Sigma Phi Epsilon - Oklahoma State University

PRIDE IN OUR PAST, ENSURING OUR FUTURE: THE CAMPAIGN FOR OKLAHOMA ALPHA Building lasting Relationships Lance Miller '95 on the Keys to Professional, Chapter Success L ance Miller '95 and Sam Tippens '96 have a history of building things together. From first-place floats at Homecoming to their company, Miller-Tippens Construction, Lance and Sam have been in it together. After graduation, Lance and Sam were both employed by commercial construction companies where they excelled in their positions. The education and experience gained throughout the years left them with strong values and exceptional work ethic, which was paramount in building Miller-Tippens Construction. As one of Oklahoma's finest commercial builders, Miller- Tippens strives to build lifetime relationships with its clients, and prides itself on being one of the industry's best leaders in negotiations, design, and integrity. "The secret to success is honesty and communication. Don't expect immediate gratification. All of us have had to earn it; nothing has ever been handed to us. Beat your boss to work and leave after they do," Lance advises. Throughout the years, Lance has been on the fundraising committee and served as president of the alumni board. Recently, he joined the building committee for Oklahoma Alpha. "The new chapter house is desperately needed," he said. "I know we won't make it without it. I can't stress enough that we need to raise some more money or we won't exist in 10 years." During his undergraduate years, the chapter went though some rough times and lost a large amount of brothers. However, Dan McGregor '63 Joe T. Bailey '64 Joseph Campana '64 Gary Clark '64 William E. Dieker, M.D. '64 James R. Elder '64 William Cathey '65 Philip H. Myles '65 Bill Carr '67 Richard Daniels '68 Gary H. Price '68 Robert Breedlove '69 Jerry Holder '69 Dennis Brown '70 A. Robertson '72 Gary Dickerson '73 Richard Vaughn '73 Gary Gallagher '75 Skip Stow '75 James Hensley '76 Mark McMichael '76 Jerald Sanders '76 Matthew D'Addio '77 Randy Jacobs '78 Steven Erwin '79 Randy L. Barton '80 George Richardson '80 Buck L. Davis '81 Thomas Maciula '82 Van Alexander '83 Dan Brake '83 Alan J. Morton '83 Clark Skillman '83 Mark Waters '83 Robert England '84 Paul Anderson '85 David Griffin '85 Michael Ling '86 Charles Adair '87 Richard Chesley '88 Christopher C. Olson '88 David White '88 Robert White '88 Michael S. Chesley '91 Mark Jones '96 Brian Schwidder '96 Christopher Evans '97 Curt Hellen '97 Aaron Owen '97 Brandon Gullett '98 Paul Hellen '99 Charles Chadwick '00 Paul Prater '01 Joshua Shiflett '01 David J. Hudson '02 In memory of Eric W. Beeghly '04 Wesley Willits '02 Brett Leonard '04 Matt Burckhalter '07 Trevor Viljoen '07 Timothy T. Forman '08 Brad S. Siahmakoun '09 Jake Minnis '13 Sean A. Boggs '15 Hunter Easterling Abe Gjura Ben Hutto Larry Whatley Join your brothers and make your contribution today! W hen Sam Tippens '96 first moved to Stillwater, he wanted to remain independent and authority-free and had no plans of joining a fraternity. Through his roommates, he became friends with SigEps and discovered he was wrong for wanting to be alone. Since meeting as undergraduates, Sam and Lance Miller '95 have been the best of friends. "We are more like family now and our wives and children are very close too," he said. "We do more vacations with the Miller family than we do with our own family." Since the foundation of Miller-Tippens Construction in 2006, Sam has most enjoyed building the business from nothing into a reputable and successful company. He is proud that he and Lance have stayed true to their ethics and beliefs, and are known for their honesty and integrity—which is rare in the construction industry. "Live life with a plan and be purposeful in everything you do. Do not go through life being reactive and bouncing around aimlessly, rather be proactive," he advises. "Keep life simple and do not allow life's distraction to steer you off course from your goals. Always remember that your worst enemy is yourself and that your actions and words can destroy the things most important to you faster than any enemy could." During his undergraduate years, Sam learned a lot from the older members. Watching the chapter lose brothers to poor grades, dropouts, and self-destruction also had a large impact on him and motivated him to demand more from himself and those around him. As an alumnus, he believes all alumni have the chance to better (Continued on page 4) Living Simply Alumnus Offers Undergraduates Life Advice (Continued on page 4)

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