Phi Gamma Delta - University of Texas

H Page 2 Phi Gamma Delta TEXAS FIJIS FOCUS ON THE FUTURE Alumni Support and Strong Recruitment Put Chapter in a Good Place T oday, Texas Fiji is able to focus on the future of our great Chapter thanks to the support of alumni and the recruitment efforts of our undergraduates. With the new addition underway, the Chapter is kicking off an exciting fall semester. This year holds great potential with an outstanding group of new freshmen. The Chapter is grateful to all of you who have donated your resources and efforts to help continue our tradition of excellence on campus, both by recruiting another top-tier pledge class and by contributing to the capital campaign. of philanthropy projects, headed by Philanthropy Chairmen Ryan Gregory PC '12, Sam McCallister PC '12, and Ryan Petty PC '12. They will also partake in weekly study halls proctored by sophomore academic chairmen. The Chapter is excited to welcome them. Successful Recruitment Recruitment this summer was a huge success. The five recruitment captains, Nelson Grimes PC '11, Spence Howden PC '11, Chase Russo PC '11, Carter Thurmond PC '11, and Dillon West PC '11, did a great job recruiting an impressive pledge class. Fundraisers were held in Austin, Dallas, Ft. Worth, Houston, and San Antonio. Thanks to everyone who attended; we had a great time and hope to see an even stronger turnout next year. The Island Party was as much fun as ever, headlined by The Benjy Davis Band. Brothers participated in the annual Longhorn Run to support student government and the university. Events for Football Season The Chapter is looking forward to many events this fall, including the football season. We hope to see you at our tailgates before home games. Once again, we appreciate your loyal support. The importance of our alumni's influence cannot be overstated. Thanks to you, our Chapter remains special, and we will always remember our time at Buen Retiro as the best years of our lives. Fraternally, James Uhl PC '11 Chapter President juhl216@sbcglobal.net The junior class canoed the Buffalo National River in Arkansas over spring break. New Member Education The structure of pledgeship will receive a creative new look this fall with construction going on. The pledges will continue to partake in a multitude T Sires and Sons Club he Sires and Sons Club was founded in 1925 by Texas Fiji Calvin Coolidge. It was created as a special club within Phi Gamma Delta to acknowledge fathers and sons (and grandsons) who have pledged Texas Fiji. Earlier this year, William G. Kinney Jr. PC '40, Joe P. Nelson PC '46, and DeWitt Waltmon Sr. PC '45, along with their sons and applicable grandsons, were welcomed as members of the Sires and Sons Club. The group was honored at a party in April in Houston, Texas, where they were presented with certificates of membership to the club. Back Row, from left: Ben Kinney PC '89, Stephen Kinney PC '74, Bill Kinney III PC '72, Craig Kinney PC '76, Scott Waltmon PC '83, DeWitt Waltmon Jr. PC '76, Mike Nelson PC '76, Rick Nelson PC '74, and Skip Nelson PC '71; Front Row: William "Willie" Kinney Jr. PC '40, DeWitt Waltmon Sr. PC '45, and Joe Nelson PC '46. Successful Recruitment Creates Pledge Class from Near and Far 2013 Pledge Class Focuses on Geographical Diversity T he recruitment captains of Texas Fiji are proud to report that we had an outstanding year for recruitment. We started the summer with 223 young men on our list. And throughout the summer, we did our best to get to know each young man. To say that we struggled greatly to narrow down the list is an understatement. As representatives of the Fraternity, we did our best to choose the men who meshed well with each other in order to create a cohesive pledge class. As usual, we began recruitment with Studio 54 in February and ended with the memorable Austin-State weekend in August. During the six months in between, we held events such as Island, the New Orleans trip, barges, late nights, and dinners. These were great opportunities to get to know the recruits and show them what Texas Fiji is about. When it came time for the young men to start making their decisions, we had a problem that any fraternity would love to have: virtually every recruit accepted his bid, leaving little space for last-minute additions. PC '13 is (Continued on page 6)

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