Delta Tau Delta - Ball State University

Spring 2015 Newsletter

Epsilon Mu Chapter of Delta Tau Delta at Ball State University

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Ball State University Epsilon Mu Chapter Spring 2015 THE IRIS CAMPAIGN Brotherhood. Shelter. Future. I t has been three years since we began Campaign 50 and we have heard from some alumni that they think the project is too large and ambitious. While it is a good-sized project for a group our size to tackle, it's very modest in comparison to what the university and private developers have built on campus. Student and parent expectations for student housing rise every year. We have to compete for new recruits on several fronts and providing modern housing is essential. Let me give you a little history of how and why the Campaign 50 project all got started. After John Fisher, University of Tennessee '38, passed away, we learned of his incredible gift of $500,000 to Epsilon Mu; $250,000 of which was to be used as matching funds for a capital campaign to expand the Shelter. After several meetings and a presentation from a fundraising firm, the House Corporation conducted a feasibility study to test if our chapter could support a capital renovation project. It produced a very favorable indication of support from our alumni base, and Campaign 50 began. Remember? We all pledged to "be mindful of those who follow." One of the things I have most enjoyed about being chairman of this campaign has been the chance to make and renew connections with great Delts from a wide span of years. I ran across a quote on the company website of Kerry Harding '82, The Talent Bank, from Daniel Burnham, who was a prominent architect from Chicago in the late 1800s and early 1900s; it says "Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men's blood and probably themselves will not be realized. Make big plans; aim high in hope and work, remembering that a noble, logical diagram once recorded will never die… Think Big!" We have taken that sentiment to heart with Campaign 50. I bet none of you made small plans for your lives. I know I didn't. We've had some questions whether this project will ever actually be completed, and I can assure you it will. We may not quite meet our original goal of holding the dedication ceremony in the fall of 2016, the 50th anniversary of Epsilon Mu at Ball State, but it will be done. In the big picture, given the last 50 years, another year or two is pretty insignificant. If you have any contact with Brian Moldt '84 you know he always ends his e-mails with a quote attributed to Winston Churchill: "You make a living by what you get, but you make a life by what you give." There are plenty of great organizations and causes that deserve our support. I simply hope you will include Campaign 50 and the role it will play in securing the future of Epsilon Mu at Ball State among them. Fraternally, E. Brad Wagnon '68 Campaign Chairman b.wagnon46@gmail.com / (765) 749-8556 You Can Make a Difference in Epsilon Mu's Future Lend Your Support to Secure the Delt Legacy at Ball State T he fraternity is a business of brotherhood. It teaches undergraduates about the organizational process and how to think and behave like men, not like teenagers," shared Cliff Cochran '69. All Epsilon Mu alumni can agree that they gained something out of their membership in Delta Tau Delta— whether it was professionalism, great friends, or just a safe place to call home while they were in school. It is important to find some way to give back to the Chapter so that other young guys can have the same opportunities that have been given to all the generations that have come before them. "With all that the fraternity has meant to me over the years, I had to start to give back—even if it was just a two- brick legacy. I live in South Carolina with two major schools: South Carolina and Clemson. Clemson has a campaign called IPTDAY (I Pay Ten Dollars A Year). It's important to remember that the campaign is not all about the heavy-hitters, but also brothers like me," said Cliff. Some of us may feel that our contributions won't make a difference to the campaign because the campaign only needs large, one-time gifts. This just is not the case. One-time gifts of $100 or gifts with payments spread out over the next five years are as deeply appreciated and will impact the campaign in a positive way. "The last time I visited the Shelter was for the '45th', and I realized that, as much as the actives Cliff Cochran '69 Recommends All Alumni to Support Campaign 50 Every Dollar Is Appreciated (Continued on page 4)

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