July 2010 Omegaphone
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Alumni Report - Omega Chapter in Final Stages of Buying House Back from National Office
While the summer is coming to an end, things never seem to stop in the world of the Omega Chapter. Recently, the alumni association has been having monthly conference calls about the house business. The added benefit is having more brothers involved in the process and in lending a helping hand. If you are interested in calling in – even if just to listen, to lend your expertise or to help out – please drop me an email, and I will make sure to invite you to the next conference call.
We are in the final stages of negotiating buying the house back from the National office. We are just working out the details of when the turnover will happen and the money involved with this transaction. While it will be great to have the chapter house back in the name of the alumni association, we need to make sure we never find ourselves in those circumstances ever again. Chris Burke ’93, our alumni treasurer, has been working many hours with National and the undergraduates towards this transition, and we could not have done it without his help.
523 South Allen St - 2003
Once the house purchase has been worked out with National, we hope to use some of Howard Alter’s estate money to replace the win- dows on the first and second floors. While the costs are not inexpensive, we feel that the sav- ings on heating will recoup that money in the next five to 10 years. While National owns the chapter house, all repairs and renovations need to be approved before we can proceed.
I would like to give a shout out to one
of Omega’s oldest initiates ever. Mr. Richard Bartnik, father of Brother Chris Bartnik
’91, while having reached the government retirement age, became a brother in the fall of 2008. Before becoming a brother, and even more so afterwards, he has worked tirelessly for the undergraduate chapter. Every year since he and his wife Jean moved to State College, they have been active with the undergraduates. They invite them over for home-cooked meals, send pizzas and drinks during the long Homecoming build nights, plant flowers in front of the house, donate furniture and worked with local business on getting estimates and making sure things are taken care of...to name just a few. Richard Bartnik has been the alumni’s man on the ground, and I would like to THANK him and his wife for all their time and effort they put towards the Omega.
This next year will be just as important to Omega’s history as its first year. I hope you all will continue to support Omega Chapter and its brothers. Look forward to seeing you at the house this fall.
Fraternally,
Rich Maltz ’90
Alumni President
What’s in a (nick)name? - Scott Mayhew ’90 Explains How He Came to Be Known as “Doo Wop”
very Theta Chi brother has his own individual memories that remain vivid despite the test of time and distance. From the late night antics to the house traditions, there is a part of the fraternity that will remain with every brother long after graduation.
Scott Mayhew ’90 recently recalled many fond times from his undergraduate career as an active Theta Chi brother. “The crazy stories I remember from college should never see the light of day again!” Scott reminisced. “Let’s just say that if I had the opportunity to go back and do it again with the same group of guys I would be there in a heartbeat!”
While his driver’s license may read Scott, many Theta Chis may find it more familiar to refer to him as “Doo Wop,” which was the result of one night hanging at the house with fellow brothers. “I was ’recruited’ to sing back to a couple of my pledge brothers Tom Scary ’88 and Tom Stella ’88,” Scott explained. “The only things that came to mind was ’doo wop, doo wop’ and it stuck!” Receiving nick- names was a common occurrence in the house but not all stick to this day. Another one that is still in use today is “Ziggy,” also known as Jeff Damcott ’91.
As a second generation Penn Stater, Scott’s decision to attend Penn State hardly required a second thought. “My mother, aunt, uncle, cousins and sister are all Penn State graduates,” Scott said. “Growing up in a family of Penn Staters, I thought that was the only school on the planet!”
After becoming an official student at PSU, Scott established his ties with Theta Chi early through his friendship with Rich Maltz ’90. “Freshmen year he was roommates with a high school friend of mine and he encouraged me to rush in the fall of our sophomore year,” Scott said. “Rich went on to have the ’misfortune’ of being the best man at my wedding!”
Scott married his high school sweetheart, Jill, and the two will celebrate their seven- teenth anniversary this September. They have three children: Emily, 14, Andrew, 11 and Ryan, 9. Together the Mayhews are always on the move with activities like Emily’s travel softball team where she recently pitched two perfect games and led her school to the mid- dle school championship.
Scott currently is the Operations/Service Manager for Farm and Home Oil Company which is located in Telford, Pa. He explained, “I have spent the better part of twenty years in sales for the home heating oil and propane business primarily selling residential replacement heating and air conditioning systems.”
With such a hectic schedule it’s difficult to pencil in trips back to Penn State, but Scott makes it a point to get back as often as pos- sible. “I was most recently in State College last year for opening day of football season and last at the house the Blue/White weekend the year prior,” Scott said. “The boys loved the house and my daughter didn’t want to sit down! Ryan is most definitely a future social chairman!”
In addition to visits back to Penn State and the fraternity house, Scott makes an effort to keep in touch with as many brothers as he can. He still enjoys reconnecting with Rich Maltz, Jeff Damcott, Greg Allan ’89, Ed Brown ’87, John Stagliano ’87 and Mike Stein ’91.
It is relationships like these that make the Theta Chi alumni network so strong and acts as constant reminders of the important role the fraternity played in each brother’s life. Scott noted that he still references many of the lifelong lessons he learned through oppor- tunities he had in Theta Chi. “Being in the fraternity taught me a lot about how to com- promise and negotiate,” he said. “The skills I learned as caterer, social chairman and pledge master have helped throughout my career.”
With so many ways to get involved and leave a mark on the fraternity, it’s easy to see how the effects from the brotherhood extend far past the walls of the house. It is evident in everything from the gatherings that take place every Homecoming weekend to the nick- names that were coined one random night in the house and still hold true today.
Alumni Work Weekend - Actives and Alumni Join Together to Make Improvements to the House
The 2010 Theta Chi Omega Chapter Alumni Work Weekend was a great success! We had 10 alumni brothers and more than 40 undergraduate brothers help out. Starting on Saturday, we had bagels, donuts, and coffee to get the day started off. We worked throughout the day until around 5 pm, with an hour and a half lunch break (We ordered 15 pizzas, not a slice left!). On Sunday, we finished up the jobs we could, but were cut short due to rain. This year, we decided to do outside beautification to the house. With everyone contributing their knowledge and muscle, we managed to get many of our projects done! Everyone should be very proud of themselves for a job well done. Find a full list of projects completed at www.thetachiomega.com.
The undergraduate chapter would like to personally thank each alum who donated* or came out to help. The house looks great, and we could not have done it without you!
Chapter News - Headlines from the Spring 2010 Semester
Theta Chi’s Thon Child Passes Away - As reported in the Patriot News
Carly Arlene Mitchell, 5 years old, passed peacefully May 27, 2010 at her home in the arms of her earthly Momma and Dada. She was born November 29, 2004 to Josh and Jamie (Shughart) Mitchell of Gardners.
On February 16, 2009, Carly was diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), a rare and inoperable brain tumor that has no cure. She fought a very brave and courageous 15 month battle, and never lost her determination along the way. In the end Carly won the battle, she got to Heaven before us. We will miss her, but she will live in our hearts forever.
Chapter Finishes Year in 8th Place for Intramurals
The chapter finished the academic year in 8th place out of 49 fraternities. This year they had two individual champions. Brother Jim Barrett won the 5k Cross Country Individual and Brother Ross DeVoe won the individual Racquetball Championship. Congratulations to the chapter on a Top Ten Finish.
Omega Awarded IFC’s Chapter of Excellence for 2nd Straight Year
We are proud to announce Omega Chapter was awarded one of the five chapter of excellence awards handed out by Penn State’s Interfraternity Council (IFC) this past week. This is the second year in a row that Omega has been awarded this honor.
Also honored at the Hyperochos Awards (aka The Greeks Oscars), was Brother Daniel Cartwright who was awarded the Living the Ritual award. The Living the Ritual award honors those greek members who have dedicated themselves to their Chapter, Greek Life as a whole, and the Penn State Community, and has shown what it means to live the ritual.
Congratulations to the chapter and to Br. Cartwright for making Omega proud.
Chapter Participates in Re-Install of Gamma Eta Chapter
Amidst the joys and thought provoking customs that come with our Chapter’s Initiation Week, five of our undergraduate brothers were able to participate in one of the most meaningful experiences that Theta Chi can offer. On April 10, 2010, Founders Day, brothers Daniel Cartwright, Nicholas Geyer, Jeremy Railing, Matthew Gendelman, and Gabriel Rodriguez ventured to Bucknell University to help the International Headquarters (IHQ) re-install the Gamma Eta Chapter that has traditionally been one of Theta Chi’s most successful chapters.
Ron Beadenkopf ’93
The Story of an Omega American Hero - Ron Beadenkopf ’93 Shares Stories of His Army Experience
I’ve just returned from a tour in Afghanistan, and wanted to put some thoughts on paper about that experience and what I’ve been up to since I left Penn State in ’93. I decided to re-enlist in the Army in ’93 and was sent out to Washington State. It’s always better to be lucky than good, and while in Yakima, Washington I had the good fortune to receive a full scholarship to go back to school to ROTC. I chose Western Michigan University to be near family and after graduation as a Lieutenant was sent to Germany. In the three years I was there I did a peacekeeping tour in Bosnia and got to do a lot of traveling. In the ten years since returning from Germany I’ve done two tours in Iraq (both in Baghdad), as well as stints in Georgia, Korea, Kansas and Arizona. Life in the military is never boring, and as someone once said, it can be “long periods of waiting interspersed with moments of sheer terror.”
This last tour in Afghanistan was fascinating and challenging at the same time. A country that is much larger than Iraq, but much more mountainous, a mostly illiterate population, and neighboring countries of Pakistan, Iran, China and so on that have anything but the best interest of Afghanistan or the U.S. in mind. I got to do a good bit of traveling, and saw a widely varying landscape of moonscape mountains and lush valleys full of vineyards, pastures, and the Taliban. For the most part the people are extremely poor, rural, and cut off from most of civilization. I spent a large portion of my time in Kabul, the capital city, and it offered a fascinating glimpse of what Afghanistan could be. At night the streets were filled with people browsing the many shops, fruit stands and bazaars, and rich and poor walked side by side. At the same time there were suicide bombings in those same streets that claimed the lives of some of our best and brightest.
My job was to be an advisor and liaison to the headquarters there, and I got to see a lot
of the efforts being made to turn the tide of the war in our favor. The next year will be a critical one and I’m glad I had the experience of seeing our efforts first hand and meet the Afghan people up close.
I am packing as we speak to move to Tampa, where MacDill AFB will be my home base for the next few years. I welcome any brothers who would like to visit from the frozen North and look forward to hearing from you.
2010 Theta Chi Golf Open Wrap-Up
This year’s Theta Chi Golf Open was won by Bob Mausser ’75. He was tied with Bob Losinger ’72 at the end of 18. They played a playoff and on the first hole Bob Mausser won by shooting a par. A total of 26 Brothers attended this year’s Theta Chi Open. A post game banquet was held at a house (more like a palace) rented by Paul Cunningham ’77 in Avalon.
Front row: Ken Slaby, Matt Mankus, Evan Rosenburg, Bob Mausser, Tom Raymond, Hugh McClure;
2nd Row: Paul Cunningham, John Loyle, Bob Losinger, Bob Mooney; 3rd Row: Mike Dalesio, Greg Schlegel, Rod Dare; Back Row: Vic Howe, Dan McTague, Mike Perkins, Bob Hunter and Ed Kivitz
Thank you to all those brothers that shared their news.
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