Sigma Chi - Kansas State University

3 Sam Forrer '63 Reflects on his Sigma Chi Experience S am Forrer '63 has led an active and proactive life. Upon graduation, he served in the Army and was discharged as a first lieutenant in 1965. He spent his 35-year vocational life as a banker in a rural southwest Kansas town. Starting in 1965 as an assistant cashier, Sam worked his way up, becoming a director in 1972. He acquired an ownership interest and was named the bank's president and CEO in 1982. During his banking career he served in leadership positions in his community and on the Kansas Independent Bankers Association. Sam and his wife, Karen, retired in 2000. Coming from a small and isolated rural community, the transition to college life was challenging and intimidating. Sam had never heard of fraternities until he was invited to a rush party by a Sigma Chi high school friend. Sam was initiated in April of 1959. His father's insistence on self-support, hard work, and personal high expectations were quickly reinforced by Sigma Chi and Kansas State. "Time was at a premium during those years, as I worked as a kitchen boy from the outset. Pledge training began with the actives collectively expressing their expectations of me, individually and of my pledge class as a whole. Achievement and contributing to the chapter's excellent reputation became a personal mission. That propelled me to aggressively work to serve the chapter while building my own resume. My Sigma Chi experience profoundly changed my life and played a major role in the good fortune me and my family have enjoyed." Mother Boss, the chapter's housemother, made a huge impact on Sam. "She was a powerful force in the house. She had well-known and forcefully-expressed high expectations of us individually and collectively. She demanded mature and enlightened social behavior. After Sunday dinner, we adjourned to the 'library' for demitasse. Those small touches made a big difference." Sam made the most of his time at K-State. He served Sigma Chi as magister, pro consul, and consul, earning the Kansas-Nebraska Province Award. On campus, he was in the Men's Varsity Glee Club, chairman of the Student Apportionment Board, a member of Blue Key, Student Body president, and the student brigade commander of the Army ROTC. Sam also recalls the many lighter moments as well—serenading the sororities, the University Sing, the Sweetheart Ball, time with brothers, and the periodic Saturday night country "bust." "Saturday morning was set aside for the pledges to clean the house. Someone had an album of the Ray Conniff Singers and would turn it up loud so that almost everyone could hear it on all three floors while we were doing our chores." The happiest moment of Sam's life was when he and Karen were married between semesters in his fifth year. Karen was a Gamma Phi Beta. They have two children, LeAnne (KSU '86) and Chris '89, six grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. Since October, Sam and several brothers have been immersed in revitalizing the active chapter and House Corporation and formally organizing the alumni by creating and incorporating the K-State Sigma Chi Alumni Chapter. Sam enjoys building furniture from scratch that has, among other things, resulted in walnut grandmother clocks for Karen and LeAnne. He and Karen enjoy motorcycling on their Can-Am Spyder. He can be reached at skforrer@comgen.com. Sigma Chi a Time of Growth for John Seitzer '88 A ccording to John Seitzer '88, when most of the guys in a fraternity have at least one nickname, it's an indicator of a place full of personality and humor. "My time at Sigma Chi was the most fun four years of my life. There are so many fun and diverse memories. When you had so many unique guys and personalities, laughter was always present. Thirty years later, I still reflect back on that time and can't help but smile." But those four years were more than just a fun time for John. They were a period of preparation for the life and career that were to come. "The most important determinant of who you become is with whom you surround yourself," he says. "College is a critical time when a person can take a wrong fork in the road. I was blessed to be surrounded by good, genuine guys. "It is pretty amazing the opportunity a fraternity offers, whereby 18-year-olds are effectively given the keys and responsibility to coexist and run a house holding 60 guys. All of those leadership opportunities, whether accompanied by an official title or just one-off decisions, helped mature me into a man." John took his experience at Sigma Chi and his degree in accounting and finance into his first job as a CPA with KPMG in Kansas City, spending a year in audit and two years in tax. He earned an MBA in finance from Indiana University, paving the way for a career in the investments industry. His first position out of graduate school was as an investment analyst with Twentieth Century, now American Century. During this time he received the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation, a title earned after a rigorous exam in the investment field. John became a portfolio manager with the company before starting his own wealth management firm—Everest Wealth Management—where he earned the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation. Now, in his 13th year as a business owner, John doesn't show any signs of stopping. Having personally invested since he was 15 years old, finding a career doing what he loves has been a gift. "I'll be doing this another 25 years. I've found what I enjoy in helping people with their investments and all their financial decisions." John continues to stay engaged with his Sigma Chi roots, serving on the House Corporation for the last several years. He and his wife, Jodie, live in Leawood, Kansas, and have four children ranging in age from 14 to 21. John can be reached at johnseitzer@everestwealth.com.

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