Sigma Chi - University of California-Berkeley

THE CAL SIG ALPHA BETA CHAPTER OF SIGMA CHI FRATERNITY Fall 2018 T he 2018-19 school year started with 26 active Sigma Chi members joined by six pledges during the fall recruitment period. Under the guidance of Magister Andrew Joseph '20, these six men completed the pledge pro- cess and were initiated on September 29. Alpha Beta finds itself in good hands this year thanks to their leadership group headed up by Consul Evan Blaney '20, Pro Consul Xu-Bin Kuang '20, and Quaestor George Lindfelt '20. One big transition this year has been the change to our chapter advisor. After serving Alpha Beta for 15 years, Del Tacconi, Utah State '62, has stepped down. Taking his place is the very capable Paul Stella, UC-Davis '97. Alpha Beta owes a huge debt of gratitude to Del for his years of service. His guidance positively impacted the hundreds of brothers that had the pleasure to know him. All of us who interacted with Del during this time are better off for know- ing him. Thank you, Del! If anyone could fill Del's shoes it is Paul and he has already stepped up to the task. Thank you, Paul, for volunteering! Many students faced a dilemma this year as they entered the University. Should they join the Greek system or not? It is a serious question given the intense national scrutiny the Greek system has received across our country. But despite the negative publicity, more undergraduates than ever, about 800,000 currently, are members of fraternities and sororities in colleges across the nation. Many of these members give back to their communities through volunteer work and rely on their network of brothers and sisters for lifelong friendships and profes- sional connections. Greek organizations have existed at our nation's universities and colleges since the first was founded in 1776 at the College of William and Mary. UC Berkeley boasts the largest Greek population of any university west of the Mississippi, and Alpha Beta Chapter has been a large part of that community for more than 100 years. While the Greek system has flaws and faces challenges, our national fraternity leaders are paving the way to eliminate areas that have been at the root of most of the negative issues. Bans on hard alcohol, elimination of hazing practices, workshops on diversity, and training to eliminate sexual misconduct are the main areas of focus. Hopefully we will find that educating our members will go a long way in elimi- nating these problems in the future. We feel that these changes are all positive and will make a change for the better to Greek life. This in turn should strength- en the bond between Alpha Beta Chapter of Sigma Chi and the University of California at Berkeley. Do not forget about the premier alumni event of the year for Alpha Beta Sigs, the 37th annual Big Game Lunch. Find details on page 4 and I hope to see you there. Go Bears! In Hoc, Jeff Bordalampe '77 Housing Corporation President (510) 755 0744 / jeff@tcialuminum.com LOOKING TO THE FUTURE AlphA BetA Welcomes NeW chApter Advisor (Continued on page 4) A Heart of Service Goal-driven John Garamendi '66 Inspired by Fellow Alpha Betas, Continues Political Journey A s a standout lineman on the California-Berkeley football team, John Garamendi '66 en- joyed paving the way to success for his teammates on and off the gridiron. John and a few of his teammates also joined another team when they pledged Alpha Beta Chapter in 1963, but they felt a key component to their squad was missing. While the Alpha Beta Chapter had a wide range of athletes and several others who weren't interested in sports, John and his peers continued to look for ways to make their brotherhood more diverse. In the tumultuous times of the 1960s, they felt no better way to do that than to welcome potential members of a different race—even though it was not a popular view of Sigma Chi on the national level. "Those issues bubbled through the chapter and created considerable interest and concern that the Alpha Beta chapter at Berkeley was not as diverse and culturally aware as it should be. There was a major ef- fort underway to change the culture and the ethnicity of our chapter," said John, who represents the third congressional district of Califor- nia. "That became a major controversy in the Sigma Chi organization. Ultimately after I had left the Sigma Chi house when I graduated, the house was removed from the Sigma Chi organization." Although John graduated, the efforts from his Alpha Beta brothers to make Sigma Chi and all of society accepting of all racial and ethnic backgrounds continued. John had the option to continue his football career in the NFL, but he knew his talents could be better served else- where. When John realized that the love of his life had similar ambi- tions, the decision to not play football was that much easier. "I actually proposed to Patti to get married in 1965. She said, 'I'd love to marry you, but I'm going into the Peace Corps and you're going to play professional football. I don't think this is going to work,'" John said. "I said, 'Well, let's not play professional football. Let's join the Peace Corps,' which we then did in 1966." John and Patti resided in Ethiopia from 1966 to 1968, which was a time period that included the Vietnam War, the assassinations of Mar- tin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy, the urban riots, and many John Garamendi '66, U.S. House of Representatives

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