Category: Alumni

Roger Edward Davidson, 1926 – 2011

We learned this week of the recent passing of Brother Roger Davidson.

Roger was well known and loved by brothers of every generation.

Brother Alan Haworth reflected, “I remember, Roger came down in the summer of ’07 and helped us paint the house. I think he was 83 at the time. Flew down from Colorado to be there, helping rebuild the house. He was also John Tower’s roommate and best friend. He was at the Tower tree dedication in the early ‘90s when the Tower library was dedicated. Roger was a great man, a faithful brother, and steadfast in his dedication to Kappa Sigma. He will be missed but never forgotten!”

You can read Roger’s obituary from The Daily Sentinel of Grand Junction, Colorado here: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/gjsentinel/obituary.aspx?n=roger-edward-davidson&pid=154010417

Please feel welcome to add your good words to in the comments to this post.

Update: 125th Weekend Packages & Costs

Brothers,

I hope this letter finds you well on this October 12, 2011, the 125th birthday of The Iota Chapter of Kappa Sigma. We have a grand celebration planned for the weekend of November 4-6.

We are getting concerns and complaints that Iota’s Celebration is too expensive.

We are adding two categories to the registration to make it more affordable. There is no memorabilia included in either one. The alumni “Basic” is $85. The guest “Basic” is $75.

The new registration form has these additions. If you have already registered and have sent in your package and would like to change, let us know and we can do that.

Memorabilia will be for sale at the event on a first come first serve basis.

Our celebration is 3 weeks away. Southwestern will order food for the banquet depending on the numbers we give them. We will order our refreshments on the same numbers so help us out and don’t delay.

I hope this letter will help clarify any doubts and lead to a successful gathering of the brothers and their friends on November 4-6. Events like these come once every 25 years so call your worthless pledge brothers and make sure they will be there. Iota Chapter has a totally remodeled house just waiting for a celebration! Let’s give it one that will be remembered for years to come!

Happy Birthday Iota!

AEKDB

Erik Harpst

August 13th: Alumni/Active EC Retreat

We are going to hold the bi-annual EC retreat at 11 a.m. on 8/13 at the newly renovated house. Please let me know if you can attend via email or add a comment to this post. I’ve talked with the actives, and we should have nearly everyone.

We’ll have quite a few things to discuss. A rough agenda appears below. Let me know if you have any thing to add or remove.

House Updates
– Updates on renovations
– New House policies/rental agreement

125th Anniversary/Homecoming
– Dates and Info

Brotherhood Development
– Discussion

Please forward on to other alumni that would be interested in attending.

Thanks,

Tim

Join the Final Work Weekend – August 6th

from Alumni Adviser Tim Stapleton

FINAL WORK WEEKEND – Don’t miss your chance to leave a lasting (positive) impression on the on the house. Saturday, August 6th will be the next, and hopefully final, work weekend at the house. We still have a lot to do to ensure the house is ready for the new school year.

For those of you artsy folks, we have lot of paint prep work that needs to be done, but if the outdoors is more your thing, we have a lot of earthwork and gardening too. I’m sure we can find something up your alley!

Work will be going on all day, you can’t get there to early, and you can’t get there too late. Any time at all you can contribute will be greatly appreciated.

If you like working with your own tools, we can always use extra shovels, paint brushes, rollers, sand papers, blue painting tape, steel wool (various grades), water blaster or pressure washer, pruning tools, wire cutters, and strong backs. Be sure to label your tools before arrival.

There has already been a lot of volunteers who have already given a lot of their time and energy, it would be great to see you there.

Join Masters of Destruction Part 2, June 4-5

RSPV via Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=169201776472278

What: Masters of Destruction (MOD) Weekend Part 2

Where: The House

When: Weekend of June 4th; sun-up to sun-down

Who: All actives and alumni are invited and encouraged to join the effort – that means you! Norwood Williams and Joe Abel are leading the effort.

How: Skills, sweat, tools, teamwork, and lots of fun along the way.

Why: The remaining tear work to be done includes: the head (another layer of sheetrock and flooring need to be removed), flooring in the kitchen needs to be removed, the carpet and possibly the subfloor in the old house mothers room needs to be removed,and a new deck put down. We need to do general ground works, etc.

Read Joe Abel’s report of MOD Part 1 here.

So please if you can come, come!

Joe Abel’s Update and Next Steps on House Renovation

Brothers,

We have started work on the Chapter house that was built in 1961.

Last weekend on May 21st we tore out the head (major leaks, and plumbing problems}; we also tore out the tile and some of the cabinets from the kitchen. We cleaned the grounds, chunked old couches, tore up sheetrock, old walls, and discovered more problems but none of them are structural. The old house is solid! Unbelievable!

We have a written contract with a contractor, reputable and on the spot. We’re redoing the head, the kitchen, replacing the North and South double doors, repairing all exterior doors upstairs and downstairs, fixing or replacing all the upstairs interior doors. We are putting new tile down with new sub flooring in the head and the kitchen. Repairing the fire suppressant system, and re-finishing the parquet floors.

We are having another work weekend on the 4th of June, all alumni and current Sigs are invited to come and help. The things we need to do is more work in the head (another layer of sheetrock and flooring need to be removed), flooring in the kitchen needs to be removed, the carpet and possibly the subfloor in the old house mothers room needs to be removed, and a new deck put down. We need to do general ground works, etc.
So please if you can come, come.

[For questions] Contact Norwood Williams, he is the project manager for the remodel for the alumnus and the contractor Joe Gilbreth. I think we have an opportunity to get the young guys involved and maybe get some of their input and help during the project. We want to get this thing done by August 1st to have it ready for the fall semester and the 125th. We will have a painting weekend to do sometime in July when the contractor finishes the major work.

AEKDB

Joe Abel

A call to all the brothers of Iota to pony up for the remodel of our old House

From Brother Joe Abel:

This is a call to all the brothers of Iota to pony up for the remodel of our old House.

We are going to redo the Head, Kitchen, replace the Main Doors south and North, repair all the other exterior doors, replace some of the room doors upstairs, do some electrical work etc. We will have to rent a rolloff dumpster for the tear out on May 21st and have it there for the remainder of the job. We are going to have to bubble wrap the composites and store them in a climate controlled storage until we are done. Plus we will have to have a painting weekend sometime this summer to put the finishing touches on the house. We have a good contractor for the job and Norwood and I will supervise the activity, so we should not have any thing get past us.

We estimate the cost to be $ 75,000.00. This should cover the whole job. Believe it or not there is actually some stuff that has held up since the work in 2007. I have thrown is $2500 to get us started, so everybody who can afford to give something please do so.

Alan Haworth is the EC member responsible for fundraising for the House Corporation.

AEKDB
Joe Abel

Editor’s note: Use the Donate button on Iotachapter.org to make a credit card donation, or mail a donation via check to Alan Haworth, 9135 Drumcliffe Ln., Dallas, TX 75231

Stage 1 of House Renovation: Demolition Weekend, May 21st

Iota Alumni News interviewed Brother Erik Harpst by email:

What’s the tear down all about?

“We will completely remodel the kitchen and upstairs bathroom among other things. We need all the hands that we can possibly get. All composites and historical items will be removed from the house and put in climate controlled storage. This will be the first of many work weekends until August. We have a contractor to handle the big stuff.”

When will it begin?

“We will begin tear out on Saturday May 21.”

Why are we doing it?

“Our old house is a half of a century old. It needs to be in the shape worthy of a chapter that is one of the oldest in the Kappa Sigma Fraternity, and ready for a couple hundred brothers and their friends to attend a historical celebration.”

Who’s in charge?

“Joe Abel is the Committee Chair of remodeling and will supervise the effort.”

Where should we stay?

“Suggested hotels in Georgetown are Country Inn and Suites and Comfort Suites.”

Reminder: Alumni Weekend, April 15-17

UPDATE 4/15: Weekend Schedule

Friday Night: House is open for alumni & guests. No formal activities.

Saturday:

10:00 AM: Welcome – enjoy coffee & donuts at the House

11:00 AM: Alumni / Active Meeting, planning for Iota’s 125th, house improvements, state of the chapter, report from the alumni association

Noon: Lunch – please plan on making a contribution for lunch, suggested at $15.

2:00 PM: Softball (see link below)

8:00 PM: House open for alumni and guests.

The Alumni Weekend XXXVIII (38 for those who don’t read Roman) is this weekend. April 15-17, 2011. We will start the ball rolling for the 125 Year Anniversary (November 4-6) and have tons of fun. Saturday as usual is the big day, great for the family, with with BBQ, softball, and sunshine.

See you at the House!

See who’s coming on the Facebook event page for Alumni Weekend.

Softball Field: Southwest Williamson County Regional Park (Address: 3005 County Road 175, Leander, TX, 78641)

Homecoming 2010, Annual Alumni Meeting

The annual meeting of the Iota Alumni Association will take place at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 6, 2010 at the Kappa Sigma House. We encourage all active and alumni brothers to attend.

Here’s the Full Weekend Schedule: [Invitation for Iota Friends & Brothers] [SU Official Schedule]

Saturday, November 6th:

  • 10 a.m.: Coffee & Donuts
  • 11 a.m.: Homecoming Parade
  • 11:30 -1:00: Lunch on the Mall (tix from SU)
  • 3:00 p.m.: Active/Alumni Chapter Meeting
  • 4:00 p.m.: Open House, The Sig House is 50 years old this year!
  • 7:00 p.m.: Dinner at the House
  • 10:00 p.m.: Homecoming Party for Alumni

Sunday, November 7th:

  • 10:00 a.m.: Coffee & Donuts, before you head from home

Also, the actives have published a Fall Newsletter on the status active chapter: [Fall 2010 Iota Chapter Newsletter]

Homecoming and Reunion Weekend Website

The Wake for Bruce

Join friends and fraternity brothers for a final festive good-bye to our dear friend Bruce W. Barrick.

This event will be:

Saturday October 23,2010
4:00 PM – we run out of stories

ARTZ RIB HOUSE
2330 South Lamar
(close to Hwy. 71)
(512) 442-8283

Information: Erik Harpst
(281) 433-3198

Update 10/17:
We are trying to get a head count .  Please email, text, or call ASAP. Forward this to anyone who might be interested. Erik’s cell:281-433-3198

On the Passing of our Brother Bruce W. Barrick

UPDDTE III, 7/20 – below
UPDATE II, 7/16 – below
UPDATE I, 7/15 – below

The Iota Alumni Association is saddened to report on the death of Bruce Barrick.

Available accounts report that he was found in his home in Austin today and appears to have died of natural causes.

We will keep this post updated as information on services becomes available.

____________

I encourage everyone from our community of friends and brothers to add comments to this post. Share your memories as we all prepare to say a final goodbye to our Brother Bruce.

UPDATE III

Here is the updated information on Bruce Barrick’s funeral:

AUSTIN

Visitation: Wednesday, July 21, 2010 5:00-7:00 pm
Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home
2620 South Congress Ave.
Austin, Texas 78704
512-442-1446

Funeral: Thursday, July 22nd, 2010 10:00 am
University United Methodist Church
2409 Guadalupe Street
Austin, Texas 78705

HOUSTON

Visitation: Friday July 23, 2010 4:00-6:00 pm
George H. Lewis & Sons Funeral Home
1010 Bering Drive
Houston, Texas 77057
713-789-3005

Funeral: Saturday, July 24, 2010 10:00 am
Glenwood Cemetery (Grave site service only)
2525 Washington Blvd.
Houston, Texas 77007
713-864-7886

UPDATE II – via Erik Harpst

Bruce’s service will now be at University Methodist Church, Brother Chuck Merrill’s church. In case you are unaware, Brother Merrill was a longtime pastor at this church and a huge supporter of Iota and all it stands for. Chuck passed away a few years ago, and after his death, Bruce began an SU scholarship fund in Chuck’s name.

Austin: Thursday July 22nd 10:00 am University Methodist Church on Guadalupe
Houston: Saturday July 24th 10:00 am George H. Lewis and Sons Funeral Home
The only possible change with the Houston date would be a time change from 10:00
to 9:00 am.We should have final updates by Monday.

I will be sending important info and updates to the official Iota web site at iotachapter.org . Check it out, there are great photos of Bruce and posts from brothers. Feel free to leave your own thoughts or memories of Bruce.

AEKDB
Erik Harpst

UPDATE I

Brothers and friends,

There are two Barrick services TENTATIVELY planned. Bruce will attend both of them.

Austin: Thursday, July 22, 2010. 10:00 am, University Christian Church, at UT (see UPDATED II above)

Houston: Saturday, July 24, 2010. 10:00 am, George H. Lewis & Sons funeral home

Bruce requested a wake. Bruce’s 60th birthday bash was at a beer hall in Austin. Maybe a similar bash would be appropriate. When it gets cooler. Like September. Seriously.

We are looking for pictures of Bruce for photo boards to be displayed at the funerals. If you have some, please email them to this address ASAP.

Bruce deserves to honored in the same way that he insisted his deceased brothers were honored. He will get that, and more.

When details are confirmed it will be passed on.

AEKDB
Erik Harpst

Bruce Barrick SU Homecoming 2006

Bruce introduces the late Rev. Chuck Merrill

Bruce and Norwood

Bernard Schleien, Living More for Less

Thankfully Bernard had many more interesting things to say than I had prepared Olla verdequestions to ask… I’ll get better as we go I promise!

A few follow-up questions I missed: 1) Why isn’t Peru Bernard’s favorite soccer team? 2) What kind of art does he like to collect? 3) Just how did he break his arm anyway?

For answers to these questions, you’ll have to ask Bernard himself.

Please enjoy our second Iota Alumni Profile.

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Bernard Schleien (Pledge – Spring 94)

After graduating with a major in history, he founded Latin America For Less in 2001 and has ever since devoted his professional life to building memories of Peru and Latin America for all. He has learned that there is much more to life than the ever so constant work day, and is one of seven founding members of Peru Futbol – a Peruvian NGO that aims to bring thousands of Peruvian children out of poverty, while instilling values through the teachings of soccer. Bernard has a love for Peru (especially Cuzco), like so many, and finds it extremely gratifying at the end of each day that he is able to sell something that he truly believes in. He has lived in Cuzco for 6 months, and goes there at least 4 times a year. Other interesting factoids about Bernard: Seinfeld fanatic, Cienciano del Cuzco soccer club team rooter, independent rock music, biking, creative writing, cooking and eating out, micro-brewed beer (beer builds better brothers).

Raheem M. Sarcar, Emerging IT Leader

This evening, I had the pleasure of interviewing my long time friend and pledge brother Raheem Sarcar via Skype.

Inspired by the initiative and social media entrepreneurship of Raheem, this post kicks off what I hope will become an enduring and valued series of “Professional Profiles” of Iota Chapter alumni.Raheem Sarcar_IT Leaders Today

In this recording, you’ll get the story of Raheem’s name change straight from the source. It’s a really cool story – something this PB was really glad to learn. You’ll also learn about Raheem’s work in IT and his new social media project, IT Leaders Today (http://itleaderstoday.com/).

This audio recording a.k.a. “podcast” runs about 16 minutes. It’s basically unedited. Today’s storms in North Texas caused a lost connection you’ll notice about five minutes into the interview. Enjoy and please post your comments, feedback, and ideas for future alumni profiles.

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Raheem Sarcar (pledge class – Spring 95) is a systems administrator at a non-profit in New York City. In his spare time, he runs a website about leadership and management in information technology called IT Leaders Today (http://itleaderstoday.com). His interests include technology, entrepreneurship and travel. He can be reached at raheemm1@yahoo.com.

Notes from Alumni Weekend

Softball Score:
Actives – 14, Alumni – 16

Alumni Advisor-elect:
Timothy Stapleton

Graduating Seniors:
Enjoyed an ice-water bath
Awarded “A History of Kappa Sigma” (The Pharr History)

New Capital Challenge for House Repairs:
$1,000 match challenge from Brother Dan Middlebrooks – contact Alan Haworth to lend your support.

Softball_2010
photo courtesy Heather Hanson