  Our Omega Mu brothers who served in the military are cherished and constant fraternal friends, and we would like to say thank you for the steadfast, purposeful commitment you made to our nation to defend those four freedoms we all believe in: “Freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear.” For those brothers who were killed in defense of these freedoms, they will always occupy a consecrated place in our linked fraternal heart because they exemplify the idea of superlative commitment, strength, and fortitude for the good to the end itself. The greatness of their collective purpose and will, on our nation’s behalf, will never be forgotten. By their “clear-eyed faith and fearless heart,” these brothers have left us a fraternal legacy that echoes what we often say about Omega Mu Fijis: “Perseverance and determination are omnipotent.” Their code of integrity, courage, duty, responsibility, and self-sacrifice on behalf of our nation is a powerful legacy that we will always be proud of as Omega Mu Fijis. Whether it was at New Orleans, Red River, Fort Blakely, Marianna, San Juan Hill, Santiago de Cuba, Chateau-Thierry, Verdun, El Guettar, Elba, Monte Della Vedetta, the Battle of the Bulge, Rabaul, Inchon, Pusan, Chosin Reservoir, Pork Chop Hill, Hue, Easter Offensive, Phu Cat, The Iron Triangle, Hamburger Hill, la Drang Valley, Bien Hoa, Khe Sanh, Rumaila, Al-Batin, Medina Ridge, Kabul, Kandahar, our Omega Mu brothers have demonstrated devotion to duty in defense of freedom and liberty. They are the stability of our nation, and we, the Omega Mu brotherhood, revere, honor, and salute their persevering and determined spirit within our great nation and our historic brotherhood. We will always honor the heroism of all of our brothers who have served in the armed forces from the Civil War to the present. Thank you. Omega Mu Veteran James Van Valkenburgh, 1965  Omega Mu Years  
Omega Mu Housemothers Mrs. Tate and Mrs. Blaisdell      
   1962 Snow Sculpture  1963 Snow Sculpture   1965 Snow Sculpture    "Games, stories, and presents made the evening fun for children of all ages."       University of Maine Athlete          Football Team Inducted in 2023  "Maine's 1961 team was one of the best in UM history."  Omega Mu Fiji Brothers on the 1961 Football Team  James Van Valkenburgh  David H. Crabtree  John R. Roberts    James taking the oath of enlistment into the United States Navy, and he became a Grumman E-1 Tracer pilot.   The Death of Omega Mu Brother Paul L. Stimpson In Vietnam  Omega Mu Brother, Paul L. Stimpson James Van Valkenburgh was a very close friend of Paul Stimpson, and after Paul Stimpson died on April 22, 1967, near Bien Hoa, South Vietnam, James Van Valkenburgh was personally contacted to provide military escort for Paul's casket from Dover Air Force Base to Portland for his funeral.  Paul L. Stimpson  The bottom of the tombstone reads: "Think not the longest life is the happiest: That which is best employed, doth man the most honor."  U.S.S. Hornet To Vietnam 1968-1969   From 1968-1969, Lieutenant Van Valkenburgh was deployed on the U.S.S. Hornet stationed at Yankee Station off of North Vietnam, a location that allowed air craft carriers to conduct air strikes on North Vietnam, as well as to provide surveillance for ground troops, and the accurate vectors for enemy targets.  U.S.S. Hornet to North Korea 1969  In response to North Korea shooting down a Navy EC-121 by a MIG 21, the U.S.S. Hornet was one of the ships sent to the Sea of Japan.        1969 Apollo 11 Landing On The Moon         James Van Valkenburgh's plane was the primary recovery aircraft to locate the Apollo 11 capsule upon its reentry and splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.                  “What if the space be long and wide, That parts us from our brother’s side A soul-joined chain unites our band, And memory links us hand in hand.” (Phi Gamma Delta fraternity song)   Fraternally,
Chip Chapman, ’82 Perge
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Truthfully, there is no fraternal brotherhood quite like Omega Mu at the University of Maine. We are proud of our history, and we are proud of the impressive number of fraternal brothers who played on many University of Maine athletic teams. With conviction and commitment, our Omega Mu athlete brothers brought a great deal of joy and satisfaction to the university community, creating many wonderful memories since the first baseball team was established at Maine State College in the 1870's. The worked together for the success of each Maine team, and the overall civic good of the University of Maine. The sheer number of Omega Mu athlete brothers is an unqualified triumph for the University of Maine. They each gave their best efforts on each team, and what they achieved perfectly compliments what we fraternally believe: drive and determination. It is a heady athletic legacy. Accordingly, their accomplishments claim our fraternal attention and respect. For the eminence of their athletic success; and, above all, for being our Omega Mu brothers, we are proud. Therefore, in the linked soul and spirit of our long fraternal history, we gratefully remember and celebrate our QTV and Omega Mu brothers who participated on many varsity athletic teams at the University of Maine. Their sacrifice of time was worth the effort for them and the student body at the University of Maine who watched them play. They created many warm memories since the early 1870’s. For the eminence of their athletic success; and, above all, for being our Omega Mu brothers, we are all very proud. Thoreau said it best: “What a difference, whether in all your walks, you meet only strangers, or in one house is one who knows you, and whom you know. To have a brother…How rare these things are.” How true that is, and we remain that way to this day. That is a proud fraternal legacy. Omega Mu Athlete Godfrey L. Soderstrom, 1904  Omega Mu Years             "Monaghan's Orchestra of Ellsworth furnished music for the reception at the Phi Gamma Delta house on Tuesday afternoon."      Reunion      University of Maine Athlete         "G. L. Soderstrom....Captain"        From multiple angles, our Q.T.V. and Omega Mu brothers have enriched the civic life at the University of Maine, and we are fortunate to have had many hardworking, talented brothers throughout our history. The balance between our athletic involvement, intellectual pursuits, and campus involvement is compelling. What they accomplished in their respective pursuits at the university constitutes a wonderful achievement in our fraternal history. There efforts were good and laudable, and there efforts represented the very best of our core values of persistence and determination. It is, believe me, a wonderful achievement, on the part of generations of Omega Mu brothers, for the respective gifts that they gave for the civic good at the University of Maine. In our historically calm, customary fashion, 149 years and growing, it was a rich yield for the common good of the Maine community, All of them, through their various commitments and endeavors within the University of Maine community, improved and brightened up the quality of life of the university community with their enthusiasm and dedication to their respective University of Maine teams, organizations, and clubs. They each had uniques strengths as actors, artists, musicians, athletes, and journalists, and they all embodied the shared commitment to do something well for the University of Maine community. Fraternally integrity demands that, and we are proud of all of these brothers. Over the years, our Omega Mu brothers have been involved in many musical productions at the University of Maine, and praise for them is merited. With the same unconditional focus, diligence and discipline as our athlete brothers, our musically focused brothers, through many decades, brought richness ands joy to the University of Maine community because of their involvement on various bands, orchestras, and choral groups. Their commitment was compelling, and the quality and depth of their art form enriched the lives of countless generations of students at the university, as well as many towns and cities throughout Maine and New England. Generously, with never-ending joy and inspiration, they always gave of their time and talent for the good in all of their musical performances. The embodied our old fraternal truth in being perseverant and determined in being faithful and generous with their beautiful musical gifts. Our Omega Mu Maine music brothers, just like our athlete and Maine Masque brothers, are an enriching testament to what it means to be a fraternity brother in Omega Mu. We remain proud of their dedication, creativity, and commitment in adding such a rich angle in our fraternal history at the University of Maine. Above all, what a superb gift to give anyone: music.  "Leader of Band.....Godfrey L. Soderstrom"  "G. L. Soderstrom, '04, Leader"      "Principal Musician,....Godfrey L. Soderstrom"       "Second Tenor..,Godfrey S. Soderstrom"  "The quartet composed of Messrs. Morton, Stewart, Baker, and Soderstrom brought forth much applause."  “What if the space be long and wide, That parts us from our brother’s side A soul-joined chain unites our band, And memory links us hand in hand.” (Phi Gamma Delta fraternity song)    Fraternally,
Chip Chapman, ’82 Perge From multiple angles, our Q.T.V. and Omega Mu brothers have enriched the civic life at the University of Maine, and we are fortunate to have had many hardworking, talented brothers throughout our history. The balance between our athletic involvement, intellectual pursuits, and campus involvement is compelling. What they accomplished in their respective pursuits at the university constitutes a wonderful achievement in our fraternal history. There efforts were good and laudable, and there efforts represented the very best of our core values of persistence and determination. It is, believe me, a wonderful achievement, on the part of generations of Omega Mu brothers, for the respective gifts that they gave for the civic good at the University of Maine. In our historically calm, customary fashion, 149 years and growing, it was a rich yield for the common good of the Maine community, All of them, through their various commitments and endeavors within the University of Maine community, improved and brightened up the quality of life of the university community with their enthusiasm and dedication to there respective University of Maine teams, organizations, and club. They all did a good, positive job. Integrity demands that, and we are proud of all of these brothers. Over the years, many of our Omega Mu brothers held leadership roles on various University of Maine newspapers and yearbooks. Their contributions in creating something good in the university community cannot be overstated. "Good" does not, in reality, do justice in acknowledging their positive contributions. Each of them performed a vital function for the University of Maine community. They had a willingness to work, the willingness to accept challenges, in order to be focused, informative journalist in order to create daily newspapers and yearbooks that were interesting and informative. Their leadership style was authentic, and their generous, laborious work deserve praise and recognition in our brotherhood. They collected information, organized information, checked and re-checked facts, shared ideas, read and re-read every article, and proofed and re-proofed every page in the yearbook. They always gave of their time and talent in attending to each of these elements in order to write commendable, informative, and properly edited newspaper articles, and in sifting through thousands of pictures and thoughtfully crafting, shaping, and editing yearbooks. Their hard work, in turn, was to produce something, whether it was the university newspaper or yearbook, that was well-written, well-edited, and journalistically constructive, interesting, meaningful, and significant, in the short or long term. With drive and persistence, what our Q.T.V. and Omega Mu brothers achieved, in their numerous leadership roles on various newspapers and yearbooks, was complementary to everything we fraternally applaud for all of or brothers who were positively involved in the University of Maine community. What they achieved had real, enduring worth and value for the University of Maine community. They were indispensable. They made lasting contributions to the social well-being of the university community in keeping students well-informed and enlightened. These Omega Mu brothers embodied our old fraternal truth in being perseverant and determined in being faithful and generous with their gifts. In other words, our journalist brothers are a testament to our collective fraternal spirit of genuine integrity, industry, dedication, creativity, and commitment in adding to our long-standing history of civic engagement at the University of Maine. The noble ideals of our linked fraternal brotherhood started in 1848 and 1874, and our fraternal wheels have not stopped turning in continuing to create a generationally great brotherhood, and there will not be a breakdown. With enthusiasm and dedication, we will continue to build upon our unique fraternal legacy at the University of Maine for many decades come! It is exciting and rewarding to know that we will continue to have a great fraternal future because we have an undisputed claim to durable greatness in being the oldest, most dedicated fraternal brotherhood at the University of Maine. Again, again, and again, we have always gotten on with the job of continuing to be the standard of fraternal excellence. And so, the passage of our 149 fraternal years will never stop us from honoring the rich legacy of those years as we look fraternally forward to the rich promise of our fraternal future! Perge. Omega Mu Portrait Samuel H. Clapp, 1875  Q. T. V. Years  Q. T. V. Brothers Living In Orono, 1872-1875        Q. T. V. Class of 1875  "The first fraternity organized at the college."  "Q. T. V. 1874."    "It is fair to say that as a rule the class was a fairly hard-working body of students."  Nicknames  "Clapp was plain Sam"   Q. T. V. Brother "Colesworthy, Poet"  Q. T. V. Brother "Jordan, Prophet"     "At the close of the exercise we smoked the pipe of peace, shook hands, and since that day some members of the class have never met."   Samuel H. Class was the Corresponding Secretary for Q. T. V.   "S. H. Clapp, Corresponding Secretary"       "Editors: George M. Shaw, Samuel H. Clapp Samuel W. Gould"   
 “What if the space be long and wide, That parts us from our brother’s side A soul-joined chain unites our band, And memory links us hand in hand.” (Phi Gamma Delta fraternity song)    Fraternally,
Chip Chapman, ’82 Perge Our Omega Mu brothers who served in the military are cherished and constant fraternal friends, and we would like to say thank you for the steadfast, purposeful commitment you made to our nation to defend those four freedoms we all believe in: “Freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear.” For those brothers who were killed in defense of these freedoms, they will always occupy a consecrated place in our linked fraternal heart because they exemplify the idea of superlative commitment, strength, and fortitude for the good to the end itself. The greatness of their collective purpose and will, on our nation’s behalf, will never be forgotten. By their “clear-eyed faith and fearless heart,” these brothers have left us a fraternal legacy that echoes what we often say about Omega Mu Fijis: “Perseverance and determination are omnipotent.” Their code of integrity, courage, duty, responsibility, and self-sacrifice on behalf of our nation is a powerful legacy that we will always be proud of as Omega Mu Fijis. Whether it was at New Orleans, Red River, Fort Blakely, Marianna, San Juan Hill, Santiago de Cuba, Chateau-Thierry, Verdun, El Guettar, Elba, Monte Della Vedetta, the Battle of the Bulge, Rabaul, Inchon, Pusan, Chosin Reservoir, Pork Chop Hill, Hue, Easter Offensive, Phu Cat, The Iron Triangle, Hamburger Hill, la Drang Valley, Bien Hoa, Khe Sanh, Rumaila, Al-Batin, Medina Ridge, Kabul, Kandahar, our Omega Mu brothers have demonstrated devotion to duty in defense of freedom and liberty. They are the stability of our nation, and we, the Omega Mu brotherhood, revere, honor, and salute their persevering and determined spirit within our great nation and our historic brotherhood. We will always honor the heroism of all of our brothers who have served in the armed forces from the Civil War to the present. Thank you. Omega Mu Veteran Stanley G. Phillips, 1917  Omega Mu Years          
""Amid the crackling of logs and peanut shell, stories were told and enthusiasm for the distant Frog Pond Scrap was aroused."  Ralph "Froggy" Pond  Preston M. Hall About 12 p. m. the Smoker wound up with a sing, three cheers for 1915 and a return three cheer for Phi Gamma Delta re-echoed from the porch. Br. P. M. Hall, '15 acted as Toastmaster."   "On Friday, February 4, the Phi Gams will have sleigh ride to Eddington. Supper will be served at Ward's farm."  "The Phi Gams held a faculty smoker to which the professors of the University were invited. The evening was spent with smokes, cards, and refreshments." 
   University of Maine Athlete          World War I      Stanley G. Phillips was a private in the 6th United States Engineers during World War I, and they served in six campaigns: Somme, Champagne - Marne, Aisne - Marne, St. Mihiel, Meuse - Argonne, Champagne.   United States Army 6th Engineers Patch Pictures of United States Engineers in France during World War I       6th Engineers moving pontoons.  6th Engineers building a bridge. Citation for Meritorious Service And Devotion To Duty    “What if the space be long and wide, That parts us from our brother’s side A soul-joined chain unites our band, And memory links us hand in hand.” (Phi Gamma Delta fraternity song)    Fraternally,
Chip Chapman, ’82 Perge Omega Mu Voice John Kenealy, 1983  Omega Mu Voice John M. Kenealy, 1983 For those of us who came of age in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, Deliverance was an iconic movie. So, it was no surprise that we would give our end of school year canoe trips that name. The trips were typically three to four day affairs on the West Branch of the Union River out by the Airline Road.     On the first trip was Jeff Brinch, Matt Smith, and myself. Matt, or Scud, as we call him, canoed solo in a cut down canoe, while Brinchy and I used my old, keeled, aluminum canoe. Not the best river canoe on the planet!
Jeff Brinch and Matt Smith One of the highlights of this trip, besides the three pound brown trout that Scud landed, was the beginning of a tradition: SPAM Stew. Brinchy’s dad had served overseas in WW II, and it seems, one of the most ubiquitous foods served, was SPAM, which is rumored, stands for “Something Posing As Meat.”   It wasn’t just the stew, it was how it had to be made. Sure, the ingredients were the same as beef stew, with the substitution of SPAM. It was a very thick stew, as we would cook it down over the fire, then, the key was to mash it all together with, at first, a Mountain Nectar bottle, but, on later trips, a Bourbon bottle. 
Joel Gardiner and Jeff Farnsworth “Another Deliverance trip comes to mind. On this trip, were myself, Scud, Joel “Sluggo” Gardner, and Jeff “Mr. Wizard” Farnsworth. There were a few highlights to this trip. One was waking up covered with 2-3 inches of snow. Since it was before bug season, we had just covered ourselves in a tarp over our sleeping bags. We were expecting just a heavy dew. We got a little more than that.   Another highlight, was one morning, Scud and I got up extra early, and went out fishing. We had a glorious morning, and kept a few trout for breakfast. Wizard and Sluggo had slept in, so we got the fire going. They didn’t stir until the bacon was cooking. All of a sudden, we noticed Sluggo’s nose begin to wiggle as the scent of bacon wafted over our campsite. Next, we heard him say, “Wooo, Bacon!” Then, he and Wizard were up and ready to eat! On this same trip, though he denies it to this day, Wiz took a wiz in a spring by one of our campsites
  After college, I had returned to New York State for about ten years, but on my return, we re-introduced the Deliverance trips with Andy Bradford, his Dad, and Greg “Scooter” Scott. We floated the East Branch of the Penobscot a couple of times, The Big Black River, among other trips. After a hiatus, we have introduced a June fishing trip to the Jackman region. Phi Gam is not for college days alone.”  Greg Scott  "Phi Gam is not for college days alone." John Kenealy  “What if the space be long and wide, That parts us from our brother’s side A soul-joined chain unites our band, And memory links us hand in hand.” (Phi Gamma Delta fraternity song)   Fraternally,
Chip Chapman, ’82 Perge |
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