  Omega Mu Voice Wayne A. Robbins, 1965  Wayne A. Robbins Omega Mu, 1965 Fall of 1962: I was one of 20 pledges trying to make sense of all the things that were Omega Mu and brotherhood. One brother stood out to me as he was a returnee after several gap years. Doug Johns reentered as a junior at age 26, I think, as a psychology-art major. He was from New Jersey but had spent several years testing Mercury outboards in Florida. He drove to Orono in a tricked out 1954 Chevy convertible that he had put in a ’57 Chevy V-8 and a four-speed floor shift. The paint job was 17 coats of candy-apple red paint. In it he had everything he owned which was not much. To help finance his stay he became the kitchen steward and claimed the small storeroom in the basement across from the pantry closet for a store where he sold snacks, smokes and soda.
Since he didn’t really know any of the brothers, a fellow zobie became good friends with him. Leon even supplied matched lumber to redo the storeroom. Leon’s father had owned the big lumber company in Fort Kent. He was a jack-of-all-trades who could carpenter, work on autos, design projects wheel and deal with the best of them. As an artist, he would draw a Fiji man in different configuration on tee shirts and sweatshirts for parties and other events for 50 cents or a dollar. He designed and built homecoming displays on the lawn like the one made from cow bones and a big paper mache Fiji man eight feet tall and a stew pot. In the spring Doug another guy and I purchased scuba-diving equipment and taught ourselves how to dive on weekends at Bar Harbor. Even with wet suits the April water was so cold we couldn’t feel the mouth pieces and hands became painful beyond endurance after just a few minutes. Because of Doug’s idea we could make money capturing marine specimens, he ended up spending the summer with my folks and me trying to scrounge a summer’s wage out of the ocean. The specimen operation did not pan out so we did everything from raking sea moss, bailing out fishing boats at the factory wharf in Sebasco, selling driftwood on route one. He finally took a job in construction, and I became a painter in a factory in Bath.  The fall of 1963 brought some problems. Social pro made rushing a very difficult process. No parties in the house and many of us were too young to hit the local watering holes; we had little to offer except good food. We had a new cook that just happened to be a woman who kind of adopted us. She would make 12 loaves of bread at a time and had pot with a pound of melted butter on the back of the grill with a little paint pastry brush in it. When you painted the hot bread with the butter it would run down your fingers. We all gained a couple of pounds that first semester. Marshal Stern ran for campus mayor as Hugh Hefner and there were scantily clad bunnies scampering around the house and campus. The campaign was loads of fun, and he was an excellent mayor. Get the rabbit habit was the motto that resounded all over campus. The next year we helped Bob Harrison run as Snuffy Smith but just did not have the right stuff.   Bob Harrison   “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, 1982 Perge!
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 Anthony J. Flaherty Anthony J. Flaherty Omega Mu When I got to Orono in August of '66, I was looking forward to playing football. The first several days of practice gave me several first impressions, of my future Fiji brethren, and of myself. I should take a second to note that the squad picture of the Freshman Football team included in Dewey's musings was missing Mike O'Leary.  Mike O'Leary, middle.  Mike had blown out his knee a few days prior to the squad picture, and was recovering, I believe, from ACL surgery in the Infirmary. Mike and I had been playing next to each other on the right side of the defensive line. We would commiserate about the heat, the black flies, our mutual thirst for cold brew, et cetera. We would also bitch about a conditioning drill that was a favorite of Coach Bob Pickett's where one had to stand on one foot, reach behind with one hand and grab the opposite foot, and hop one-footed backward and forward and side-to-side for what seemed like forever, and then do the same thing on the other leg. It was murder. The day O'Leary got hurt, the first day in preseason, we did nor do that drill. Mike always said that he thought that not doing the drill somehow set him up for his injury. That was a pretty good bunch of future Zobes. O'Leary went on to start at defensive end for a couple of varsity years before breaking his leg. John Kimball was about 180 pounds of gristle and spit at linebacker, who somehow or other managed to get to the ball carrier every time while looking like he was never in a hurry, and tough.  John Kimball John Collins looked like a perfect combination of an Eagle Scout and an altar boy, until it came time to hit someone.
John Collins And, of course, Dulac. Not a big guy, by any means, but one of the best football players I ever knew. He was undersized, half-blind, and I have a memory of Dewey wearing a pair of black rubber 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle' styled goggles that he wore until contact lens technology caught up to his vision, and lean and mean for a defensive lineman. He was fundamentally perfect. He would fire off the ball, low, diagnose what was going on and get in the middle of the play, every time, all the while giving away 30-50 pounds to whomever was trying, notice I said “trying” to block him. Future captain of the Bears. 
 Paul Dulac I remember our first game was against Bridgton Academy. It was a warm, humid late September afternoon. They were fucking HUGE. I think their offensive and defensive lines averaged over 250#. They kind of had their way with us for the first half, but wilted in the second half. It was 14-0 at the half, and we beat them 21-14. I remember my life-long best friend, a guy named Mike Doyle, played nose tackle for Bridgton that game, head up over Paul Pooler. After the game, he said that he'd never been hit so low playing football. I got moved from defense to offense in the second half, and never got back on the defensive side of the ball again. We went on to play Colby, Bowdoin, and the BU freshmen. We lost to BU, I think by a score of 14-6. My biggest memory of that game was when future San Francisco 49er All-Pro Bruce Taylor intercepted a little pass over the middle. There was no place for him to run, no place at all, except right at me. He was literally two feet away from me when I made the mistake of putting my head down to make the tackle. I still don't know how he evaded me, but he did. I never touched him.  Anyhow, the season served to humble me as a football player. And then a Perfect Storm of personal shortcomings hit me: lack of discipline, laziness, monumental immaturity, and, I had no drive whatsoever to do any of the work it might have taken, maybe, to make me better. After spring football, where I got my ass handed to me on a daily basis, reinforced everything I suspected about my chances going forward, I gave up football, but the friends I made on the field, in the dorms, and within the Castle served me in good stead.  I never got to play with John Rhodes. My football days were over by the time he got to UMO. But he's a story unto himself, another undersized defensive lineman. I am not sure he never weighed over 200 pounds, but he was tough beyond description, and an athlete. The story was that on the first day of varsity preseason, everyone had to run a mile. If a player could not do a mile in 6:00 or less, he had to come out before practice every day until he could make that time. In the year in question, John Rhodes had the fasted time on the squad. I think he ran about 5:20; a defensive lineman, which is astounding enough until you factor in that he smoked at least a pack of unfiltered Camels a day. One of my all-time favorite guys, always smiling. Well, that's that. Sorry to be long-winded, but this brought back some good times. Perge! Flaherty  Richard M. Paganucci Omega Mu, 1971 I wanted to add a few words on my dear long departed friends, Rick ‘Dusty’ and John Rhodes and a couple of other points, which will be rather long & convoluted so I beg your Indulgence.  I have to start with my life long friend, George Paul Dulac - ‘Dewey’, one of the nicest people on the planet. He and I go back to third grade in grammar school, St Mary’s in Augusta, Maine. Sports were a big part of our lives, and we could not wait to play football in high school. Dewey even played basketball while at St Mary’s. He was a rebounding animal as you could imagine.  Dewey was a year older and got a head start, but we played football together for a couple of years in high school. He was astonishing. As Tony noted, he was small for his position but quick as a cat and strong as a bull. After my senior year, I was being recruited by U-Maine and went up to Orono for a visit. Dewey was my guide and introduced me to Tony Flaherty, Mike O’Leary and Paul Pooler. These guys inspired me to want to join Phi Gam when I came back in the fall. Now to the Rhodes boys: I met Dusty the first practice of freshmen football. He was a gregarious guy and we hit it off. After that practice, we walked out of the locker room, it was early evening, we stood there and chatted. We said now what? We looked at each other and said, “Pats”.  We walked into Pats, underage as we were, and who do we see but Tommy Savage and John Perkins, so we joined them for the evening. It was a fun time for two frosh sitting in a bar all night with two senior Fiji’s. That was the start of a four year relationship, imbibing or working with the Farnsworth family.
Dusty and I we’re planning to live in the house our sophomore year with John Nale and Tommy Richardson. Dusty called me during the summer with a change of plans. His older brother, John, ‘Rocky’, was getting out of the Marines that summer and planned to enroll at UM, so our arrangements changed.  Tom Richardson, Mike Soloby, John Nale, Richard Paganucci. John graduated from HS in 1964, enrolled Springfield College but left soon after and joined the marines in late 64, early 65. He left the highlands of South Vietnam in July, 1968 as a Marine Staff Sgt. John was a wonderful guy, the real deal.  He could not play ball that year due to admin issues. When he arrived in Orono, he slept on the floor because he was not used to a bed. John’s stories were classic and hysterical. He always used humor in his stories of his days in Vietnam. As a result, Dusty and I roomed together during preseason and road games as John frothed at the mouth to play. John and I became fast friends as he did with everyone he met. Dusty left school after our sophomore year, so John and I roomed together during preseason football and road games for two years. We had a blast together. Coaches stopped checking us for curfew during preseason - they knew we were not in the room. As Tony indicated, the first day of preseason everyone had to meet physical requirements, including the dreaded 6 min mile. JR smoked more than I but he was incredible. He did the mile in record time. Unfortunately, I had to show for the 5:30 AM runs until completed. John became a starter at linebacker where he was a key player for the two years he played. He barely weighed 185 lbs, but he was tough as nails. After school, John went to law school and later became mayor of Westfield, MA. Sadly, Dusty died in 1984 and preceded his beloved big brother as John died a few years ago due to exposure to Agent Orange while in Vietnam. John touched a lot of people and was loved by all. He was was an incredible guy. Perge!  Jim McLean James D. McLean, Jr. Omega Mu, 1972 At John Rhodes memorial services the stories did not stop. He was remembered as an accomplished practical joker, which was guaranteed to keep the entire town in stitches. When I went through the tollbooth, I asked the toll taker how to get to the cemetery. She asked whose service I was attending. When I said John Rhodes, she talked about John for five minutes; not giving a hoot that there was a long line of cars piled up behind mine. John, from his teaching, mayoral and DA days was a much-loved legend in Westfield. She was furious at the current mayor that he had not ordered the flags in Westfield to be flown at half-mast in honor of John. John emailed Tom Richardson and I many times in the final years of his life. He never talked about his illness, which, according to the people I met at the funeral, was devastating. In his last e-mail to me, he spoke about how he, Tom and I should plan a cross-country drive to California as a sort of last hurrah adventure.   He is buried in the same plot as Dusty in the Catholic cemetery in Westfield. I really miss John. We were, indeed, very fortunate to have the great gift of knowing both he and Dusty. John was scouting in Cambodia one night and a NVA sentry stood on his hand for several hours guarding the NVA camp John was observing, and fortunately, John remained undiscovered. He was also sent to the Southern Philippines as part of an elite team to quell Muslim/communist insurgents prior to a state visit by LBJ. He said the fighting conditions there were even more dangerous and difficult in Viet Nam and Cambodia. After graduation John returned to his native Westfield, Ma. to teach. He quickly was elected mayor of Westfield, and as one of the US' youngest mayors, was named Outstanding Young Man in America for cleaning the mob out of Westfield. He later earned a law degree and served as DA in Westfield and Springfield. John was a legend in Westfield and in Veterans circles in New England. He passed away due to the after effects of Agent Orange exposure, and is buried next to his biological brother and Black Bear teammate, as well as our FIJI brother Richard "Dusty" Rhodes, '71, who passed away to cancer in the late 1970’s.  John "Dusty" Rhodes “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 Daniel J. Cosgrove, 1971  Sam Cosgrove and Paul Pooler.  Bill Pond, Paul Lessard, Ted Crowell, Bob Doyle, Chris Eaton, Sam Cosgrove, Jack MacBrayne.  Chris Eaton, Paul Pooler, Mike O'Leary, younger brother, Sam Cosgrove.  1968 Omega Mu Pledges Jim Browne, first on the right Daniel J. Cosgrove Omega Mu, 1971 I roomed with Jim Browne in the Castle, for a period of time, and got to know him. He was quite the character. He lived life to the fullest. He studied seriously, and after graduation he returned to Vassalboro to help his family make a great golf course into a 36 hole gem. It now has the distinction of being the most visited golf course in Maine, hosting over 90 tournaments every season, with of the tournaments being run to raise money for cancer research and suicide prevention.   Jim moved on and became the head greens keeper at the Waterville Country Club. I used to drive by the maintenance building every morning while delivering milk, my summer job, to summer camps, and I would bang on the horn going about 40 tossing half pints of chocolate milk, and Jim would run out and catch every one like an NFL wide-out.  The Browne’s purchased the Lakewood Golf Course in Skowhegan, and Jim took over as manager. He never charged me a dime when playing there.       He married his long time girlfriend, Barbara, and they built a home in Vassalboro that, I believe, she still lives in to this day. One evening Jim didn’t feel well and got up in the middle of the night and went downstairs. Barb found him on the couch the next morning where he passed. Jim’s son runs the course in Skowhegan, and they both take after their dad, a solid pillar of a man! Omega Mu Voice James D. McLean, III, 1972  Jim McLean Omega Mu, 1972 I always remember Jim as a very happy guy, with a smile that could light up a room. While at Maine, Jim met his future wife, Barb, and they were inseparable. Jim always showed her the greatest of respect and affection. They were a model couple.
Jim was a real Mainer: few words and get right to the point. He was also very proud to be a FIJI.  Just how proud he was illustrated by one funny incident at a house meeting, where Jim had, sort of, nodded off to sleep. We were discussing an upcoming party, and it was being discussed that we hold it in the RAM, but it was noted that the acoustics might not be very good.
Jim woke up with a start, and with great enthusiasm, and sense of defending the honor of Phi Gamma Delta, loudly asked, "Who the heck are the Acoustics and why won't they play in the RAM?” Everybody in the chapter room cracked up. Once satisfied that no scurrilous band named the Acoustics had insulted FIJI, Jim grinned and went peacefully back to sleep.That was Jim. 100% there for the important stuff, and amiably unconcerned over the minor stuff. He was a very loyal guy to the house and to Barb. A gentleman's gentleman all the way, and one of the most naturally happy people I have ever met. He was a great father, husband, son, Omega Mu brother, and friend of many people. Omega Mu Voice Richard M. Paganucci, 1971  Tom Richardson, Mike Soloby, John Nale, and Dick Paganucci Richard M. Paganucci Omega Mu, 1971 Jim came to Fiji with Doyle Vautour, as they went to Hall-Dale High School together, and had been close friends for years. It was surprising because his two older brothers, Billy & Bobby, were Phi Mu’s. He was also a heck of a football player at Hall-Dale but chose not to play at Maine.    L-R: Leigh Morrill, John Collins; seated, Doyle Vautour; John Kimball, and behind John is Dusty Rhodes.  Phi Mu Delta “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 Games, Dances, and Formals 1891-1960 The final page of our 146th fraternal year will soon be upon us turn, and the first day of our 147th year will begin. The arc of our fraternal story continues to grow, and by all signs, undergraduate and graduate, forever linked, it is going to be an exceptional year. We all share in a fraternal history, a fraternal fellowship, that only grows richer in meaning as the years pass. We are all keenly aware of our history at the University of Maine, and we are, rightly so, proud of that history. Upon that fact there is no debate, and I am unequivocally sure that we are all thankful for whatever motivation, coincidence, circumstance, brought all of us to the front door of the Castle to start the pledging-initiatory journey to become Omega Mu brothers. In any case, thank God you went through the front door to become Omega Mu brothers, and in so doing becoming part of the historic lore of our fraternal brotherhood at Maine, steady and true since 1848, 1874, 1899, an unbroken fraternal chain. The brotherhood that we know and love today is the same as the love that the Q. T. V. brothers felt when they all sat together in front of the first Q. T. V. Chapter Hall. Our brotherhood is a living fraternal tradition, and it has been dear to the hearts of generations upon generations of men. And, as such, we are unique, and that is a wonderful testament to our collective resilience, perseverance and determination. With that being said, with our success in the past and present, we will continue to be a vibrant brotherhood 100 years from now. Alive and well, our rich fraternal heritage will continue. Be proud of that, that is all. The fraternal evidence of our rich history is a point of pride for all of us. Happily, we walked through the front door of the Castle. Happily, we all lived together in the Castle. Happily, and with deep gratitude, we return to the Castle to see life-long friends in the beautiful architectural space of our home, the Castle. Our Omega Mu brotherhood and the Castle, our historically great, durable, and indispensable union for joy through life. A simple truth that started with a simple Q.T.V. catchphrase: “Enjoyment, sociability, and the best interests of the brothers through life.” We are a tradition-grounded brotherhood, and we have been since our beginning. In various modified forms, traditions, rites, and events have shaped and defined the fraternal culture and fabric of our brotherhood since our Q.T.V. years. Good fraternal traditions have created our fraternal vitality and stability. Some of our traditions and events have been sincere and formal in nature, others had daily significance, and some have been nothing more than madcap escapades and easy-going pranks. They created a joyous fraternal spirit, in and out of the house, and unconditional fraternal love. Generations of brothers shared in all of them, and all of them were enriching. They showed the soul of our brotherhood, and they created a positive fraternal camaraderie, a bond of friendship, that does last for life. In truth, traditions positively influenced our fraternal life with unwavering spirit, and we remember each of them with a smile. Consequently, viewed through the long lens of history, that is an unqualified good thing, and it continues to be that way today. Our good fraternal life would simply not have been what it was without them, and there is no way of overstating that reality. With that in mind, our traditions are the source of our living memory, and one thing is historically clear about each of them: living in the Castle was not a dull life because of them. Most importantly, we did not discuss whether our traditions were relevant, old-fashioned, or out-dated. On the contrary, we cherished all of them. And, perhaps, it is not too far-reaching to say that they did shape us for the better; I believe they did. They certainly did not hurt, and we lived with a strong collective sense of well-being. Taken all together then, we all experienced something unique and enjoyable because of the fraternal rhythmic structure of our daily, monthly, and seasonal traditions. They were all equally important, and they all had a shaping expressive effect in making our fraternal life really enjoyable. Living in the Castle was a seminal time in our lives that we do not regret, nor should we, and generation to generation our fraternal traditions have been, and they will continue to be, the underlying thread of our preeminent success at the University of Maine. We are a proud fraternal brotherhood, and we continue to deepen our historic roots with every new generation of Omega Mu Fiji undergraduates. As we are several years away from celebrating two historic moments in our combined fraternal history, we celebrate all of our traditions that have, separately and together, sustained us, fraternally steady and true, since 1874. a distinctive fraternal legacy. In the truest and broadest historic sense, there is no other brotherhood like ours, and for many years to come our undergraduate and graduate brothers will continue to guide and shape our unique, life-long brotherhood by sustaining our enjoyable, life-sustaining, and persevering traditions. To re-state the simply truth of our Q. T. V. fraternal coda: “Enjoyment, sociability, and the best interests of the brothers through life.” This abiding declarative statement still defines us as we enter 2023. The simple ideal of our founders, and it is the heartfelt essence of our fraternally cherished words: "Brotherhood." With that in mind, it is always fitting to look back and appreciate our rich fraternal tradition of great dances and formals. Perge.  Q. T. V. Brothers in front of the first Q. T. V. Chapter Hall, 1876.     
1891 Q. T. V Reception "...buck-boards began to bring the guests from Orono, Stillwater and Old Town."  "Messrs. Wasgatt and Cushing of Bangor, furnished music for the evening. After the entertainment consisting of instrumental music, singing, and declamations, refreshments were served and the remainder of the evening was spent in sociability and dancing." 1897  
First Phi Gamma Delta House, 1900     1900  "Omega Mu Chapter of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity entertained their friends with whist and dancing at their chapter house Saturday evening. 
1902  "The house was decorated for the occasion and the guest were received in the drawing room, while refreshments were served in the dining room."  1903 
1905   1906   1912   "The house was prettily decorated in evergreens and Xmas bells intermingled with frosted stars. Pullen's orchestra furnished music during the evening. At intermission harlequin and cakes were served."  1915   "Amid the crackling of logs and peanut shells, stories were told and enthusiasm for the distant Frog Pond Scrap was aroused. About 12 P.M. the Smoker wound up with a sing, three cheers for 1915 and a return three cheers for Phi Gamma Delta re-echoed from the porch." 1916   "There were cigarettes and cigars for all, not to mention peanuts, ice cream and fancy crackers, and ginger ale. They made themselves merry with cards and songs and talked over the old days."
 1917   "The evening was spent with smokes, cards, and refreshments.
 1920       "There were smokes and ice cream and the first step taken in forming class spirit.  
 "One of the best house-parties ever held in the house will begin Friday night and terminate Sunday Night." 1921  "A "Backward Party" Saturday night in which the couples came in old clothes and had to climb through a window to get into the house. The girls had to ask the boys to dance, for refreshments, and for cigarettes." 1923    "Each house was suitably decorated for the occasion, many of them having informal dance orders, favors, and confetti dances."   "A delicious dinner was served by the fraternity chef. The tables were attractively decorated with flowers. The dancing of the evening stated at 8:30 when music from a selected orchestra was furnished. The dance orders of dark blue and white were in the shape of a lozenge." 
1926   This informal dance, I believe, was the first dance in the Castle.  "Snappy music was furnished by Shea's four piece orchestra."   1930    "The 'Crimson Rambler' orchestra, one of the best heard on campus in a long time, came from Boston." 1931  "The house was decorated with colored lights. During intermission refreshments were served. Music was furnished by Smith Ames orchestra." 
1933  "Later in the evening, the formal dance, with music by Buddy Borst and his orchestra from Providence, was held. Strawberry shortcake was served at intermission."  1935  
 "The meeting was an informal get-together to promote good fellowship and class feeling."      "On Friday, the Phi Gamma Delta were hosts at a delightful dinner party prior to their annual Spring Formal. Their guest were entertained by the singing of fraternity songs."    1936    "A homecoming informal dance was held at Phi Gamma Delta. Music was provided by Lou Kyer."
  "The Phi Gams crashed through with a hilariously different party last Friday evening. The lady guests were forced to enter this upside down party by the coal chute. From the cellar floor a guide rope was placed in the right hand and they were pushed through the cellar of horror."  1937   "Phi Gamma Delta welcomed back many alumni at its fall house party held Saturday afternoon and evening. After the game, tea dancing was enjoyed until six o'clock, when an informal supper was served. Lloyd Rafnell and his Georgians, featuring Jane Rafnell, vocalist, furnished music"  George Rafnell and his Georgians    Watie Akin's orchestra 1938     1939   "Phi Gamma Delta held it spring formal house party May 19. Lloyd Rafnell and his Georgians played."  1940     1943   "Interfraternity smoker to be held from four until eight at the Phi Gamma Delta House."   1947  
   
 "After light refreshments several of the professors spoke on subjects on general and practical interest around college, and the talk lasted well into the evening." 1948   "Phi Gamma Delta will dance to the music Lloyd Raffnell and his orchestra at their Friday night formal." 1948   "Phi Gam played host to 70 couples at a semi-formal dance Friday evening. Music was by Bob Wood and his orchestra." 1949    "The house was appropriately decorated and a section of the Maine Bears furnished dance music."  1951  "A buffet supper followed by a dance with music provided by Sammy Saliba and his orchestra."
1952     1953 
 1954   "Party favors: red and white striped nights shirts and caps with "Fiji" on the pockets. 1955   "Dick Kelso and his band provided the music for a jam-session and dance at Phi Gamma Delta."   1956   "Phi Gam played host to Pi Beta Phi sorority, with "A Trip to the Moon" as the theme of the dance. Silver stars and moon maidens decorated the house and Jack McDonough and his orchestra provided the music."  
 
"The Phi Gam house was decorated on a French Cafe theme for the formal Friday night." 1957 
1958  1958 house party with a Christmas theme.   “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 Michael E. Concannon, 1990
Michael E. Concannon Omega Mu, 1990 How I took the long way round in becoming a brother: I think I’ve got the timeline mostly right here. My time at the Castle ran from 1986-1990. Myself, Jon Smith and Phil Jackson were all randomly thrown together all in the Oxford Hall dorms, at the Hilltop complex, in the spring of 1986. Gary Bresnehan and Don Leonard were in the mix too, but I cannot remember if they were in our building or one of the others in the quad. Pretty sure Phil was/is a Maine native, Gary was from Pittsfield, MA, Jon from Taunton, MA, and me from Ft. Myers FL but originally from Manchester, NH.
The usual freshman hijinks commenced, as you would expect. I still remember the impromptu softball games across the street in the open fields, now the Maine Foster Center. I believe this is when John picked up the Pilgrim moniker. Ask him about the shoes with the big buckles. To be fair, this is also the time that I wandered into the wrong bathroom at the dining hall. From what I recall, Jon was the ringleader in steering us towards the Castle. Makes sense as he is a legacy and all that. We promptly started on the rush/pledge/brother journey, but I hung back a little bit. I was, admittedly, a bit out of my element at the time, and also had a little bit of a challenge in committing. Not that that’s been a life-long theme or anything! I hung out on the periphery of the goings on at the house for the remainder of the ’86 year.  Jonathan B. Smith, 1990; David L. Smith, 1961; Jeffrey L. Smith, 1984. I didn’t rush and pledge until the spring of ’87, as I recall. And, even then, I wound up dropping out partway through. I cannot quite remember completely why, but I do recall things being a bit ‘chippy’ at the house between some of the brothers, as well as some ‘challenges’ in the relationship between the chapter, National and the university. Regardless, I managed to get my act together and rushed-pledged in the fall of ’87 and getting initiated on 12/4/87, if the date on the back of my pin is accurate.  Omega Mu Life, 1988-1990         "My strange journey with the US Navy."
Unlike some of the guys of my era who had a game plan from day one like Jon ‘Woody’ Akoury, Jeff ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson and Joe Leporati, I did not have a single thought in my head about military service. I only bring this up as it is known I have served, but the details that made it back to the house are hazy and third hand. In fact, it wasn’t until well after graduation and Gulf War 1 that I went down that road. My maternal grandfather served in the Navy during WWII, and my Dad served in the Navy, pre-Vietnam. Dad was all gung-ho for me to do military service right out of high school; my mom, not so much. Personality wise, I kind of wound up somewhere in between the hard-core disciplinarian and George Carlin’s Hippy Dippy Weatherman.
 Interestingly enough, both my grandfather and my dad started telling me ‘sea stories’ as I got older. That, along with the realization that if I was going to do military service, I had better do it before I got too old, is what prompted me to finally get off my ass and enlist, but I did it my way. I enlisted in a Navy program called Sea-Air-Mariner (SAM for short.) I went through full basic training at NTC Great Lakes in January of 1994. Boy, that was stupid timing on my part, then on to SSC San Diego for A school, and then to Tampa to do the 1 weekend a month/2 weeks a year as a Reservist. I wound up doing that for just over 20 years and retired in March of 2014 as a Navy Chief. Pretty uneventful except for the 1 year mobilization in 2013. But even that was pretty tame in the grand scheme of things.  
 Random memories from 4 years at the Castle Oh boy, plenty of random bits floating around. Wednesday night 10-2’s: One of which included Jeff Labbee making his infamous appearance as ‘Q-tip.’ A costume made of fishnet worn as a poncho and secured with a belt around the neck. For some strange reason that completely cleared the foyer of the young women who were on their way in. Fiji Island ’87: I think I had just dropped as a pledge and was somehow able to go anyway. Me, Pilgrim and Phil walked completely around the island. Reggie, the boat captain, looking at us like we were a bunch of deranged idiots as he hauled us out to the island. But our cash was good, so he did not care too much. Cathy ‘Max Factor’ bringing a curling iron along and not understanding that there was no place for her to use it. Me just bringing a sleeping bag to crash in; great plan until it snowed. Someone took pity on me and let me crash in their tent.     Christmas parties: Joe Leporati as Santa one year. I have pictures of Wally and Chachi as evil elves somewhere but can’t find them right now. Lew Gordon as BH one year. During the ‘essay’ portion of the activities he came in an bounced his stick off of one of the dining room tables. It promptly bounced back and knocked out one of his front teeth. He kept going like nothing happened. Lew’s deranged doberman, Sasha. Squatch and his African Grey parrot and his Python. My super-power mullet haircut that somehow lives on to this day in some of the composite pictures that may still be up in the house. I made it back for a Pig Dinner a few years ago and it was ‘OMG, it’s that guy!' The bucket of power and slides down the staircase on a snowboard from the Ram. Jeff Tarmy. Gah. My inability to make it from the Ram to the bathroom. That poor chair. Yes, it was me who put the itching powder in Hutch’s bed. Randomly finding Phil Jackson’s brother pin after it fell of his shirt at a Fiji Formal one year. Literally stuck to the bottom of my shoe. The Mullin brothers dog Katy who kept getting painted purple and running across the field at football games.
So Star Trek: The Next Generation premiered back in September of 1987. There was a certain semi-core group of us that used to gather around the tv in the basement to watch it on that godawful lumpy, smelly plaid furniture, as well as reruns of the original Star Trek. it was not anything really formalized that I remember, nevertheless we would wind up down there more often than not; you know, instead of studying or doing something productive. As time went on someone realized that we were subconsciously arranging furniture in a ‘particular’ way, suspiciously similar to the bridge station layout on the Enterprise.  Takeaways: Despite all the hijinks and the regret that I only lived in the house for 1 year, the 4 years I spent at the Castle is how i was forged in to the person I am today. There was a bit of a black cloud over the chapter the entire time I was there - some of it self inflicted, some of it part of the overall times. At times there was a lot more work involved in keeping the chapter afloat than there was in having a good time. (Some of which I’m still just finding out about today.) Regardless, we all buckled down and kept things together and still found ways to have fun. I came out the back-side with a pretty good work ethic along with the ability to still find the humor in dark situations. Lessons which have served me well over the years. To steal a line from Jon’s video - ’the constant potential of what you’re going to become.’ I’ve only made it back twice since graduating, but in both cases it was great to see exactly that potential in the brotherhood. There are some things you have to go through and experience when you’re young - it’s part of the journey. With that, it’s been great to see the legacy of the house continue.  “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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