Gamma Phi Chapter of Beta Theta Pi at the University of Oklahoma
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/746895
The front doors of the Beta house from 1965 to 2015. Alumni during an OU football tailgate. 1918 STEINWAY PIANO RETURNED TO CHAPTER Gamma Phi Cultivates Brotherhood through Tailgates Page 2 T he 2016-17 year got off to a great start with Gamma Phi signing an outstanding 51-man pledge class. As usual, our alumni came through with solid support for our recruitment team in terms of financial contributions, recruitment referrals, and event hosting. The chapter is extremely pleased with this class. One tradition the chapter and the corporation are jointly embracing and cultivating is our fall game day tailgate events. These events, of course, are a lot of fun. But they also serve important chapter interests. These include promoting the Beta brand on campus, cultivating relations between the chapter and our alumni, and providing continuing fellowship opportunities for all generations of our alumni. We want these events to be the marquee tailgate destination on campus. The first three events thus far have been extremely successful, with big crowds, live music, cold beer and drinks, and food for everyone. Join us for the remaining home game tailgates! Another exciting development is the return of our Steinway baby grand piano back to the chapter house. The piano was manufactured in 1918 and chapter purchased it in 1919, nearly a century ago. It is arguably Gamma Phi's most important historical relic, rivaled only perhaps by the Loving Cup. Last fall, we shipped the piano back to Steinway's factory in Long Island, New York, for a full factory restoration. The piano finally returned to us in September, literally as good as new. Few, if any, fraternity houses in the nation have the luxury of a Steinway piano of this nature, to say nothing of this historical character. Much of what we know about the piano comes from a 1973 letter to the chapter from Carl Ford, 1920 in which he wrote: "I was fortunate enough to be president of the chapter in the fall of 1918, and the spring of 1919. At that time, we had about 30 or 35 members in the chapter. At the same time, I was steward, and we had a great deal of financial difficulty in meeting expenses. Our dues were very small. We had one man in the chapter who was an unusually good piano player, and he wanted us to buy a Steinway. I made a deal to buy our groceries wholesale, and put the whole chapter on a diet, and we ended up with a nice baby grand Steinway. I wonder if it is still in service." Yes, Brother Ford, your piano is alive and well. Finally, I'd like to thank Mike Gilliam at Edmond Music for his tremendous assistance in making this happen. Edmond Music stored the piano for us during construction, handled delivery and return of the piano, and even provided a loaner baby grand while we waited for ours. For the rest of you, thanks for your support of Gamma Phi! Yours in ___kai___, Zach Allen '85 House Corporation President