Theta Chi - Worcester Polytechnic Institute

alumni.oxepsilon.org 2016-17 Epsilon Building AssociAtion Fund The Infamous First Television Brother Al Papianou '57 recalls the tale of the first TV present at the Epsilon chapter house in the late 50's February 21, 1957 was a typical evening as seniors returned from weekly forays to the celebrations of the great god, Bacchus, at various malt dispensaries in the city. ese places now live in alumni infamy at WPI: e Boynton, e White Eagle, e Somerset, and e Valhalla. e Worcester police station now sits where the latter two bars were located. e TV store on Lincoln Square had a Washington's Birthday sale the next day. February 22, giving away a free TV to the first person to enter the store at midnight wearing a derby and long underwear. e gathering at the fraternity was ecstatic. "No-Action" was there wearing a derby, long johns were quickly found by "Whitey," a very smiling No-Action was convinced by "Alfie" to don the clothes, and "Hot-Rod" volunteered to drive Upon arrival, the area was crowded with guys in derbies and long johns. Alfie, casing the joint, discovered an unlocked side door with No-Action and Whitey joining him there. Outside, "Big Jim" forced his way to the front of the crowd waiting at the doors. His job was to block the door and not allow anyone to enter until Alfie and No-Action greeted the manager. Exactly at midnight, the doors opened. Alfie and Whitey presented No-Action as the winner, much to the surprise and dismay of the manager. To prevent a riot, the store gave away two TV sets, one to No-Action and one to whoever it was that got by Big Jim. ey piled into the Plymouth with the TV to return to the house. Hot-Rod got into a rubber-burning race and nearly rammed a police car, braking just in time to a tire-screeching stop. e cop shone his flashlight into the car and saw the derby, long johns, TV set, and the odor of malt beverages exclaiming, "Jesus, Mary and Joseph! What did I do to deserve this?" e policeman decided he did not want to unravel this bizarre episode at the station, wrote up a ticket, handed it to Hot-Rod, and said, "Get the hell out of here!" Back at the house, Hot-Rod read the citation: "Speeding, reckless driving, and racing." He feared a suspended license, a huge fine, and the wrath of his parents, but found relief. ey contacted an alumnus who was prominent in Worcester politics who gave Hot-Rod a stern warning about drinking and driving, then arranged to have the charges dropped. It is rumored that a quart of Jack Daniels Black Label was involved in the transaction. Years later, Alfie moved into an apartment in Oakland, California. A young lady named, Jan, lived upstairs, and one evening she invited Alfie up to watch a PCL hockey match. Lo and behold, there was the exact TV he helped No-Action win in Worcester. Luck would have it, Jan was No Action's sister, to whom he gave the TV after graduating. Jan has been Mrs. Alfie for almost 55 years, and they still live in California where they raised their family. anks to generous contributions from 55 brothers, the 2016-17 Epsilon Building Association Fund has raised a total of $9,003 - meaning we are 60% of the way to our $15,000 goal! If you have not given to this important effort thus far, we invite you to join the growing list of donors! Contribute today by visiting alumni.oxepsilon.org and clicking 'Support the Campaign.' e giving levels are as follows: James Melvin Club - $500-$2,500 Donald Simonds Club - $250-$499 Epsilon Club - $100-$249 eta Chi Club - $51-$99 Annual Alumni Dues - $50 A complete donor list will be available in the next edition of the Epsilon Echo! $9,003 pledged as of July 31, 2017 On behalf of the Epsilon Building Association, Jim Melvin '85 presented Rich Wholey '87 with the Alumni Appreciation Award for his many years of service to eta Chi, including 15 years as the Director for the EBA Open Golf Tournament. Congratulations and many thanks, Rich! Green Monsters Win 2017 EBA Open Golf Tournament Congratulations to the Green Monsters (Ryan Burke '94, Dave Wildgoose '95, Even Ross '94, and Todd Mikolaycik '95) for winning the second annual EBA Open Golf Tournament on July 22, 2017 at Holden Hills Country Club. Close behind in second place was team Curlinks (Dave Liles '87, Jamie King '87, and Tom McMorrow '89). To view a listing of all results, please visit: oxepsilon.com:1856/oxe/alumni/golf/2017/results.html.

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