Kappa Alpha Theta - University of Missouri

10.75" K A P P A A L P H A T H E T A A T T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F M I S S O U R I THE THETA UPDATE SPRING 2019 Alpha Mu Theta Sisters, It appears springtime is finally upon us, and hopefully everyone is taking the opportunity to enjoy the longer days and warmer weather. I al- ways loved this time of year in college – classes were beginning to wind down; there was the ex- citement of Greek Week and Spring Party; and I could study outside while soaking up the sun's rays with my sisters on Theta Beach. As the decades passed, the beautiful trees in 603 Kentucky's front yard continued to flourish – so much so that eventually the entire lawn was shaded, and Theta Beach was no longer. But our actives still wanted a sunny space on the proper- ty to enjoy the outdoors. Enter Janet Gardner Kaiser '73, FCB treasurer and board member for over a decade. It was Janet who had the original idea of building a patio over the top of the staff parking lot. Ultimately, it was decided to shift the patio for- ward and build it into the side of the hill on the southwest corner of the property. This allowed us to excavate the earth under the patio to cre- ate a banner/crafting room, as well as storage for larger furniture. Additionally, we were able to build a new dishwashing room and walk-in freezer/cooler. Finally, all of the HVAC system is housed under the patio behind gates, which New Facility Corporation President Shares Gratitude for Alumnae in Planning for Alpha Mu' s Future Above: Before adding the front patio; Right: after allows for better overall visual appeal. Large double doors with a sloped sidewalk have made kitchen vendor deliveries much more efficient. Ground was broken in spring 2015. During the excavation, there were several interesting finds. For one, the hill was made up of two layers of topsoil, clay, and bedrock. This indicated the hill had not always been as steep but had been built up for some reason during the last century. Also found was a buried portico of another patio at the front of the house. This find especially con- firmed to the FCB we were doing the right thing in restoring our wonderful historic home. Since its completion, the patio has been one of the highlights of living in the house. Access can be gained through the living room, TV room, and front sidewalk. Members study, socialize, and even practice dances and skits. There are large round group tables, two-top smaller tables, and multiple lounge chairs. All of the patio fur- niture was provided by funds raised at a Mom's Weekend silent auction several years ago. And the view is incredible. On game days or House Dec night, you can see all the way from Faurot Field to the opposite end of Richmond Place. And those beautiful trees shading Theta Beach? The large pin oak is under the care of an arborist and has remained healthy despite having its root system cut to build the patio. Unfortunately, our "swing" tree died suddenly last summer after the drought with half of it falling without warning. We immediately replaced it with a Zelkova tree, which should grow to the same size within 3-5 years. Then, through the rough winter, our Evans Scholar tree lost four large limbs over the span of six months. Although we had been diligently (Continued on page 3)

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