Theta Chi - Bradley University

Taking Care of the House Renovation Plans and More MANIFESTO MANIFESTO Fall 2023 A s you may recall from our previous Manifesto and some online communications, we have been working with an architectural firm that specializes in Greek housing. We set them free to have some fun and produce some renderings for us if we were to renovate the entire house. e firm came up with some very interesting ideas. Our Planning Process We did a feasibility survey via Zoom, which spanned various generations of our chapter, mainly to gain feedback on how we can fund this type of project. is provided some interesting input. As many of you know, our chapter has fluctuated dramatically in membership and personality over the years. We found we are missing many brothers from several generations and managed to reconnect some brothers in the process. We have had to not only analyze our own chapter but also the Greek system at Bradley and national trends. Our initial renderings were very optimistic since we were considered right in the middle of the pack as far as size, yet at the very top for academics on campus. The State of Recruitment We have spoken with a local building contractor, and they believe it might be best to approach this in three phases. In the meantime, we met with the undergraduate chapter, and they disagreed with some of the concept details, particularly the living room/ dining room. is past fall recruitment, total pledges across all fraternities equaled 119. Back in the late '80s, that was likley the total amount of the top three fraternities. We only managed to gain a small percentage of this total, so our young men have their work cut out for them with informal recruiting. Adding onto the backside of the house does not seem like a priority. A s the old phrase goes, it takes money to make money. In this case, it's true. For our chapter to juggle all these projects, we need money. Sure, this can be in one big donation, if you have that kind of cash readily available. But realistically, our annual fund needs subscription-style givers. We also are more than happy to accept your time as volunteers, or maybe consider joining the alumni corporation board or chapter advisory board. If you are interested in making a one-time lump sum donation this year, there are two ways you can do this: 1. Write a check payable to the Gamma Upsilon Alumni Corporation and mail it to Mike Scheve, 28797 W. Cra Ct., Barrington, IL 60010. 2. Visit tinyurl.com/etaChiForLife (or scan the QR code) to find your options of either a one-time gi or pledge as a subscription spread over a period of time. ese types of gis help us create cash flow and make budgeting planning easier. Another method of giving to consider is through your life insurance plan. For instance, maybe you have a whole life policy and your children are fully grown. You can make Gamma Upsilon one of the beneficiaries of your policy, even if it is only a small percentage. For more ideas, options, and advice, contact brother Jeff Rozovics '92 at: Rozovics Group, LLP 805 W. Touhy Ave. Park Ridge, IL 60068 (224) 612-7076 | jeff@rozcpa.com Do Your Part Today Many Ways to Help the Brotherhood Proper Living Conditions One current project on the priority list, besides basic functions (plumbing, etc.), would be to enhance the quality of bedrooms. As most of you know by now, there is no longer what we formerly called a rack room. Over the years, some brothers have made unwise changes to several rooms throughout the house. ey would not be able to get away with these types of changes if they lived in dorms or an apartment. We want them to be comfortable and clean but a bit more standardized. e age of ripping out flooring, painting rooms black, putting up decks, and building out desks anchored to the wall is done. Positive Progress On a positive note, we do want to install air conditioning for the bedrooms, and I'm not talking about window units. Let's face it, life in Peoria in certain months is miserable. We would like to make our house environment as pleasant as possible. In October, I spoke with the chapter again about renovation details. I will tell you alumni as I'll tell the undergraduates, we are playing the long game here. ey will see small improvements as we raise money for the big upgrades. We must maintain the house with paint, tile, and landscaping until we are ready to pull the trigger. In summer 2022, as some of you saw online, we updated the kitchen with fresh paint, new hardware for cabinets and drawers, a new faucet, and fresh tile, and we recently ordered a new refrigerator. We have installed new tile down the back stairs and hallways, along with new chandeliers in the living room. e couch cushions were all re-covered, and a new sink and faucet were installed in the "slop" closet. e hardest part is spending more to put lipstick on a pig, which brings us to… fundraising. C H A P T E R : t h e t a c h i b u . c o m | A L U M N I : g a m m a u p s i l o n . o r g

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