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Going the Right Way
TOM WANTS TO PRESERVE ILLINOIS DU
A
s a freshman, Tom Mereckis '90 gave
several houses a shot in recruitment, but
Delta Upsilon had an early advantage. Tom visited
his lifelong friend Andy Kurkulis '88 at the
Chapter House while still in high school, and the
brothers were all easygoing, smart, and (most
importantly) funny.
"Those four DU years were a big influence on me
growing from a kid into an adult—though my wife
would argue I'm not fully adult yet," Tom said.
Tom and his brothers learned to work and play hard
as members of Delta Upsilon. "Dave Hecht '88
and Brian Steck '89 helped me figure out how to think about my career. Eric O'Daffer '88, Dave
Taraboletti '89, Dave Sheikh '88, and others taught me a lot about leadership. A lot of what I
know about how to maintain a house started with Chuck Bleck '90. The list goes on!"
His proudest role as a brother was his unofficial title of "VP Games," bequeathed by his
predecessor, Todd "Slug" Borrowman '88. "I'd like to apologize to brothers from that era who
were annoyed by my overly zealous pursuit of the duties of that office."
Decades later, Tom has enjoyed a long career at Microsoft, where he co-founded the company's
first and still-largest data science team; he also co-invented the integrated search feature you can
find on every Windows taskbar since version 8.1.
He's most proud, however, of the simple things: building a happy marriage and raising three great
kids (now in high school and ready for the next big step of college). "I did it the right way, and
credit for learning the right way goes in part to my Illinois DU experience."
For all these reasons and more, Tom leaped at the chance to help fund a house renovation for
the Illinois Chapter. "I got and still get so much out of that experience, and I felt a duty to pay
it back by donating myself and talking with others about doing the same. We can provide the
same useful and fun growth opportunities to future generations."
Tom and his family live in Bellevue, Washington, where they enjoy all the year-round outdoor
activities from the mountains to the water. He keeps up with dozens of brothers and always enjoys
catching up and joking around with them. But this isn't a joke: Tom hopes you'll join him in
donating to the Honoring the Past, Building for the Next Century campaign!
Y O U C A N R E A C H T O M A T T M E R E C K I S @ O U T L O O K . C O M .
Max Allen '26.5
Lovington, Ill.
Ben Foley '26.5
Elmhurst, Ill.
Lukas Knutte '26. 5
Darien, Ill.
Hunter Racic '26.5
Bolingbrook, Ill.
Tom Mereckis '90 and his kids at a young age.
Welcome, NEW Members
THE DULINE
CHAPTER
OFFICERS
President
Jacob Wolf '25
jwolf23@illinois.edu
Vice President
Drew Ganley '25
dganley2@illinois.edu
Associate Member Educators
Isai Bailon '25
ibail3@illinois.edu
Vinay Panayanchery '25
vinaylp2@illinois.edu
Academic Excellence Chairman
Ethan Wickenkamp '25
ethantw4@illinois.edu
VP of Administration
Ben Issel '25
bissel2@illinois.edu
VP of Finance
Max Schemmel '25
msche3@illinois.edu
Maintenance Chairman
Adam Rudofski '25
adamvr2@illinois.edu
Recruitment Chairmen
Luke Thorell '26
lukeet2@illinois.edu
Nik Leppert '25
nlepp2@illinois.edu
Social External Chairmen
Ryan Park '26
rp27@illinois.edu
Alex Ivanyshyn '26
oi4@illinois.edu
VP of Alumni External Relations
Rick Egen '25
regen2@illinois.edu
Head Recruitment Chairman
Drew Daly '25.5
ajdaly2@illinois.edu
Risk Management Chairman
Andy Ingrafia '25
andrewi3@illinois.edu
Philanthropy Chairman
Gabe Predescu '25
gpredescu109@gmail.com
