Sigma Phi Epsilon - Oregon State University

S IG MA PHI EPS IL O N t O R EG O N AL PHA CHAPT ER t O R EG O N S T AT E U NIV ER S IT Y WINTER 2022 NEW MEMBERS WELCOMED TO OREGON ALPHA D uring our welcome dinner this fall, our AVC president, Gavin Brown (91- 1389), shared a bit of Oregon Alpha history, informing the new members how SigEp will live beyond just their four years in college. is important dinner prepared our future brothers for the lifelong impact that SigEp will have on them and their duty to becoming a balanced man. Joining Gavin were brothers Steve Cook (76-969), Michael Seraphin, DePaul '04, and Ken Maddox (75-962). Edited for this publication. "Welcome to you all: alums, members, and new members. You new members are the most important men in this room tonight. It's great you're here. ank you for selecting Oregon Alpha. You're beginning some of the best years of your life, and the men joining you for dinner tonight, you will join for dinners, weddings, funerals, and birthdays the rest of your life. For some of you, that will be the better part of a century. You will learn more about Oregon Alpha, its tradition of excellence, its values, and plans. ose of us who have preceded you, who have sat in this very dining room, know that the chapter's reputation, its awards, its unique character, is confirmation of the quality and commitment of you men here now. Dr. Ulysses Dubach (1918-001), Oregon Alpha's first initiate over a century ago and the foundation of this chapter, would remind us to recruit men with character and brains. We have a tradition of recalling two things at our first dinner. Sigma Phi Epsilon selects a National Chaplain, and for a decade, it was our Oregon Alpha Brother Jim Nissen (74-947). He spoke at the Fraternity's Conclave, which happens every other year. ere, he told the following story. In the Jewish tradition, a story is told where a man asks God to show him heaven and hell. God accepted, showing first a table piled with good food and drink but with no silverware except for long-handled spoons. e food was beyond one's reach. Around the table were emaciated, angry, forlorn men. en God moved to the next table, which was set in the exact same manner. Yet there was laughter, smiles. e man asked, 'e settings are the same, yet one hell, one apparently heaven?' God noted, at the second table everyone had learned to use the spoons to serve each other. True fraternity is much the same you will find. Let's talk about where you sit and these tables. First, these tables—they're second generation; tables like these arrived in 1969, built by Dick Lehman, in celebration of his son's membership in Oregon Alpha. His son, Craig Lehman (69-831), built these tables from his home in Austin, Texas, and delivered them in early fall 2020. He built the tables at his expense as a thank-you for his years with Oregon Alpha. en his classmates said, 'Let's provide chairs.' So, your chair has a name plate. Stand up and check your chair—who is that guy? at man ate meals here, at a similar table. ey continue to be Oregon Alpha brothers, members of their communities, some doctors, attorneys, entrepreneurs, engineers, and volunteers for Oregon Alpha today. A history of uncommon men. We believe our meals together are important. Sharing a meal, feeding each other as we do as brothers, that takes place around these tables. Dinner is meant to be fun, frequently a celebration, occasionally a pigging (which you will learn of ). Each meal is a moment to foster the hoops of steel which bind us together as brothers. It's great to be a SigEp and an Oregon Alphan." Concluding dinner with the SigEp anthem led by Brother Cook, the chapter went downstairs for a chapter meeting. (For those of you not at the dinner, the tradition of the pig continues with a nice addition. A "piggable" offense now includes looking at one's cell phone while at the table. e undergraduates report that they adopted this policy to ensure they talk with each other at dinner). Following the agenda on the big screen TV, chapter president Mason Bituen '23 expertly managed chapter business, including introduction of new members, for the benefit of the alumni. ey are an impressive group principally composed of engineering and medical students. As part of the meeting, scholarships were awarded to the following undergrads: • Rujul Kumar '22 • Holden Smith '22 • Brett ompson '22 • Eddie Figueroa-Velasquez '24 • Tony Nguyen '24 An executive meeting followed. Discussions of the development of new members, recruitment, occupancy, and appreciation for summer upgrades were addressed. Midway through the meeting, piano playing was heard, prompting Brother Cook to check on who was playing. ere, he found a new member and further confirmed the value of the new piano. See page 3 for more on the piano. (Continued on page 3) Chapter House Upgrades and Operations S everal key improvements were accomplished this summer at the chapter house in response to undergraduate requests and through alumni volunteer efforts. Grounds In August, Brother Gavin Brown (91-1389) led a stalwart group of alumni in a two-day exterior cleanup and improvement effort. While the undergraduates had maintained with limited occupancy as best as they could, this group removed trees and bushes, trimmed, power-washed and more. For 2022, there is talk of expanding this effort and including a round of golf. August alumni cleanup crew.

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