Sigma Nu - University of Kansas

NU news 3 House Happenings By Housemother Sally Nixon A s I begin to get my thoughts organized, I wonder where our last year went. It was busy with all the usual commotion—the members running every which way with classes and activities—and then finals were upon us and all were looking forward to Christmas break. That went by rather quickly and, as expected, with spring comes stress. It's all about procrastination. I concede I'm guilty, too, that it's always this way. Nothing has changed. Our alumni keep popping into my mind and, although I am biased, I am sure our alumni are the best. It has been hard getting most of them back and into the fold since 2005 when National closed the house. I showed up in 2008 and through listening, learning, and visiting with many of our young men, I heard over and over questions like, "Why are they taking this out on us?" and "We didn't do anything." It made me sad for them, knowing how they felt and realizing they had many more experiences to come that were just like this one. After much thought, and knowing what I already knew, I had to be honest. I told them, "I know you weren't involved. I know you are doing a superb job bringing Sigma Nu back to its respectful place on The Hill. All I can tell you is that you won't understand it now, but you will look back in 10 or 15 years and understand why it was like it was. You will realize all that you learned during this period. You might even feel blessed that you experienced this lesson. Even though you were young and naive, you grew up a little, didn't you? I'll bet you learned a couple lessons, too. Maybe you learned that life isn't always fair, or that alumni had a right to feel disappointed after all they'd given throughout the years, and that we needed to respect their feelings and move on. Prove to them now, we are the Sigma Nus that they want us to be. We are really trying to live 'the Love, the Honor, the Truth.'" Alumni, let me give you a substantial example of how the men have grown. The Mom's Club raises money each year with the specific goal of giving their boys a gift for the house that they wouldn't ordinarily receive. They love to do this and it's always a big deal to the moms. Well, after the guys attended the alumni board meeting in the spring and learned of all the projects the alumni were trying to do for them, they voted to have the Mom's Club donate the money to the alumni board to help out. The Mom's Club did so, but held back a bit of the money so they could still have fun with a gift for their babies. When the members found this out they asked the moms to please donate that money, also. It was hard on the Mom's Club, but once they were asked, they were proud to comply. So, in my very proud estimation, I believe the Nu Chapter of Sigma Nu at the University of Kansas ended the school year with an enormous, very unselfish, and conscientious act of giving. So, here we are, loving the wisdom of both alumni and actives, the gratefulness of all, the respect of all, and the brotherhood in all its grandeur. Thank you, alumni, for your guidance, examples, generosity, and for believing in us. Thank you, active brothers, for being the guys I know you are. These college years will be an integral part of your nostalgia bank. You will have many remembrances of this special house, its history, the parties, your roommates, etc. I bet the emotions that come forward with the memories will be about what you learned regarding character, integrity, relationships, and the virtues in all. Sincerely, Mom Sally Sigma Nu

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