Pi Kappa Alpha - University of Texas

4 The Beta Mu Review www.texaspike.com Cinco (left) joins Tucker Graves '78, Lane Prickett '78 and Nino Rolf '79 at a San Miguel wedding in 2021. Cinco, left, with legendary Texas Coach Darrell Royal, the late Al McNamara '80 and Robert Howden '80 circa 1990. Enjoying Every Moment JAMES "CINCO" COCKE '80 ON WHY HE GIVES BACK TO PIKE A ccording to James "Cinco" Cocke '80, "Time flies, so enjoy each day to the fullest." Cinco has been following that mantra for as long as he can remember. Whether he's fishing the gulf coast, hiking to the top of Guadalupe Peak or seeing Jimmy Buffett perform live (more than 30 times!) with his Beta Mu friends, Cinco is always searching for the various joys of life. Growing up in Harlingen, Texas, Cinco's family owned a concrete company. "I literally grew up in the construction business; driving a mixer truck every summer was a blast," he shared. Although he may not have known it at the time, spending time with his family and witnessing their ambition ingrained a long-standing respect for advancing professional endeavors, prioritizing family and giving back to his community. "I come from a long line of UT graduates," Cinco said. "My dad was a Kappa Sig, my grandfather was a UT graduate and my great-grandfather was a Texas Ranger as well as the first police chief in the city of Harlingen." Having had influential figures in his life, Cinco was taught a work ethic early on. Once he graduated with a degree in finance, Cinco felt inspired to pursue an MBA from Southern Methodist University. "I graduated in 1987, and Trammell Crow, an established and respected real estate developer, spoke at commencement. As he talked about the real estate business, the idea of entering commercial real estate sparked my interest." Cinco spent several years working with CBRE in Austin, Texas; in 2008, however, he found his way back to his roots and started his own construction and development business in Austin. Over a decade later, he sold his portion of the business to his partner and relocated to Houston, Texas, where he works as a development project manager in Houston, McAllen and Laredo areas. Before he started a family of his own, Cinco found brotherhood in Beta Mu. In addition to all those Jimmy Buffett concerts with his alumni brothers, Cinco cherishes the memories he made in his collegiate years. One of his favorites was taking brothers out to South Padre Island, Texas, then into Mexico to go bird hunting. "We had countless great times on those trips. We laughed the entire time," he reminisced. As the years passed after his time as a collegian, Cinco couldn't help but reflect on the memorable times he had in Greek life. So, to stay connected and help Beta Mu forge a virtuous path, Cinco felt inspired to not only donate to the Pike house campaign, but also serve on the BMBC board. "After serving on the BMBC board for a couple of years, it was clear that our house was not up to par with the other fraternities on campus," Cinco revealed. "I gave back because I felt that we really needed to build a new house to secure our place as a premier fraternity." When it came to donating time, energy and money to the fraternity, Cinco described it as "an easy decision." Between Beta Mu's distinguished legacy and the memories he has of Greek life, there was no doubt in Cinco's mind that he wanted to give back to an organization that created such a significant impact on his formative years. He also took the opportunity to honor a brother whose time was cut short. "I dedicated Room 319 to the memory of Al McNamara '80, a brother that passed away at too young of an age," Cinco said. "I felt like his name needed to be remembered in the new house." Cinco continues to offer his expertise to the fraternity by serving on the Beta Mu Alumni Association Board: "It's a good way to stay involved and to make sure the current active members know what a treasure the new house is," he said. Now, Cinco is the influential figure in his family, like his father, grandfather and great-grandfather before him. His daughter, Savannah, graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2021 and is working on her master's degree; his son, Marshall, is a PIKE and a junior at University of Oklahoma with a side hustle selling second-hand classic sports gear that he buys at thrift stores. Although time is flying for Cinco, he found the secret to enjoying every day to the fullest: "Don't let the little issues hijack your mojo. Work hard and try to give back to your family, your school, your faith, your community and your friends." To stay in touch with Cinco, connect with him at jcocke@huffmanbuilders.com. Beta Mu is a special place where friendships last a lifetime.

• Cover