Delta Kappa Epsilon - Wesleyan University

Brothers celebrate the Little Three Victory over Williams. Pictured: Rickey Eng '25, Luke Lasaracina '25, Ryan Caserta '25, Mario Lee '25, Ben Carbeau '25, Niko Candido '25, and Mike Rowan '25. Dekes after aiding in the Middletown Fire Department's holiday gift wrapping. Zach Feldman '27 scores his first career goal in a 1-0 victory over Western New England. A Brotherhood of Excellence Highlighting DKE Achievements A SEMESTER OF SERVICE This fall, Gamma Phi continued our chapter's commitment to bolstering our overall philanthropy efforts. Headed by Philanthropy Chairman Will Gardner '26, we held three impactful events. In early September, we sold bracelets with Wesleyan's signature phrase "Roll Cards" at the football team's annual night game against Tufts. The bracelet sale benefited St. Vincent de Paul of Middletown and raised $800 in donations for their food bank. Later in the season, we sold shirts at the football team's Homecoming game against Williams. The military green shirts were an ode to Wesleyan football's annual Salute to Service game, which coincided with Homecoming this year. From the shirt sale, we were able to make a generous donation to Doug's Camp Fund, a charity made in honor of the late Captain Douglas Dicenzo, the brother of DKE faculty advisor Coach Dan Dicenzo. The charity helps to send underprivileged youths to summer camps. At the end of the semester, brothers aided Middletown's Fire Department in preparation for their annual holiday toy drive. Together, we wrapped up the gifts, aiding in the Middletown Fire Department's goal of making every child's holiday one to remember. DEKES LEAD THE "TEAM OF DESTINY" For the first time in Wesleyan football history, the Cardinals captured the elusive title of outright NESCAC champions. Alongside the conference title came the Cardinals' third-consecutive Little Three, a feat that had not been achieved since the 1940s. In the second-to-last game of the season, the team faced off against Williams for the Little Three title and to keep their championship hopes alive. In the red zone, down six points with less than 10 seconds remaining, Niko Candido '25 connected with Luke Lasaracina '25 to lead the Cardinals to victory. The next week in Hartford, the Cardinals rolled their in-state rival Trinity to secure the NESCAC Championship. Candido and Lasaracina would connect for another touchdown, and a fourth-and-goal shot to Blake Newcomb '27 from Candido put the Cardinals up 10 with less than two minutes remaining to secure the victory. FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT At the Wesleyan Football banquet in February, I had the pleasure of catching up with KLC board member and heavily involved Wesleyan football alumnus Dave Bagatelle '86. At this event, Dave informed me of the newly proposed legislation that would be proposed to Connecticut's State Senate. Senate Bill 1411 is an act that would allow students at institutions of higher education to live off campus. Learning of this bill and knowing the implications it could have on getting back into the house, a handful of brothers volunteered their time to testify in front of the court. Brothers Colby Geddis '26, Declan Welch '26, William Littell '26, and I each testified of our experiences with Wesleyans' forced on-campus living. The house stays on the minds of the entire fraternity, and we all long for the day that Dekes will be back at 276 High Street. As current members of DKE, we take great pride in representing our fraternity through both academic and athletic excellence. We are deeply grateful for the opportunity to uphold the legacy of those who came before us, and we remain committed to honoring the tradition of being Gentlemen, Scholars, and Jolly Good Fellows. In the Bonds, Nicholas Orphanos '26 Chapter President

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