Alpha Tau Omega - University of North Dakota

F resh out of Linton High School, Karl A. Bertheau '61 ar- rived at UND in Septem- ber 1960…and never le. He played the piano daily at the chapter house and accu- mulated historic UND class- room credits spanning more than three decades. Following in the footsteps of his older brother Julius H. Bertheau, M.D. '58, Karl pledged ATW in the fall of 1960 and re- mained a constant and reliable fixture at 3000 University until he'd played his last request. If anybody doubted this tall and skinny, unathletic "legacy" when he arrived, Karl's character and natural showmanship would have soon eliminated unease among the dubious. Marilyn Hagerty, the revered Grand Forks Herald columnist, wrote this in her week- ly column, "Karl made a career of making everyone happy. He was the beloved pia- no player at the Peanut Bar in the West- ward Ho. Co-founder of the ird Street Band and the UND Booster Club Band, Karl also played calliope in the Shriner parades. He had horns, whistles and sirens hooked up to his piano. When guests would holler out a number, he would launch into one of the 85 songs he had on sheets." A friend and contempo- rary of Karl's may have summarized his legacy best, "No one ever cared more about the chapter house or its inhabitants than Karl, exhibited in a number of ways: sage ad- vice, outlook, kindness, availability, knowledge, kindred spirit, piano playing, positive attitude, approachability, the driest sense of humor, and pa- tience, amongst others." Remember the Propylon, that small, blue book we studied during pledgeship? Bob Hamil- ton '64 remembers Karl teach- ing pledges from this book on ATW history, common heritage, and social protocol. For exam- ple, when introducing people, speak first to the person that you choose to honor: "Mr. President, this is my friend, Tom Pierce." Bob also recalls how Karl taught pledges to consume alcohol responsibly, inviting them to be part of the social environ- ment with "knowledge and class." Karl died of a stroke in 1988, but his legend lives on. Current chapter member and officer Aaron Kreps '20 has several stories of Karl that have been passed down over the years, but one stands out. e oil portrait of Karl (pictured above) was hung on the wall of the "old" house near the piano, known as Karl's piano. Legend has it that during a party in the 1990s, a young girl stared long and hard at the painting, sup- posedly commented on what a handsome man he was and proceeded to kiss the painting, leav- ing a lipstick mark yet visible on Karl's forehead. e portrait of Karl has since been relocated to the house now being leased by Delta Nu and is displayed front and center when opening the front door, as if to greet all who enter. To this day, the brothers, when passing the portrait, will oen acknowledge e Worthy Shadow or, as he was also called, the Piano Man. e cur- rent chapter's contribution to the new house, says Aaron, will be a piano—dedicated to Karl. On this journey called life, we meet many— some become friends, but few, very few, become legends. Karl was a legend. Delta Nu Brother Through and Through Remembering Karl A. Bertheau '61: 1943-1988 T H E D E L T A NEWS A PUB L IC A TIO N O F A L PHA TA U O MEG A F R A TER NITY UNIV ER S ITY O F NO R TH DA K O TA s S PR ING 2019 (Continued on page 3) Race to Reach $3 Million by April 30: Can Delta Nu Count on You? T here has never been a time more pivotal in our chapter's history than now. e present campaign to rebuild at 3000 Univer- sity is a one-time only opportunity to preserve ATW's presence at UND. If you have been holding off on making a gi, we need you to act today. Double the Impact of Every Dollar Pledged To date, we have raised $2.4 million from 84 donors. We have the poten- tial to raise an additional $500,000 by April 30, thanks to an anonymous donor offering to match new gis and pledges, up to $250,000. If we can fulfill this challenge, we will be at $2.9 million and close enough to our $3 million goal to allow construction to begin this fall, thus allowing for expected occupancy by fall 2020. Debt-free construction will allow the chapter to have sufficient cash flow for operations, future repairs and maintenance, scholarships and, possibly, campus stewardship such as promoting speaker's forums. Schol- arships are a key part of the long- range plan with lodging rent being run through a foundation, either ATW National or our own, and being paid back in the form of scholarships for members who have met estab- lished academic standards. Protecting Your Investment e Board of Trustees is providing the Delta Nu Chapter with a hands- on mentoring approach, which is considerably more effective than the old chapter advisor model. Once the

• Cover