbor IFC this semester. The 85-man chapter has moved to a new chapter house for the first time in nearly three decades. Twenty-five members are living in the house, almost all in single rooms. “It took us a bit to adjust to our new living situation, and though Covid challenges

continue, we are enjoying a return to some semblance of normalcy,” Brother Koty says. “Fingers crossed, but we have not had any health-related issues so far this semester.”

Tau GammaTexas Tech.

oah Ford, chapter president, reports: The Tau Gamma Associate Chapter was officially recognized on August 14, 2021, at Texas Tech University in Lubbock with the initiation of 37 founding members, a ceremony attended by five representatives from DKE International. Sixteen more associate members accepted bids in September. We were founded out of a desire similar to DKE’s original founders at Yale. Here, at Texas Tech, members of a local chapter of an Engineering Fraternity wanted more for themselves and more from our relationships with one another. We wanted to create an organization that would attract the best, most well-rounded men on campus regardless of major. We were dissatisfied with the direction the engineering fraternity was taking nationally. We found what we were looking for in DKE, w w w.dke.org

CHAPTER NEWS

especially in the values its members hold most high in their daily lives and careers. Tau Gamma’s founders agreed to one condition to propel us toward our expectedly bright future: to become the very best men on campus and in our community. For individuals this means striving to be a well-rounded man, seeking adventure, and never straying from a challenge. Collectively, it means actively working towards becoming the premiere fraternity chapter at Texas Tech—socially, academically, and philanthropically. This semester Tau Gamma has launched a robust social events calendar featuring several tailgates, established mandatory study hours to ensure academic success of all members, and adopted a local 2-mile stretch of highway for volunteer cleanup. We set aggressive membership expansion goals, aiming to far exceed the campus average of 90 members. We expect to do this responsibly to preserve our close-knit brotherhood. We aim to earn our DKE Charter quickly and to establish a housing corporation to enable acquiring space on Texas Tech’s Greek Circle for the construction of a new DKE lodge. The future is bright for Tau Gamma. We understand that the journey ahead will present many trials and tribulations and success will require the strength of our brothers and concentrated efforts to become the best Gentlemen, Scholars, and Jolly Good Fellows Texas Tech has ever known. 14

Sigma Xi – St Joseph College.

rother Beta Daniel Guthlein, ’21, says the chapter has struggled through the Covid semesters, with serious limits on campus activities, chapter operations, and recruitment. “We are fighting and working hard to grow back to chapter roll size we had a few years ago,” he says. “It is especially tough after bringing in our smallest pledge class ever in 2020— just four members, but finally being back on campus, we are able to have some presence again. The silver lining in coming through these battles is that the challenges have brought our members closer than ever before.”

Patrick Bennett Among the bright spots for the Sigma Xi brothers came when brother Patrick Bennett, ’21, was honored by the college as the IFC’s most valuable member for last year; the MVM is given based on service to students on the Patchogue, New York campus. “He certainly earned it, working throughout a stressful and busy junior year; he managed to carry on student teaching / observing while putting his all into the fraternity,” Brother Guthlein says.

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

James Osborne captured this shot at the alumni banquet, the first in decades held by Tau Alpha.

Tau Alpha-McGill.

he growing chapter of 37 brothers (24 actives plus 13 fine new members from a great recruitment this fall) is thrilled at having just hosted its first alumni weekend in over three decades. Tau Alpha welcomed members from pledge classes reaching back to 1959 including 15 pre-1990 alumni (when Tau Alpha went inactive for two decades.) The gathering was a great celebration, worthy of the great traditions of DKE, despite Covid’s Delta variant dampening participation somewhat. The highlight was a festive banquet at Les Deux Gamins, a Parisian-style bistro in Montreal, where brothers enjoyed snails, frog legs, fois gras and duck – and the finest of camaraderie among old friends and new. Hats off to the actives for great organizing and communications to re-connect with

alums – especially Tianshi Yuan, ‘22 Mathieu Lavault, ’22, James “Ozzy” Osborne, ’24. [See the back cover of this issue for more photos of the alumni weekend]. Now in its eighth year of rebuilding after returning to McGill, the chapter takes pride in the deep involvement of its members on campus. Among the leaders are Thomas Braun ’22 and Noah Gundermann, ’21, both active in McGill’s Management Undergraduate Society. Brother Braun recently took on the role of Executive Director of the MUS Case League of the Desautels Faculty of Management, one of the world’s leading international business schools. Brother Gundermann is currently president of the MUS, representing more than 2,000 McGill students. Brother Gundermann also founded the Wine Society at McGill, which hosts winery tours and wine apartment crawls.

Phi Epsilon – Minnesota

DKE’s chapter at Minnesota, Phi Epsilon, celebrates one of its strongest recruitments ever, with 22 new members.

DKE BOARD MEMBERS ATTEND RETREAT AT TEXAS RANCH ON THE WEEKEND OF AUGUST 13-15, MEMBERS OF THE DKE BOARD OF DIRECTORS MET IN ALBANY, TEXAS FOR A RETREAT AND BUSINESS PLANNING SESSION.

By Doug Lanpher, Executive Director, Gamma ‘77

n the weekend of August 13-15, members of the DKE Board of Directors met in Albany, Texas for a retreat and business planning session. Our host for the weekend was Brother Dick Stasney, Phi ’65. Dick, a retired ENT surgeon from Houston, was featured in the spring edition of the Quarterly for his medical practice dedicated to fine arts practitioners. He owns a 26,000 acre ranch in Albany, about 3 hours west of DFW and 30 minutes from Abilene. It’s called the Stasney Cook Ranch. Stasney Ranch often hosts non profit Board retreats such as this, including the Choate School Board (where Dick was an alumnus). It is perfectly suited for such meetings, with Standing from Left: Dave Helverson, Caffrey Favrot, Dan Johnson, cabins of various sizes, and a large main room Doug Lanpher, Ray Graves, Neilson Brown, Christian Cummings, with all the high tech equipment needed for Jim Gray, Semmes Favrot. Kneeling from L-R: Kevin O’Bryon, presentations and meetings. It’s a ranch for Ron Li, John Yerger. Right: Dick Stasney sure, but this is not “roughing it,” as Dick and his staff provide all the creature comforts too. DKE Board members are all volunteers, and pay 100% of their after which the members found more time for leisure activities expenses to attend retreats. For the first time, this meeting was and then drinks and another wonderful dinner in the Cook Shack, structured as a joint meeting between the Fraternity and Foundation at which many Deke stories were told late into the evening. All Boards, and two Foundation Board members attended as well. the while, the Deke flag fluttered in the Texas winds high above The ranch is an incredible piece of real estate with a beautiful mix the ranch’s main cabin. of wooded land, prairies, lakes, and rolling hills, not to mention an The agenda for the Deke Board meetings included topics such as impressive wind farm. Dick’s 1,100 head of cattle roam the property, financial reviews, DKE’s rebound from the Covid crisis, governance as do a couple dozen longhorns, who come and go as they please, issues relating to the various Deke entities (Fraternity, Foundation, and act as if they own the place. There’s no shortage of activities Property Group), and quite a bit of time on the status of our swimming, boating, fishing, hunting, target shooting, and wildlife undergraduate chapters and the educational programming offered tours. (The Board members’ performance on the shooting range was, to them. The Board, which meets frequently by phone, tries to get let’s just say, inconsistent.) It’s also a popular dove hunting locale. together in person every year, but it had been two years since our Any of our readers who are interested in learning more about the last meeting. The retreat was a great way to take stock of where DKE ranch for your organization’s retreat, or for a ranch getaway, please is now, but more importantly, to look ahead to the future, and to set call or email me and I’ll put you in touch with Dick and his capable goals for the next five years. I hope our readers will appreciate Deke staff of ranch managers. Board members giving up a summer weekend to travel to Texas for Dick and his crew welcomed us on Thursday afternoon with a the retreat, on their own dime. It’s a sign that these men love DKE few golf cart tours for early arrivers, then a great Mexican dinner and work hard to provide very strong governance of our Fraternity. in the Cook Shack after a few cocktails. After breakfast on Friday, All Dekes should be proud to be led by this diverse and committed we dove into the meetings for the better part of the day, with a Board of Directors. couple hours in the late afternoon set aside for touring, swimming, And finally, the Deke Board members can’t thank Brother Stasney shooting, etc. Then Dick hosted us at a wonderful steak restaurant enough for his hospitality. His staff is top notch, efficient and friendly, in downtown Albany, owned by two Iranian brothers who got out and everything ran without a hitch. It was an unforgettable weekend of Iran just before things went downhill in 1979. Saturday found and an ideal location for our retreat. Please visit the ranch’s website us back in the meeting room for another half day of meetings, (www.stasneyranch.com) and learn more for yourself. w w w.dke.org

DEKES IN AGRICULTURE

KEEP FOOD

ON THE TABLE

By Kevin Cuneo, Gamma ’77

roud of their fraternity’s rich history, Dekes often talk about the incredible number of brothers who served as U.S. Presidents, senators, Canadian statesmen, judges, business leaders, authors, actors and athletes. The truth is that Delta Kappa Epsilon is well represented in almost every walk of life. One of the most important group of the fraternity’s professionals, however, are those in the U.S. and Canada who work the soil. DKE farmers throughout North America not only feed the public at home, they produce a multitude of crops that are shipped overseas to feed the rest of the world. Here are stories about several Dekes who work in agriculture – some who run major farming operations and others who grow just enough food to help feed families and those in their communities. In many cases, they have followed in the footsteps of family members who have worked the land for generations. There are also those who are on the cutting edge of relatively new systems to provide fresh vegetables to North American restaurants and families. We might not talk about them in the same breath with Theodore Roosevelt and those who walked on the moon, but Dekes in agriculture are a sturdy lot who work long, hard hours to feed us all. In these difficult times across the globe, they’re playing a pretty important role.

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

A.J. House

during my senior year of college, it meant I would be heading home to run the farms. Thanks to advances in genetics and technology, we’re able to produce more from what we grow. Lambda ’80 For example, in my grandfather’s day, we produced 80 to 100 bushels of dried corn. My father was able to produce between The expansive farms worked by Alexander James House near 140 to 160 bushels of corn, and today we’re up to 180 to 200 or Quincy, Ill., have been in his family since 1841. The rolling more bushels.” fields to the west of the property, which descend toward the Modern equipment and methods have also reduced the Mississippi River, offer some of the richest farmland in the world. amount of manpower needed on the farm. “When I was a kid, we A.J., as he’s known to his DKE brothers and many friends, said had seven families working on the farm,” House said. “Now we’re he raises corn, soybeans and a little wheat on one of the farms, down to two. That doesn’t mean the work has gotten a whole but he’s being modest. He lot easier. It’s still pretty adds in the next breath labor intensive.” that he also raises some Things have changed specialty corn – white over the years at Richfield corn for tortillas and Farms and Center School a waxy, high oil corn Farms, which got its favored by the Japanese. name from the one-room In other words, House schoolhouse that stood transports his crops for years on the property. around the globe. “We had to take it down a The 64-year-old House couple of years ago when also owns two large a big wind tore off the Angus herds on another roof. My uncle, who died farm in the area where at 94, was one of the last calves are raised until kids who attended school they’re weaned and grow there. He rode a pony to to about 500 pounds. class.” “Then they’re sent to the Just as he did during big feed lots in Kansas his undergraduate years and Nebraska,” he said. at Kenyon, House takes So prized are the calves an active interest in his for the quality of their community. “Joe Hagin, a meat that major, hightop adviser to three U.S. end restaurants offer top presidents, was two years prices for them before ahead of me at Lambda the animals are offered and he recruited me for the at public auction. “Our volunteer fire department part in this supply chain in Gambier. Joe said, is particularly labor ‘You’re experienced at intensive, but it’s also driving a big truck and rewarding,” House said. you’re licensed, so what’s Farming has been a holding you back?’ I way of life for this family liked it so much that I’ve for five generations. volunteered for the fire “A hundred and sixty department in Quincy for years ago they cleared the past 40 years.” trees on the land with The esprit de corps in an ax and a mule,” A.J. a farming community “In my grandfather’s day, we produced 80 to 100 said. “Today, there are is special, House said. bushels of dried corn. My father was able to produce computers everywhere. “There’s an old saying that In the old days, when the between 140 to 160 bushels of corn, and today we’re up if you want to get your buyers wanted to look to 180 to 200 or more bushels.” crops in first, just get sick. at your cows, they did it People help each other – A. J. House in person. Today, buyers out here, especially when can get the pertinent somebody is in need.” information online, as During his years at Lambda, House served as Brother Beta, every calf has a tag that tracks its weight and performance until and since then he’s maintained close ties with his DKE brothers. it’s slaughtered. The experts can track to an amazing degree “We’ve hosted a number of reunions on the farm over the years, which farm produces the best cattle, which is why we are so and we’ve had Dekes come in from California, New York, and careful about breeding and taking care of the herd.” even from Chile,” he said. “My fraternity experience defined It’s clear that House is a respected figure in Payson, the my years at Kenyon, and with few exceptions, all of the Kenyon town near Quincy where he grew up and still lives. “I’m the friends I’m in contact with are Lambda Dekes.” youngest of three in my family and I always planned to return You learn the value of hard work, dedication, and friendship to the farm after Kenyon,” House said. “When my father died on the farm,” House said. “Just as you did at the Deke House.” w w w.dke.org

Hassan Sharaff

attack them one by one. “Otherwise, you can start to feel overwhelmed,” he said. Out of necessity, he learned electrical wiring, plumbing and carpentry. “If a fan breaks or a pump fails, I’ve got to be able to fix it.” Sharaff’s large greenhouse has survived high winds and other threats from nature, but the business is going strong and he’s feeling positive about his change in careers. “I think we’re just scratching the surface of what we can grow in a hydroponic setting. People want good, clean greens they can trust, and now I’m sure we can provide it for them,” he said.

Gamma ’07

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

Lin Davidson Delta Chi ’70 For 37 years, Lin Davidson taught biology at Cornell University. During much of that time, he raised hogs and bees, maintaining a small vegetable farm near Ithaca, N.Y. “It’s an addiction, farming is,” the 71-year-old Cornell Deke said. “It gets in your blood and you can’t get away from the land. I’m a small farmer who owns about 110 acres and runs a total of about 250 acres. I’m nothing like these big-time guys who feed the world, but it’s still a passion.” Davidson’s father was an engineer who decided, when Lin was a boy, that he wanted to farm. “Dad raised purebred cattle and was doing OK before New York’s tax laws changed, which pretty much gutted the business,” Lin said. “I’ve always been interested in farming and worked on one when I was in high school. We ran steers – that was my project – but my father always said, ‘You’re going to be a veterinarian.’ I met everyone at my animal science lab, and when I had hogs I learned how to ask questions,” Davidson said. “I enjoyed the relationships I had with the people, but that wasn’t the style at Cornell. That school makes you think of the next steps.” While working at Cornell, he said he enjoyed the supportive environment – friends who didn’t mind helping out when he had to get to the farm to take care of important business. “My wife, Susan, who was a bookkeeper, saw the financial folly of trying to run a farm while you work a fulltime job,” he said. “But she put up with me, and our two sons grew up putting up thousands of bales of hay every summer. Both boys, who grew up to lead successful careers, ran like hell from the farm.” After Susan Davidson died of cancer in 2011, Lin retired from Cornell and threw himself into farming. “I like getting up every day and watching the plants grow, and I like the people,” he said. “We lead the kind of life where if I need, say, a piece of equipment to fix my tractor, I can call my neighbor. Nine times out of ten, he’ll say, ‘Yeah, I have one of those. I’ll leave it on the kitchen counter.”’ Lin hasn’t slowed down since he married Kristin, who recently VANDERBILT MAGAZINE

It took a few years for Hassan Sharaff to find his true calling, but the hydroponic farm he owns and runs in Mount Juliet, Tenn., feels like home. Ten years after graduating from Vanderbilt with a degree in mechanical engineering, the 37-yearold Deke built a greenhouse with his dad in his parents’ backyard outside of New York City. He’d never sown a seed before, but he launched a mini hydroponic operation there to experiment with horticulture while he plotted his agribusiness venture. Sharaff, who grew up in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and New York, followed in his father’s footsteps after college. For a decade, he worked in the finance, nonprofit and hospitality industries, but found that as he grew older his values began to shift. “I wanted to make a positive contribution to society,” he told Vanderbilt Magazine. “I believed in kindness and philanthropy. Things my parents instilled in me.” After considerable research, Sharaff decided a hydroponic farming enterprise met the criteria for what he considered to be a calling. “I could provide a valuable service, work on my feet, make a decent income and be proud of what I was doing,” he said. The trick was to find a location that had a city full of chefs who wanted quality produce, but where the real estate prices had not gone through the roof. Five years ago, Sharaff returned to Nashville, Tenn., for the first time since he graduated. “I found a thriving culinary scene and affordable land east of the city,” he said. That September he closed on 17 acres in Mount Juliet and eight months later launched operations. He told Vanderbilt Magazine that his business, now known as HydroHouse Farms, survived hard-won lessons from nature and the marketplace but is now serving dozens of high-end restaurants and food service outlets. Before sewing his first crop, Hassan studied root growth, nutrients, environment and water. He researched the nutrient film technique hydroponics system, which pumps a nutrient and water solution through growth trays. Through trial and error, and by adjusting temperature, humidity and water solution pH, he hit upon the formula that helps his plants thrive. “You must be sure that you’re growing produce that your market actually wants,” he said. Happily, he found that “Restaurants buy a lot of lettuce.” Sharaff has learned a lot about things such as water. “They made slight changes in the water system where we’re located, and it was still high-quality water, but it was slightly different for our plants. We had to adapt quickly, which we did,” he said. Hassan also put his engineering background to good use by working to break down problems into smaller components and

“I like getting up every day and watching the plants grow, and I like the people.” – Lin Davidson

retired from the delightful bed and breakfast she ran from her picturesque Victorian farmhouse. Not only does Davidson work his land, he’s also active as the state director of the New York Farm Bureau, where he’s helped dozens of people who wanted to try their hand at agriculture. “It’s the same at Cornell’s Deke House where Lin was always supportive of every kid who came along,” said Ari Sobel, who went to his Deke brother for advice when he wanted to get into hydroponic growing. “Lin has incredible knowledge that he shares freely,” Sobel said. “He raises those row crops, which is much different from what I do, but Lin knows everyone and he’s always willing to connect you with just the expert you need.” Davidson said he had no plans to join a fraternity after he enrolled at Cornell, but his father urged him to try it. “My dad said, ‘You ought to join one. There’s a lot there that might interest you.’ As usual, Dad was right,” Lin said. “In retrospect, I think he was also right about farming.”

at the casinos, he saw a TV report about hydroponic growing in an old 400-square-foot shipping container. He took an intensive class at the University of Arizona to learn as much about hydroponics as possible. “I was thinking about doing the shipping container thing, but my professors said to try the greenhouse approach,” Sobel said. “The teachers at another class I took at Utah State University said the same thing, so Kevin and I bought 3.8 acres near Buffalo and began planning Urban Garden Farms. “Hydroponics is the cleanest method of growing food there is,” Ari said. “People are crazy for all types of lettuce these days, but you have serious outbreaks of contaminated lettuce that’s been poisoned by fecal matter that leaks into the ground. That can’t happen in a hydroponic environment.” Sobel and his partner raise baby greens and microgreens, and their specialty lettuce is in great demand by Buffalo restaurants. “We grow several types of lettuce, blue dwarf kale, ruby rainbow chard, and different types of basil,” Ari said. “Eventually, we plan to add another type of hydroponic system in which tomatoes, eggplants, peppers and other vegetables grow. “I’m excited about the future of what we’re growing because of the demand for local food, and we estimate that ‘local’ will take in up to 250 miles from where we’re based.” Calling on his background as a chef, Ari earned money while the hydroponic operation was taking shape by baking awardwinning pizzas in a tent that he would transport to events around town. “That worked well, but it’s nice to be back in a building that has a roof on it,” he said. Sobel remains connected with many DKE brothers, often consulting them for advice. “This is just the beginning for this type of food, and we’re convinced it’s only going to get bigger and bigger,” he said.

Ari Sobel Delta Chi ’99 Ari Sobel lived a lifetime before getting into hydroponic farming. From the time he was a 12 year old selling hotdogs for a vendor at the football stadium in Tampa, Fla., Ari has always been involved with food. The Cornell Deke, now the co-owner of Urban Garden Farms in Grand Island, N.Y., a suburb of Buffalo, studied hotel and restaurant management in college before going on to get his masters degree at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y. He served as Director of Food and Beverage at major casinos in Las Vegas and more recently was in charge of food and drink at the Meadows Casino in Pittsburgh. When the ownership changed at the casinos, Sobel decided to try something different. “I got into hydroponics with my partner, Kevin Colosimo, who had run table games at casinos for about 20 years,” he said. Ari, 51, who lives in Pittsburgh with his wife and children, spends about four days a week at their 9,000-square-foot greenhouse on Grand Island, which they built in 2017. “Buffalo gets cold in the winter, but that doesn’t bother hydroponic growing,” he said. “Yes, the days are shorter in the winter, which means there’s less light, but we can adjust for that.” When Sobel said he was looking for an exit from his work

“Hydroponics is the cleanest method of growing food there is.” – Ari Sobel

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FORGOTTEN GREATS OF DKE

TITAN OF FINANCE

AUGUST BELMONT II

Above: A postcard celebrating New York’s City Hall IRT station. Right: A restored subway car.

n the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, few men in America were as influential as August Belmont II. Born in 1853, Belmont, the son of a wealthy financier, would become a world-renown builder, a captain of industry, a patriot, and arguably the most prominent leader in thoroughbred racing. An 1875 graduate of Harvard University, Belmont is described in several biographies as “a proud member of Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity.” Friends he made at college would play an important role in many of his life’s greatest achievements. Upon graduation, Belmont joined his father’s powerful banking house, August Belmont & Co. The original August Belmont was the son of Jewish immigrants who changed his name from Schoenberg and reinvented himself as a wealthy capitalist. On the day of his wedding to the daughter of Commodore Matthew Perry, the New York Times said Belmont had married into “American royalty.” When August Belmont died in 1890, his son became head of the bank and promptly quadrupled its assets. Belmont II also inherited his father’s love of horses – primarily thoroughbreds –

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and became an active breeder. In 1899, while mourning the death of his beloved wife, Elizabeth, Belmont threw himself into a project that many New Yorkers called “the height of foolhardiness.” After prominent New York families such as the Vanderbilts and Whitneys refused to invest in a New York tunnel transit system, Belmont pledged to not only finance what would become the city’s subway system, he also took a leading role in supervising its construction. Belmont founded the Interborough Rapid Transit Company in 1902 to help finance and operate the subway system. Eventually, he would sell the system to the city of New York, whose leaders realized what a major asset it had become in transporting people in the busy metropolis. As in most business ventures during his lifetime, Belmont earned a huge profit. He also held the distinction of owning the world’s only private subway car, which he named Mineola. It was used by Belmont to give tours of the

NEW-YORK-TRANSIT-MUSEUM

PACH BROTHERS

HE BUILT NEW YORK’S SUBWAY SYSTEM AND HORSE RACING’S BELMONT PARK

NYRA

COOK COLLECTION. KEENELAND LIBRARY NYRA

Above: American Pharoah wiining the 2015 Belmont Stakes and the Triple Crown, the first in 37 years. Right top: Man o’ War. Right middle: Belmont Park shortly after it opened. Right bottom: Jockeys leaving the paddock to enter the ivy walled park.

IRT, and the opulent car is now preserved at Belmont’s stables. It would go on to become In 1916, eight days after the Shore Line Trolley Museum in East Haven, America’s most famous racehorse. the United States entered Connecticut. Meanwhile, at the age of 64, Belmont Later, Belmont would be instrumental what was then known as volunteered to assist the war effort and was sent in making the Cape Cod Canal a reality. It the Great War, a chestnut to France by the U.S. Army. Assigned at first to enabled mariners to bypass longer routes negotiate with the government of Spain to procure colt was born at Belmont’s supplies, Belmont, who was commissioned as a around the cape, and the U.S. government stables. It would go on to major, eventually helped inspect and advise on would eventually purchase it from Belmont’s become America’s most heirs. horses used in the battles. Discharged from the Like his father, Belmont’s racing stable Army on January 6, 1919, he was one of the oldest famous racehorse. produced some of America’s greatest Americans to serve during the war. champions. While serving as the first president While he was in France, his second wife, of The Jockey Club, Belmont took up the Eleanor, wrote to him about the promising colt cause of saving thoroughbred racing when New York state that had been born at his stables. “I’m going to name it after legislators came close to having it banned. In 1908, bicoastal you, my love, by calling him ‘My Little Man O’ War,’” she wrote. anti-wagering laws were passed that led to the closing of dozens The horse’s name was eventually shortened to Man O’ War, and of American racetracks. Many of the nation’s wealthiest horse it became the most successful thoroughbred of the 20th century. owners either sold their stock or took it overseas, but not Ironically, Belmont, who had grown weary after his service Belmont. Though he did hedge his bets by returning his star overseas, decided in 1918 to liquidate his racing stable. Man O’ stallion Rock Sand to Europe and maintaining some bloodstock War was purchased by Samuel Riddle for $5,000 at the Saratoga abroad, he never stopped breeding thoroughbreds at his Nursery Yearling Sale, and Belmont never got to stand in the winner’s Stud in Kentucky. circle with the horse that went on to win 20 of 21 races. In In all, Belmont, who named his new racetrack in suburban future years, Man O’ War would also sire dozens of champions New York for his father, bred 129 winners of major stakes races. including a triple crown winner. His grandson, Seabiscuit, would He also helped develop a line of champion polo ponies and other become one of America’s most popular horses. horses. Eventually, anti-wagering laws eased and Belmont Park When Belmont died in 1924 at the age of 71, he was lauded became one of the nation’s most famous racetracks. as one of the nation’s most respected builders and sportsmen. A In 1916, eight days after the United States entered what headline in the New York Herald Tribune called Belmont “The was then known as the Great War, a chestnut colt was born at epitome of an American original.”

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A TRIP OF A LIFETIME

FOLLOWING IN FOOTSTEPS OF ROBERT PEARY CARL SORENSON, PSI PHI ’51, TREKS TO THE NORTH POLE AND PLANTS A DKE FLAG

hen Carl Sorenson was a young DKE brother in the late 1940s at the Psi Phi chapter at DePauw University, he was fascinated by the adventures of Robert Peary. The Deke explorer from the class of 1877 at Theta Bowdoin made international news in April of 1909 by leading an expedition that was the first to reach the North Pole. News of Peary’s exploits caused a sensation and he was honored with a ticker tape parade in New York City. A crowd of nearly 500 DKE brothers also turned out to celebrate Peary’s triumph at a huge banquet organized by the Deke Club of New York. “During my time at the Deke House, Peary’s discovery had taken place just three decades before, and reading about it made a big impression on me,” Sorenson said. The 91-year-old DKE brother, who’s as sharp as a tack, has been reflecting on his own trip to the North Pole, as new books and research about Peary’s expedition continue to be released. “I think the thing that really impressed me was that Peary planted a DKE flag at the North Pole,” Sorenson recalled. “I never thought I would have a chance to do the same, but it actually happened in 1998.” Unlike Peary’s expeditions to the Arctic in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which took place in horrendous conditions, Sorenson and his son, Jim, boarded a nuclear-powered Russian ice breaker, the Sovetskiy Soyuz, that was able to plow through fifteen feet of packed ice at twelve knots. Not everyone survived Peary’s trips to 22

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the Arctic, as provisions ran out and bitter cold weather kept the small groups pinned down for days at a time. “Our situation was a lot different,” Sorenson said with good humor. Carl, who lives in Canton, Ohio, owned and operated several companies during a long and successful career. Through the years, he and his wife, Sally, became world travelers, visiting Europe, Japan, China, Russia and other nations. “We were regulars with TC Swartz, who arranged sophisticated trips across the globe,” Carl said. After completing a particularly memorable journey along the Amber trading route through eastern Europe on an antique train, Sorenson was having breakfast with Swartz one morning when the subject of the North Pole came up. “I asked TC what big trip he had coming up, and he said, ‘Funny you should ask.’ He was in the process of booking an excursion on a Soviet ice breaker to the North Pole. “It sounded great to me, but not to my wife, so I flew on through Frankfurt and then on into Helsinki where I met my son. From there, we flew to Russia, specifically Murmansk, which is a port city in the extreme northwest. Coincidentally, it’s where Sean Connery’s character sailed from in the movie, ‘The Hunt for the Red October.’” What the Sorensons discovered onboard the Sovetskiy Soyuz was a

military ship that had been converted to a luxury vessel. “The food was excellent because award-winning Austrian chefs had been hired. Every cook had a specialty, and there was a pastry chef and a wine steward,” Carl said. “Nothing like the rugged conditions that Peary had endured.” The chief officers surrendered their living quarters to the guests, which Sorenson appreciated but also felt a bit guilty. “The Russian economy was in tough shape in those days, and they were determined to do everything to keep all of the guests happy. Counting the crew, staff and tourists, there were about 300 of us onboard,” he said. During the 18-day excursion, the

Not everyone survived Peary’s trips to the Arctic, as provisions ran out and bitter cold weather kept the small groups pinned down for days at a time. “Our situation was a lot different.”

guard and, a moment later, we were all ushered back onto the ship. A large polar bear smelled the cookout and was lumbering his way toward our party.” The highlight of the trip came when they approached the spot which had been designated as the North Pole. “Shortly before we left the states, I’d phoned the DKE Food on the icebreaker was prepared by awardoffices and said we were taking a winning Austrian chefs specializing in everything trip to the North Pole – just like from pastries to wine. Brother Peary,” Sorenson said. “Four days later, a large DKE flag arrived at our office.” Sorenson asked his Russian hosts if Sorensons made friends with a maid who they could find a pole from which he cleaned their rooms. “We were amazed could mount the DKE flag. “Three guys at one of the final parties in the big from the plumbing shop produced a 20200-person auditorium when our maid foot pole, which was actually too tall as sat down at a grand piano and began we stood next to it for photographs. But playing flawlessly,” Carl said. “That’s we just pushed it down ten feet through when we learned that she was one of the ice and it worked perfectly.” Russia’s top classical pianists, but things Sorenson remembers those days as the were so bad that she’d been forced to trip of a lifetime. “It cost about $20,000, work as a maid.” but for the memories it provided, I’d say During the trip, the Sorensons went the money was well spent,” he said. on frequent helicopter trips where they TC Swartz had wanted to make the spotted Arctic foxes, seals and polar journey to the North Pole by Russian ice bears. “The outdoor temperatures breaker an annual event, but Sorenson hovered right around freezing, which said he believes it was the only such trip wasn’t too bad. It meant we could venture ever hosted by the Russians. “This Deke outside and have fancy cookouts on was in the right place at the right time,” the ice. Once, we noticed four Russian he said. soldiers with high powered rifles standing w w w.dke.org

DEKES DOING GREAT THINGS

STEVEN HOFFNER’S DOCUMENTARY ABOUT INNER-CITY HOCKEY HITS THE BIG TIME

rom the time he was a boy, Steven Hoffner loved hockey. Though not a particularly skilled player, like many Canadians he became extremely knowledgeable about the sport, which eventually led to a 10-year career in the National Hockey League as a top creative artist. “The game has given me so much and brought me to so many amazing places,” said Hoffner, a 39-year-old Deke from Alpha Phi Toronto. “I worked as a producer and director for the league, and during that time came across some really cool stories.” One was about a minority program in urban Washington, D.C., that sponsored the Fort Dupont Cannons, a hockey team for innercity African American boys. Hoffner had an ambitious idea for an unscripted television series where he hoped to round up former NHL stars and visit unassuming far-off places where hockey was being played. “That never took off, but my research led me to the Fort Dupont Cannons, which I had already known about as part of the ‘Hockey is for Everyone’ program. I asked a good friend, former NHL goalie Kevin Weekes, about his relationship with the Cannons when he was involved with his philanthropic work. Kevin connected me with Neal Henderson, who’s been the guiding light of the Cannons for 45 years.” After an hour-long phone conversation with Henderson, whom Steven calls “Coach Neal,” Hoffner was hooked. “That’s when I knew that this man and his program were something special,” he said. Henderson has dedicated his life to spreading the allure of hockey and using the sport to provide lifelong lessons to youth in America. In 1978, Henderson, who had a 20-year career in hockey in various leagues, though not the NHL, saw the demand for organized sports among the youth of the poorest areas of the nation’s capital. Soon, he began renting ice time at the local Fort Dupont Ice Arena to accommodate young African American players. Known at the Cannons, Henderson designed his developmental program to provide local kids with the opportunity to both learn the game of hockey and 24

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participate in an organized league. “Coach Neal is 84 but he’s still a force,” Hoffner said. He and his partner, A.J. Messier, saw a unique and beautiful story that was rich with a transcendent character in Henderson. “We knew this was something that the world should know more about,” Hoffner said. For the next four years, Hoffner labored on a documentary that would eventually be called “The Cannons,” and it’s now attracting major interest on both sides of the border. The film was admitted to the prestigious DOC (short for documentary) NYC Film Festival and had its world premiere this month. It plays virtually in the U.S. from Nov. 15-28. Word of mouth about the film is extremely positive and Hoffner has been interviewed by major media outlets from coast to coast. “We focused on Coach Neal and two senior boys from the Cannons, and their stories are amazing,” Hoffner said. “We were fortunate to bring on top people to help make the film, including our Emmy-nominated executive producer, Robert Ford. He helped us shape the film and guide us from a Black American perspective. He was instrumental in keeping the story authentic.” Messier, speaking to Realscreen, said that from the first day he and Hoffner arrived at Fort Dupont, they felt like part of the Cannons hockey program. “When I asked one of the volunteer coaches if the Cannons’ story was ours to tell, he responded, “There have been others who tried to tell Coach Neal’s story, but you guys are the only ones that

actually kept coming back. To us, you earned our respect and the right to tell our story.” Hoffner said Henderson, who grew up in St. Catharines, Ont., but who has lived in Washington for many years, pointed out that most of the kids in the struggling D.C. area had not been exposed to hockey. “It hadn’t been offered to young black Americans,” he said. But Henderson arranged for the equipment and ice time to get the youngsters started. Some of the Cannons players have gone on to play college hockey, but Hoffner emphasized that the main goal of the program is to teach the kids life lessons. “Coach Neal sees his role not as a job to foster future NHL players, but to help guide young black men who can ultimately make a difference in the world.” Hoffner, who grew up in Toronto and still lives there, said his experience in Delta Kappa Epsilon as an undergraduate has positively influenced his life. “I was actually in the process of making my first movie when I pledged Alpha Phi,” he said. “The fraternity opened my eyes to so many opportunities and I forged close friendships with people who are still in my life on a daily basis. I served as pledge captain one year, which was a great honor.” Hoffner is excited about his “Cannons” documentary, which will receive exposure at the DOC festival that could result in a wider audience and maybe eventual purchase by a major TV network. “Film festivals are a dime a dozen, but this one is the big time, and it’s a tremendous opportunity for us,” he said. With several promising projects in the hopper, Hoffner said he’s even thought about reaching out to a famous Deke brother. “I’d love to make a film about George W. Bush and his passion as a painter,” he said. “I think that would make a pretty interesting documentary.”

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DEKE FOUNDATION– EXPANDING SUPPORT OF THE FRATERNITY Alumni Donations to Deke Foundation Directly Assist Chapters

eke alumni who make tax-deductible contributions to the Deke Foundation can allocate up to 50% of their donation to the chapter of their choice. That money is then set aside in a restricted fund for the chapter to use for any educational purpose, such as scholarships, attendance at DKE educational conferences, or other educational programming. These Chapter Educational Funds (CEF) must first reach $5,000 before the funds can be tapped, and the request for funding must fall within IRS guidelines for what is considered educational. This applies even to inactive chapters; the Foundation maintains a CEF to be saved for up to five years until a chapter is restarted. Or, alumni can allocate their donation to a chapter other than their own. The CEF funding program is optional; alumni can also choose to donate to the Foundation without allocating a 50% split, or by allocating a percentage less than 50%. Any alum or undergrad who wants to know how much is in his chapter’s CEF should feel free to contact us (dke@dke.org). This CEF program applies only to US chapters, but In Canada, alums can donate to the Canadian foundation and get a tax break, and allocate their full donation to that organization. More on that in the next issue of the Deke Quarterly.

ForeverDeke Program Making Positive Impact for Dekes Undergrads

inancial support to the Deke Foundation is an essential element of the services we provide to our undergraduate Deke Brothers. Donations to ForeverDeke, our annual giving program, are tax deductible, and are used to deliver critical programming to our members. With the costs of membership rising, DKE attempts to keep the costs to our undergrads as low as we can. Our goal is always to keep our costs at the midpoint or below of what

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other inter/national fraternities charge their members. Alumni donations contribute to the educational portion of our annual $1.5 million budget, which is about 35%, or $525,000. The long term goal is for the Foundation to grant the full amount of these educational expenses to the fraternity every year. This means our Foundation needs to build our assets up to over $10 million, in order to generate that much annual income. This is a best practice in the industry. How You Can Help Deke alumni can help in several ways. First, by donating to ForeverDeke, our annual giving program, with a regular donation to the Foundation, such as the old dues program. We hope to increase the number of donors every year, as well as asking for donors to contribute at least the same amount each year, if not a little more. Remember that these donations can be earmarked for your chapter, as explained above. Recurring donations are greatly appreciated, so your donation automatically goes to Deke each month or year. Secondly, Dekes can put the Foundation in their wills. We introduced a program last year offering free wills to U.S. Deke alumni, with no obligation to include DKE. However if you do wish to include DKE or the Foundation, you can leave a percentage of your estate or a specific dollar amount. Second, alumni can donate appreciated stock to the Foundation. We’ve invested in a secure online tool that guides you through the process in minutes. This is an excellent way to maximize your impact on the DKE community, while saving on taxes. The tool will provide you with step-by-step instructions on how to make this contribution and help you keep track of your gifts and affiliated tax information. Make your donation before the year is out so that it will count for your 2021 taxes! Visit www.FreeWill.com/Stocks/ DekeFoundation or scan the QR code below to get started. Please call Doug Lanpher (847.899.0528) or Jim Gray (919.597.1228) if you have any questions or would like to learn more.

MYSTIC CIRCLE OF ∆KE ROBERT RICE WEHRMANN TAU LAMBDATULANE ’57 Robert Rice Wehrmann, a distinguished U.S. Navy veteran and real estate developer, died May 20, 2021 In Richardson, Texas, at the age of 81. Robert pledged DKE at Tau Lambda Tulane in 1954 and remained a proud Deke for the rest of his life. Born in New Orleans, Robert spent most of his life there before moving to Dallas 11 years ago. After graduating from Tulane, he entered the U.S. Navy Officers Candidate School and graduated as an ensign. He left the Navy four years later with the rank of Lieutenant J.G. Robert was active in his church and in various community groups in New Orleans and Texas. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Blair, and two daughters.

PAUL ACHRE GAMMA-VANDERBILT ’52 Paul Achre, a champion diver at Vanderbilt who went on to a long and successful career at Sharon Steel Corporation, died April 26, 2021 in Bradenton, Fla. He was 91. Born in Sharon, Pa., Paul became a proud Deke at Vanderbilt where he graduated with a degree in business. After serving four years as an officer in the U.S. Navy, he returned to Sharon where he became a leader in the community. A skilled watercolorist, several of Paul’s paintings won awards. He was an excellent handball player and went on lengthy runs every day until he turned 80. After Paul and his wife, Judith, moved to Longboat Key, Fla., he became active in numerous organizations and volunteered as a tutor at Alta Vista School in Sarasota. He is survived by his wife and three children.

PETER JERRY FITZGERALD ETA-VIRGINIA ’51 Peter Jerry FitzGerald, a skilled varsity basketball player at the University of Virginia who went on to a long and successful career in real estate and land development, died June 23, 2021 in Chevy Chase, Md. He was 88. A proud Deke at Eta Virginia, Peter served five years in the U.S. Navy and was a member of the Navy’s first helicopter squadron. He flew singleengine airplanes and helicopters during those years. Upon returning home, Peter founded FitzGerald Properties and became a major player in real estate and land development. He also co-founded Chain Bridge Bank in McLean, Va. He coached multiple sports for many years and only recently was recognized for sponsoring a McLean, Va., little league team for 45 years. Peter is survived by his wife, Jeremy, and their four children.

G. DUFOUR BAYLE TAU LAMBDATULANE ’55 Generes Dufour Bayle, a longtime insurance executive and financial planner, died June 6, 2021 in Metairie, La., at the age of 87. Dufour pledged DKE at Tau Lambda and remained close with his Tulane brothers all his life. He loved gathering with his DKE brothers and enjoyed playing tennis doubles with them. Called the “life of the party” by his closest friends, Dufour loved showing off his dance moves at Mardi Gras balls. He launched a successful career in business that continued until his retirement in 2017. Dufour served on the boards of numerous organizations

in New Orleans and was a founding member of the Gulf Coast Chapter of Certified Financial Planners. Dufour was preceded in death by his wife of 50 years, Emily, and is survived by four daughters.

ROBERT ANDRY TAU LAMBDATULANE ’67 Robert Andry, a wellrespected lawyer in New Orleans for more than 40 years, died June 7, 2021 in Katy, Texas. He was 77. Robert, who pledged Tau Lambda and remained close with his DKE brothers, graduated from Tulane and later from Tulane Law School. He became known as a top real estate lawyer during his decades with Andry & Andry. Robert enjoyed New Orleans to the fullest, holding membership in numerous clubs, including the Southern Yacht Club and the Pickwick Club. An avid outdoorsman, he enjoyed many predawn duck hunts. When there were no birds in season to chase, he pursued trout and redfish in the marshes of Lafitte to the Mississippi Sound. Robert was known for his expertise on the guitar, and he loved music, often entertaining his many friends. He is survived by two sons.

DR. WILLIAM GEARY TAU LAMBDATULANE ’52 William Lawrence Geary, who excelled in track at Tulane before going on to become a prominent physician, died June 23, 2021 at the age of 91. During his high school career, William set a state record by running the fastest mile. While at Tulane, he won the Southeastern Conference championship in the half-mile. He served

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MYSTIC CIRCLE OF ∆KE as captain of the track team. Known for his keen intellect and leadership skills, he was elected president of American Legion’s Boys State and went to Washington, D.C. to meet President Harry Truman. Upon completion of his studies at Tulane Medical School, he served for two years in Turkey in the U.S. Air Force Medical Corps. Later, he returned to New Orleans where he became known as a top man in obstetrics and gynecology. The delivery room at Ochsner Clinic, where he served as chief administrator for many years, is named for him. William was an energetic outdoorsman who, in his final years, became a silver life master bridge player. Preceded in death by Deanie, his wife of 62 years, he is survived by his children.

ROBERT RIVES LOCKLIN PSI-ALABAMA ’50 Robert Rives Locklin, a longtime leader on U.S. Sen. John Sparkman’s staff, died June 20, 2021 in Richmond, Va. He was 92. Born in Monroeville, Ala., he went to the University of Alabama in 1946, where he pledged DKE. Robert received his law degree from Alabama in 1952 and then served in the Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Corps. In 1961, he joined Sen. Sparkman’s staff and remained as a top assistant in that post until 1979. During a tour of the mountains in Pendleton County, W.Va. in 1969, he became entranced with the beauty and peace he found there. Robert introduced many others to his “special mountains” over the years. Robert and his wife, Betty Jean, moved to Pendleton County in 1992 where he volunteered for numerous projects and organizations. Robert, who never lost his love for DKE, was preceded in death by his wife and daughter.

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TIMOTHY EDWARD FELLOWES ALPHA TAUMANITOBA ’53 Timothy Fellowes, one of Canada’s most respected lawyers and a proud Deke at the University of Manitoba, died July 15, 2021. He was 94. Those who opposed Timothy in court often recalled his photographic memory and his skills as a fierce civil litigator. Well into his eighties, he could recite case law completely from memory. Among his many affiliations, he was a life member of the Royal Canadian Military Institute, the Law Society of Upper Canada, and retired officers of the Canadian Intelligence Corps. When you asked Tim about the prestigious jobs he held through the years, he would say what he learned as a ditch digger, taxi driver, skating instructor, salesman and carnival worker helped him just as much. Tim and his late wife, Betty, spent 16 glorious years in Bermuda, where he came out of retirement and became the oldest lawyer called to the bar. Tim is survived by his three daughters.

DAVID LAWRENCE WHEELER SIGMA RHO-STANFORD ’67 David Lawrence Wheeler died June 20, 2021 in San Rafael, California, at the age of 76 after battling ALS. David was an inspiration to everyone who knew him. At age five, he contracted polio and would walk with the aid of crutches for the rest of his life. It never prevented him from kayaking, playing music, cooking and caring for his beloved 1934 Packard Coupe. David bought the car when he was in high school and kept it the rest of his life, tinkering with it and keeping it in top shape. He always drove it in the Woodacre July 4th Parade. He and his

wife, Tona, raised four children in their energetic family. David made lifelong friends when he pledged DKE at Stanford, and he participated in numerous community organizations throughout his lifetime. He is survived by his wife and their four children.

ROSS MCLAUGHLIN KAPPA EPSILONWASHINGTON ’54 Ross McLaughlin, who ran track, climbed mountains, and enjoyed close friendships with his DKE brothers for more than 60 years, died July 17, 2021 in Lake Oswego, Ore. He was 89. At Washington, Ross served as varsity ski team captain. It proved just the beginning of his adventures as a pilot, ski racer, certified ski instructor, Red Cross mountain rescuer, painter and photographer. Ross started his business career in sales with Kaiser Cement and Gypsum. He worked his way to the top at Kaiser before retiring in 1997. That left Ross with more time to travel, golf, and ski downhill, which he enjoyed into his eighties. Ross even sculpted with the U.S. Snow Sculpting Team. When he took up astronomy, he ended up building his own telescopes. Ross is survived by his wife, Glenda, and their two children.

WILLIS HERDMAN III THETA RHOUCLA ’50 Bill Herdman, who fought heroically as a U.S. Marine during World War II, died Aug. 4, 2021 at his home in Lake Lorelei, Ohio. He was 97. When Bill returned to college after the war and pledged DKE, he said it was the

best move he ever made. He retired as vice-president of sales after a long career at the Crosset Company. Always active in his community, he served as chairman of the Brown County Republican Club and Brown County precinct captain. An Eagle Scout in his youth, Bill remained an avid supporter all his life of the Boy Scouts. He was a big supporter of the Right to Read Foundation and volunteered with Hope Emergency. Bill, who was preceded in death by his wife, Beverly, is survived by their five children.

VICTOR MARTIN RHO LAMBDAOKLAHOMA ’69 Vic Martin, 73, of Fremont, Ind., died March 7 after a distinguished career as an architect. Born in Fort Wayne, Ind., Vic was a proud DKE brother at Rho Lambda, University of Oklahoma, where he earned a Bachelor of Architecture degree. He also completed classes at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design. He established Martin Riley ArchitectsEngineers in Fort Wayne and devoted over 30 years to designing a wide variety of projects throughout the Midwest. His love for everything trains started as a child and continued through his life, leading him to save and restore the Pennsylvania Train Station on Baker Street in downtown Fort Wayne, where he had his office. Vic is survived by his wife, Nancy Kimmel, two sons and three grandsons.

EDWARD LIESKE DELTA PI-ILLINOIS ’57 Edward Allen Lieske, a resident of Naples, Fla., and formerly of Chicago, died Feb. 9, 2019 at the age of 84. At the University of Illinois, Edward pledged DKE and

graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering. In 1978, he co-founded the firm of Edwards Engineering in Elk Grove Village, IL. His sons continue to run the company today. Edward had many passions in life, including flying small aircraft, collecting classic cars and golfing at Big Foot Country Club and Olde Cypress Country Club, where he had many friends. Edward is survived by his wife, Carol, and their three sons.

MICHAEL LAPEYROUSE PSI-ALABAMA ’77 Michael, who was born in Mobile, Ala., served as president and CEO of American Equity Underwriters, Inc. In that capacity, he supervised the nation’s leading provider of workers’ compensation for more than 1,500 employees. After a year-long battle with cancer, Michael died Aug. 27, 2021 at the age of 66. An unfailingly gracious host and quintessential Southern gentleman, Mike enjoyed gatherings with friends, family and his beloved DKE brothers. Mike humbly used his position of leadership and influence to establish the Corporate Big program for Big Brothers and Big Sisters in Southern Alabama. This program positively influenced the lives of thousands of young people in the Mobile area. He is survived by his wife, Katherine, and their children.

CHARLES DALY NU-CCNY ’47 Paul Charles Daly, who fought bravely in World War II and later helped build the reactor for the world’s

first nuclear submarine, the USS Nautilus, lived a rich, full life. He died at the age of 99 on Aug. 5, 2021. During World War II, he joined the Merchant Marine and sailed oceans hunted by German U-boats to deliver soldiers and supplies to the European Theater. The war also took him to Australia and China as assistant engineer on ships supplying Allied forces fighting in the Pacific. After the war, Charles enrolled at City College of New York where he pledged DKE. Charles always said the friends he made in DKE became brothers for life. He joined Westinghouse Electric in Pittsburgh in 1948 and later worked at Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory in West Mifflin, Pa. An avid swimmer and tennis player, Charles coached participants in these sports well into his eighties. He is survived by Jeanne, his wife of 73 years, and three daughters.

THOMAS C. HILL BETA CHI-CASE WESTERN ’68 Born in Kentucky, Thomas headed to Western Reserve University in Cleveland before it merged with Case Institute of Technology. Thomas, who died Aug. 21, 2021 at 75, met Barbarie, his future wife, at a freshman dance at Delta Kappa Epsilon. He remained an enthusiastic Deke for the rest of his life, often reciting the chapter roll and the names of famous DKE brothers. Thomas earned his law degree at the University of Chicago and he and Barbarie settled in Cincinnati where he joined the firm of Taft, Stettinius and Hollister. In 2009, the Hills moved to Charlottesville to be near their first grandchild. Thomas is survived by his wife and children.

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MYSTIC CIRCLE OF ∆KE MALCOLM D. ROWAT TAU ALPHAMcGILL ‘66 Malcolm Douglas Rowat died on March 10, 2021, at the age of 75, in London, England. A proud Deke brother from the Tau Alpha chapter, Rowat was a career Canadian diplomat with the World Bank. He attended College Marie de France where he became proficient in French, then Bishop’s College School. His university education started at McGill University where he earned a B.A., followed by three years at Columbia University where he earned two master’s degrees, an MBA and MIA (International Affairs). He then began a thirty-year career in international finance with the World Bank in Washington D.C., where he travelled the world. While a senior economist at the Bank he earned a JD (Law) and an LLM (International Law) at Georgetown University. He was proud of his certificate in advanced music CAMS from King’s College in London, and diploma in wine from WSET. In his retirement, Malcolm continued to travel, as his interests and consulting took him to many countries. He was a true bon vivant, with interests in the arts, food and wine. He sang bass with the Washington Men’s Camerata and later sang with the London Symphony Orchestra Chorus in London and the Choeur de L’Orchestre de Paris. An avid sportsman, Malcolm loved running and he played tennis regularly. He will be deeply missed by his fellow members of Queen’s Club London and the Tennis Club de Paris. He was also a fervent supporter of the Montreal Canadiens and saw them win 19 Stanley Cups.

THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

TIM KINGSMILL ZETA ZET-LSU ‘79 Timothy P. “Tim” Kingsmill, 64, passed away on April 4, 2021 at his home in The Woodlands, TX. Tim graduated from Jesuit High School, and from LSU, where he was a proud Deke, in 1979. He began his 40-year career in 1979 at CNG Producing Co. in New Orleans, and in 1991 moved with his family to The Woodlands, TX with the same company. Throughout his time in Texas, Tim also worked for MidCon Texas Pipeline Corp., and Duke Energy Gas Transmission. He finished his career in 2020 as an energy expert at Targa Resources. Tim will be remembered by all his friends and business associates as a big personality, with a fun-loving attitude and keen sense of humor who was always true to himself. If he liked you, you were a friend for life.

JODY BOWMAN IV GAMMA-VANDERBILT ‘70 Joseph Hamilton “Jody” Bowman IV, age 73 of Franklin, TN passed away on November 10, 2020. Jody descended from some of the earliest settlers in Williamson County. His grandchildren make the tenth generation to have lived in Williamson County, TN. He was a proud graduate of Battle Ground Academy, Vanderbilt University, and the Louisiana State University Graduate School of Banking. He was a retired banker: Senior Vice President and Director of Williamson County Bank; Executive Vice President and Director of Franklin National Bank; Executive Vice President of Cumberland Bank;

and Executive Vice President of Franklin Synergy Bank. Jody is remembered by his Gamma brothers and by all who knew him as kind and wise, with a mischievous side. No matter how many directions he was pulled in, even in “retirement”, he always had time for his beloved grandkids.

ROBERT L JAMES MU-COLGATE ‘58 Robert L. James, died on August 29, 2021, at his home in Greenwich, Connecticut. Robert was the former CEO and Chairman of McCann Erickson, the largest advertising agency in the world. Born in New York City, he attended Fordham Preparatory School, followed by his undergraduate years at Colgate University, where he was a proud DKE brother at MU. He also earned an M.B.A. from Columbia University. In 2010, he was recognized and inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame. Brother James was a skier, scuba diver, and hunter, but he loved his New York 40 Class yacht Carronade. He competed in ocean races such as the bi-annual Newport to Bermuda ocean race and The TransAtlantic Challenge in 1998 while he was Commodore of the New York Yacht Club. Brother James founded the “James Prize” for the National Academy of Sciences. He served on the boards of The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, The National Captioning Institute, Operation Sail, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the World Ship Trust, as well as serving as a trustee of the Columbia Presbyterian Hospital. Robert also served on the National Service Council of Colgate University and the Alumni Council of the Columbia University Graduate School of Business.

∆KE CHAPTER ROLL • FALL 2021 CHAPTERS ARE LISTED IN THE ORDER THEY WERE FOUNDED PHI† PSI CHI* BETA DELTA ALPHA* KAPPA LAMBDA* ETA IOTA OMICRON RHO TAU BETA PHI PHI CHI PSI OMEGA* DELTA CHI* DELTA DELTA PHI GAMMA THETA ZETA PHI EPSILON SIGMA TAU ALPHA PHI DELTA KAPPA TAU ALPHA SIGMA RHO DELTA PI KAPPA EPSILON ALPHA TAU DELTA PHI PHI ALPHA TAU DELTA PSI DELTA SIGMA ALPHA PI BETA EPSILON RHO NU ZETA PHI SIGMA ZETA CHI OMEGA OMEGA* BETA DELTA SIGMA KAPPA DELTA TAU* TAU CHI BETA TAU SIGMA XI DELTA ALPHA* GAMMA IOTA PHI MU CHI BETA ZETA GAMMA PI ALPHA DELTA RHO TAU BETA LAMBDA TAU* ALPHA OMICRON* KAPPA BETA* NU ALPHA* ZETA THETA* TAU GAMMA*

SCHOOL

Yale University University of Alabama University of Mississippi University of North Carolina University of South Carolina Harvard University Miami University Kenyon College University of Virginia Centre College University of Michigan Lafayette College Hamilton College University of Rochester Rutgers University Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Cornell University University of Chicago Syracuse University University of California at Berkeley University of Minnesota Massachusetts Institute of Technology University of Toronto University of Pennsylvania McGill University Stanford University University of Illinois University of Washington University of Manitoba University of Alberta University of British Columbia University of the South Wake Forest University Virginia Tech Institute Troy University Duke University Pace University Bryant University Bentley University University of Arizona University of Georgia Michigan State University The Ohio State University Texas A&M University University of Victoria St. Joseph’s College Auburn University Gannon University Manhattan College University of North Carolina Wilmington Hampden-Sydney College University of Missouri North Carolina State University Simon Fraser University University of Tennessee University of Colorado University of Illinois-Springfield Northeastern University Washington State University Texas Tech

LOCATION New Haven, CT Tuscaloosa, AL Oxford, MS Chapel Hill, NC Columbia, SC Cambridge, MA Oxford, OH Gambier, OH Charlottesville, VA Danville, KY Ann Arbor, MI Easton, PA Clinton, NY Rochester, NY New Brunswick, NJ Troy, NY Ithaca, NY Chicago, IL Syracuse, NY Berkeley, CA Minneapolis, MN Cambridge, MA Toronto, Ontario Canada Philadelphia, PA Montreal, Quebec Canada Stanford, CA Champaign, IL Seattle, WA Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada Edmonton, Alberta Canada Vancouver, British Columbia Canada Sewanee, TN Winston Salem, NC Blacksburg, VA Troy, AL Durham, NC Pleasantville, NY Smithfield, RI Waltham, MA Tucson, AZ Athens, GA East Lansing, MI Columbus, OH College Station, TX Victoria, British Columbia Canada Patchogue, NY Auburn, AL Erie, PA Bronx, NY Wilmington, NC Hampden-Sydney, VA Columbia, MO Raleigh, NC Burnaby, British Columbia Canada Knoxville, TN Boulder, CO Springfield, IL Boston, MA Pullman, WA Lubbock, TX

MEMBERS 25 158 62 76 146 3 21 7 51 34 109 44 7 31 78 9 38 23 60 37 69 37 32 26 26 7 38 19 13 29 47 19 50 40 25 12 9 33 31 40 44 113 79 54 29 10 62 20 27 45 25 75 35 25 25 40 9 38 12 48

† Mother Chapter

*Associate Chapter (formerly called Colony)

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D E LTA K A P PA E P S I L O N F R AT E R N I T Y 6921 JACKSON RD., SUITE 400 ANN ARBOR, MI 48103

T A U

A L P H A

A L U M N I

W E E K E N D

M C G I L L D E K E S PA R T Y L I K E T H E Y H A V E N ’ T I N D E C A D E S

Kyle Sina Rouhani, ’17; Alexis Fonseca, ’16; Amir Geva, ’18; Brother Sigma Tianshi Yuan ’22; Brinton Wolever ’20.

Left, front to back: Matthew He, ’20; Krishna Uttamchandani, ’22; Rafael Páez Estrada, ’14. Right, front to back: Aaditya Malhotra, ’19; Philippe Ouellet, ’19; Hayden Bye, ’14; Sean Stapley, ’15.

PHOTOS BY JAMES “OZZY” OSBORNE, TAU ALPHA ‘24

McGill Dekes host Open House at Tau Alpha during alumni weekend in October.

Amir Geva,’18; Riley Wolever ’20; Neil Alexander Baird ‘63

These grave and reverend seniors, members of the class of 2022: left, from front: Nicholas Jakub Nowosielski; Conrad Winton; Sonam Levasseur. Right, from front: Raphael Valerian Fourel; Ilan Cheraki; Alex Buisson; and Jamie Oneschuk. 32 THE DEKE QUARTERLY | FALL 2021

Benedykt Skrzypek ’23, Brother Pi Saud Pirzadah, ’22, James Osborne,’24, Ilan Cheraki, ’22.

Left, from font: Jan Pitrik, ’79, Brother Beta Nathan Bains, ’22; Tim Denton ’73; Bernard Clarmont, ’78; Kyle Sina Rouhani, ’17; Right, from front: Luciano Nocente, ’82; Esteban Herpin, ’19; Tim Pepper ’79.

Dennis Kinko, ’83; Brother Rho Mathieu Lavault ’23; Tim Pepper ’79.

Left side, front to back: Yen Tsai, ’22; Brother Rho Mathieu Lavault, ’23; Philippe Robinson, ’22; David Rowat, ’73; and David Vass, ’82. Right side, front to back: DKE Alumni Services Director Craig Dick, ’15; Rick Brady, ’79, Brother Sigma Tianshi Yuan, ’22; Neil Baird, ’63; and James Osborne, ’24.