We all have our personal memories of the traditions that we enjoyed while we lived together in the Castle. First and foremost, they have stayed in our memory, astonishingly. They rise effortlessly and cause us to smile and chuckle with gratitude each time we think about them. They resonate in our memory, still. They glow in our minds-eye, and we do not brush them away, much less suppress them, for each memory is a journey home, a return passage; even better, a homing instinct to a particular place, event, brother, or a group of brothers when you were undergraduate living in the Castle. They all create a great collective story filled with genuine fraternal sentiment, and all the memories cover the emotional spectrum of our years living in the Castle. Take a moment and recall your memories about our Christmas parties, Fiji Island, Pig Dinner, mud bowl, The Fiji 24 Hour Relay Marathon, our formals. Not difficult to do, is it? They give you a sparkle in the eye and an easy smile, I know. It is safe to say that we loved all of them. With each tradition and event, something wonderful happened. These events were the distinctive, fundamental core of our Omega Mu culture. They helped define priorities, daily, weekly, and monthly. Because of the them, we lived with assurance and stability, generatively so. We were deeply tied to these traditions and activities, our uniting chain of events. And, in retrospect, we all believed, appropriately so, that all of our daily and seasonal traditions were structurally important in creating the wonderful fraternal life that we lived in the Castle. They were, and they continue to be the be-all and end-all of our long chain of sustained fraternal good at the University of Maine.

Although there have been many different iterations on our fraternal traditions and activities, all the variant expressions, for the most past, created the basis for the sustained human grace and strength of our fraternal life, all the while knowing that fraternities fare less well when they do not have sustaining traditions. That is painful truth. Our traditions were, and they remain, our sustaining hope because they exist for the common good. The tradition, activities, and duties set the daily, weekly, and seasonal tone of our fraternal life together, in every measured way. Thematically, the traditions, activities, and responsibilities were different. Some were very mundane because the were concerned with daily practical matters, whereas as some were more suspenseful, mysterious and fun like the RAM and Fiji Island, and some were magisterial and dignifying like Pig Dinner and escorting the housemother into dinner. However, all of them made things work within the house and preserved the cooperative and enjoyable world of our Omega Mu life. We enjoyed all of them, and we did not discuss whether they were their relevant, old-fashioned, or out-dated. On the contrary, and I think we would all agree, they were all sensible, reasonable and enjoyable. In retrospect, all of them are the underpinning of our historic success, and they remain relevant now. They established, collectively so, a balanced and cooperative fraternal life for everyone that was satisfying. And, perhaps, it is not far-reaching to say that they shaped us a little for the better. I believe they did. They certainly did not hurt. Simply put, our Omega Mu memories resonate powerfully with all of us, still, because they link generations of Omega Mu Fijis. ​

Clear and distinct Omega Mu memories still cause us to smile and be proud that we are Omega Mu Fijis. We are, as you all know, an exemplary brotherhood. Upon that fact there is no debate. We remain proud of this fact through life, and we have no problem telling others, with fraternal, evangelical pride, that we lived in a beautiful fraternity home with a great group of men during college, and we continue to champion the fraternal life. Furthermore, I am equally sure that we are all thankful for whatever coincidence brought all of us to the front door of the Castle, our historic fraternal home. Thank God we did not turn back!​

We are, rightly so, a brotherhood family. That being said, I believe all Omega Mu Fijis will smile with understanding, in the truest way possible, what Dietrich Bonhoeffer stated about home in Letters and Papers from Prison and; second, what Thomas Jefferson said about lifelong friends:

“Most people have forgotten nowadays what house can mean, though some of us have come to realize it as never before. It is a kingdom of its own in the midst of the world, a stronghold amid life’s storms and stresses, a refuge, even a sanctuary.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

“Friends we have, if we have merited them. Those of our earliest years stand nearest in our affections. Our college friends are the dearest.” (Thomas Jefferson)
​
The Fiji Island Party was an Omega Mu fraternal rite-of-spring celebration, a gift if you will, for generations of Omega Mu brothers, and I suspect that every Omega Mu brother has a Fiji Island memory. It was a signature fraternal event each year, and it is certainly an essential memory, still, with all of us, rich and vital. Starting in the early the 1940’s, one tradition, the Fiji Island Party, was borne out of a simple desire for unbridled revelry, and for over forty years it continued. Initially, the location for the party was in the Castle, but by the 1960’s Fiji Island occurred on the lush, sweeping, boulder-strewn beauty of an actual island off of Stonington. In a primitive existentialist sense, it was a blast from Friday to Sunday with something happening throughout the island. It was a special weekend that we were all grateful for. There was a great deal of wanderlust, loose, casual and free-form, in the intimate environment of the island. Brothers walked everywhere, camped everywhere, and simply enjoyed being together on the island. There was always a relaxed energy that was simply fun. It was a well-spent weekend, and it was certainly worth the boat ride to get there and back. It was a spirited, happy, memorable time. Or, as I see it, an adventurous holiday grace of a special sort in our brotherhood. In any case, it was always captivating, and it never disappointed.

The memories of Fiji Island, like the memories of Pig Dinner, mud bowl, dinner traditions, formals, front lawn and Phoenix Lounge activities, and many others, collectively frame a good portrait of our fraternal brotherhood. We sustained these traditions, and, in so doing, we grew stronger and more unified as a brotherhood. That is the simple truth, historically clear and to the point, and we remain unified. The pictures below chronicle the fraternal mood and emotion of our Fiji Island weekend, and as you do so, recall what Bonhoeffer said about home and what Jefferson said about friends. Surely they are accurate statements about our architecturally beautiful fraternal home at the University of Maine, the Castle, and the congenial, life-long fraternal friendships that were shaped by our well-intentioned, well-functioning fraternal traditions. The seamless gift of both has created an enduring brotherhood that has a unique fraternal character all its own, and we cherish both gifts. That is our Omega Mu way. We remain proud of our distinctive history, but we do not rest on our laurels. We press on and continue into our 147th year with enduring Omega Mu persistence and historic sensibility, always looking forward with a determined, restless enthusiasm. That is the heart and soul substance of our fraternal charisma since 1874, an enduring fidelity. Perge.​

Four Omega Mu Brothers on Fiji Island: L-R (males) Pat Ladd (in back, white shirt), Bob Mennealy (holding a cup), Paul Wood (bandana), and Bill Soloby (sunglasses)

1968 mud bowl. Back Row: Spook, Andrew Flaherty, Dave Smith, John Rhodes, Jimmy Dunn, Glenn Smith, Paul Dulac?, John Dolan, George Wiest, Jim Chaplin. Front Row: Ernie Niles, ?, Bob Duetsch, Robert Van Dyke, Tyler Libby, George Thomas, Jack McBrayne

Freshman Team
Fiji Brothers: John Collins, Paul Pooler, Paul Dulac, Anthony Flaherty, John Kimball. 

Varsity Team, 1967
Fiji Brothers: Paul Dulac, #55; John Collins, #41; Mike O'Leary, #89; John Kimball, #68, Grant Watkins, #23; Paul Pooler, #54

Varsity Team, 1968
Fiji Brothers: ​Grant Watkins, Paul Dulac, Mike O'Leary, Dick Paganucci, ​Richard Rhodes, John Collins, Paul Pooler, John Kimball, Chris Eaton. 

Varsity Team, 1969
Fiji Brothers: ​Paul Pooler, Captain Paul Dulac, John Collins, John Rhodes, Chris Eaton, Dick Paganucci, Pat Ladd, Paul Roy, Jim Hayes, John Kimball, Dick Rhodes, Ed O'Bara, John Zinno. 

Paul Dulac and John Collins

The second Q.T.V. Chapter Hall where Nathaniel E. Wilson would have lived his senior year, 1887-1888. This picture was taken during graduation week activities in the early 1890's.

The second Q.T.V. Chapter Hall is first on the left, behind Coburn Hall and next to Holmes Hall. 

A portion of the 1891 map of the campus. #9 is Coburn Hall, #10 is the second Q.T.V. Chapter Hall, and #11 is Holmes Hall.  

Harry Butler and Dudley E. Campbell

William J.Hancock and John W. Hatch

Charles L. Phillips and Frank A. Smith

Managing Editor of the campus paper, The Cadet.

Senior speeches at the 1888 Maine State College graduation.

The year after he graduated from Maine State College, Nathaniel E. Wilson spent one year as an assistant chemist at the University of Vermont Agricultural Experiment Station.

TAfter working one year in New Jersey, Nathaniel Wilson moved to Reno, Nevada, and taught at Nevada State, later the University of Nevada. Over the course of the next fifty years, Nathaniel Wilson became a beloved citizen in Reno as an educator, author, civic leader, and business owner. He was a rugged individualist who succeeded in the aforementioned fields because he believed in the dignity and worth of hard, honest work. And, from all indications, Nathaniel Wilson was a great man, a humanitarian. He was poised and authentic, and he exhibited a soundness of good judgement and a steady fidelity in all of his professional endeavors, undergirded by an inborn grace and depth of human feeling in dealing with his students, colleagues, business associates, and the citizens of Reno. And, to be honest, to do both is an accomplishment. Consequently, he had a far-reaching effect in always working for, and ultimately achieving, the greater good for the University of Nevada, the city of Reno, and his business, The N.E. Wilson Drug Company. He contributed to the welfare of so many people that he established a positive, enduring public image, acclaim even, and it was authentic. If truth be known, in my view, Nathaniel E. Wilson unswervingly lived up to our conventional fraternal wisdom, our shaping fraternal wisdom, that we always embracingly claim we believe in as Omega Mu Fijis: persistence and determination. These two words comprise the beautiful historic arc of our fraternal success at the University of Maine. They are simple, wise words, and we are unwilling to give up in believing in them. Broadly speaking, time and again, these bedrock fraternal words of courage that demand work and effort have produced outstanding accomplishments in our brotherhood, whether as undergraduate or graduate brothers. Single-mindedly, as Omega Mu Fijis, we would not have it any other way, and we are better off for it. Quite simply, we do not give up, and with faithfulness, patience, and good work we continue into our 147th fraternal year because there is no alternative, and there never will be because that is not our way. Nathaniel E. Wilson understood them, professed them, lived them, and increased them throughout his life, and he lived a long and dignified life, dying in 1961 at the age of 94. One of Saint Paul's best assertions in the New Testament encapsulates the ideal and the reality of  our Omega Mu history and the lived-life testimony of Nathaniel E. Wilson: "You are the evidence of which you speak." Below is a small portion of a newspaper article about Nathaniel E. Wilson that echoes the sentiment of Saint Paul and our enduring fraternal beliefs:

“The influence he wields point to him as an outstanding example of what a man earns when he lives his life as a trust, set up in accordance with certain definite principles from which no deviation is permitted. For though he is not rich in world goods, he is one of the world’s wealthiest men in public esteem, confidence, and reputation for honesty and integrity which no man can attack…the reputation of Wilson must be earned, and there’s only one way it can be earned, by being the kind of person he is.”

​Our Omega Mu veteran-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 we can all be proud of as Omega Mu Fijis. 

It is something to ponder, isn’t it, a cloud of witnesses. This QTV-Omega Mu brotherhood has a large cloud of witnesses since 1874, and one of them is Joseph Sebastian Boulos. Joe moved beyond the predictable and the safe to confront the evil and violence stalking the world. He left the familiar and comfortable of his fraternal life in this house with his brothers; and, most importantly, the abiding love of his family to pursue something bigger with courage of conviction because he held fast to the good. That is greatness. Joe’s military career during World War II was distinguished in navigating the tracer and flak-filled sky between England and France and Germany as a navigator in a B-24 Liberator with courage, hope, and persistent resolve. He risked it all, but as

Friedrich Schiller so clearly stated, “To save all, you must risk all.” That is a sobering truth. Joe knew that, and without any fear and trembling he chose the risk of trusting in the winning gamble for the power of good to prevail over evil. He stood tall; he stood firmly in doing his part in making darkness yield before light. He was an exemplary witness, to my way of thinking, of the costly grace of service to humanity and our nation for the good to prevail. 

Joe is wearing the Sinatra style hat

Left picture: Joe is on the right; right picture: Joe is the third one in from the right

Targets included U-boat installations at Kiel, the port at Bremen, a chemical plant at Ludwigshafen, ball bearing works at Berlin, aero-engine plants at Rostock, aircraft factories at Munich, the marshalling yard at Coblenz, the motor works at Ulm, and the oil refineries at Hamburg and Magdeburg. 

Flight crew of the “Plastered Bastard”

446th on a bombing run to Gotha, Germany

U-boats destroyed in Kiel, Germany

Fraternally,

Chip Chapman, ’82
​
Perge!

“Chain, chain, chain” 
​

Chip Chapman
Omege Mu, 1982

Historically,
It is worth
Pondering,

Is it not,
The long
Interesting

Chain of 
Omega
Mu 

Nicknames, our
Deep-rooted
Folkloric

Fiji tradition,
The human
Bread of

Our brotherhood
That dates
Back to

Our Q.T.V 
Foundating
In 1874,

And has
Has remained
A linking

Fraternal strength,
Nickname-
To-nickname,

One-by-
One, in
Linked

Historic
Form, like
Verse, in

Helping creating
A wonderful
Fraternal

Pulse of
Fraternal cheer
And good

Humor within
Our Omega
Mu

Brotherhood
And life-
Long

Friendships,
And, when
It is all

Said and done,
That,
Over the long-

Haul of 
Life, means
More than

Anything. 
But, 
Thankfully,

We do
Not have
Low-

Brow, common
Pedestrian
Names that

Are empty, 
Irreverent and
Sordid like

Weasel, Mothball
Pinto, Stork,
D-Day, Flounder.

And, god bless
Belushi’s hilarious 
Soul,

A Bluto, an
Exemplary fraternity
Man who

Famously shouted,
With evangelical
Fraternal

Fervor, his 
Rhodes Scholar
Historical intellect

On full
Delta House
Display:

“Was it
Over when
The Germans

Bombed Pearl
Harbor? Hell
No!”

Likewise,
Hell no, our
Omega Mu 

Nicknames have
Always been
Refreshing and

Ennobling with
William F.
Buckley gravitas:

Rich and
High-minded
With urbane

Wit, class,
Style, and
Civilizing

Good taste and
High intellectual 
Import,

And were
Arrived at
Through An

Inscrutably
Sober, 
Clear-eyed

Divination
Process from
Antiquity,

Grounded in
Deep spiritual
And

Philosophical
Matters; not
A trivial process,

Mind you, but
A sacred
Rite full of

Mystery and
Magic, 
Nobility and

Purpose that
Takes calm,
Scrutinizing

Care, time,
And patience,
Literally

Soul-
Searching, 
In order to

Discern
The refined
Fraternal 

Essence of
Each 
Omega Mu

Brother in
The face-to-
Face life within

The architectural
Charm of 
The Castle, 

And these
Names endure
Link-to-fraternal

Link, generation-
To-generation-
Due to

Their rich,
​Rhythmic, 
Resonating

Good taste,
And soulful
Profundity

That we
Cherish and
Reverence in

Our seamlessly
Linked
Omega Mu 

​Brotherhood,
And, quite
Naturally,

Amusing
And
Bemusing,

They spark
Fraternal
Joy and pride:

Shitball, Sluggo, The Missing Link,
The Spook, Dusty, Swampy Pond, 
The S.P, Humpy, Dippy, 

T. Pictum Pursch, Natty Bumpo, Jordan the Lion,
Allie, Judge, Lengthy,
Lamb, Sin, Pater 

Gloomy, Puss, Froggie, 
Wizard, Bopper, BVD, 
Chappy, Clyde Crash-cup, 

Gangster, Hazey, Marks-a-lot,
McCerebral, Pecadora, Pizza, 
Sola, Solu, Swampy, 

Hog, Leo, Dewey, 
Farrar, Hazbro, Gandhi, 
Mongo, Shetland, Spike, 

Shoes, Sweetie, Scud, 
Big Daddy, Skillsaw, Bug, 
Jughead, Cranium, Granddad, 

Popeye, Razor, Ant-Man. 
Philthy, Shab, Homer, 
Whoa, B.F., Scooter, 

Bean Hole, Swany, Fella,
Toad, Mad Dog, Stick,
Buckwheat, Garland, Bart,

Stroutie, BoBo, Snake, 
Weasel, Shack, Bunny, 
Tuner, Palu, Jag, T, 

Rip, Jock, Dr. Cook, 
Huddy, Wafer, Grace, 
Baldy, Infant, Hoot,

Jingles, Scout, Morrgy, 
Shorty, Hoss, Prep, 
Count, Sasquatch, Snap, 

Harpo, Beaver, Stevo, 
Smitty, No Hair, Grape Nut, 
Drool, Buster, Sleep, 

Toots, General, Stiff, 
Sphinx, Spanky, Hashi Mura,
Puffy, Love, Ding-Dong,

Brick, Yap, Bitter, 
Slicker, Soup, Cubby, 
Mama Colucci, Munchie, Squire, 

Father, Capt., Ikey, 
Prunes, Fang, Flea,
Lumpy, Stork, Bosco,

Thug, Pat Me Groin, Root,
Dogger, Yorkie, Red Wolf, 
Sister, Froggie, Scrapper,

Sut, Cat, Rat,
Zin, Zip, Zinc, 
And Mao,

Never to
Be forgotten,
Secure in the

Rich tapestry
Of our historic 
Omega Mu memory

“Because you can
Have something that
Lasts throughout your life.” (Jerry Garcia)

And that is the
Heartfelt human of
“Perfection and grace” (Steely Dan)

Of our linked
Fraternal
Brotherhood, 

One generation
After another,
Eternal as

Law in being
Spiritually
Linked with

Our historic 
Past and the
Present link
 
Of our
147 year 
Fraternal year,

An unbroken 
Brotherhood
Chain of

Fraternal well-
Being of good,
Decent,

Perseverant and
Determined
Men linked

By one noble,
Enduring,
Historically

Resonating
Name, the 
Best name,

Always,
Unapologetically
And proudly,

In heart 
And
Head,

Omega Mu 
Fijis,
The best

Fraternal
Expression of
Brotherhood

At the
University of
Maine since

1874.
Perge

Fraternally,
Chip Chapman, '82
​Perge

​So, we must remember these QTV and Omega Mu brothers with fraternal amplitude because these brothers, with sound unflinching desire and instinct, are part of our proud athletic at the University of Maine. Their considerable accomplishments claim our fraternal attention and respect, and they show us something fundamental about character and life. Therefore, we gratefully remember and celebrate our QTV and Omega Mu brothers who participated on many varsity athletic teams at the University of Maine. Our fraternal athletic scorecard is historically long and deep: QTV and Omega Mu Fiji athletes.

We all have our personal memories of the traditions that we enjoyed while we lived together in the Castle. First and foremost, they have stayed in our memory, astonishingly. They rise effortlessly and cause us to smile and chuckle with gratitude each time we think about them. They glow in our minds-eye, and we do not hurry to rush them away, much less suppress them, for each memory is a journey home, a return passage; even better, a homing instinct to a particular place, event, brother, or a group of brothers when you were undergraduate living in the Castle. All the memories cover the emotional spectrum of our years living in the Castle. Take a moment and recall your memories about our Christmas parties, Fiji Island, Pig Dinner, Mud Bowl, The Fiji 24 Hour Relay Marathon, our formals. Not difficult to do, is it? They give you a sparkle in the eye and an easy smile, I know. Its safe to say that we loved all of them. With each tradition and event, something wonderful happened. These events were the distinctive, fundamental core of our Omega Mu culture. They helped define priorities, daily, weekly, and monthly. Because of the them, we lived with assurance and stability, generatively so. We were deeply tied to these traditions and activities, our uniting chain of events. And, in retrospect, we all believed, appropriately so, that all of our daily and seasonal traditions were all structurally important in creating the wonderful fraternal life that we lived in the Castle through all the years that we lived in the Castle. They were, and they continue to be the be-all and end-all of our historically long chain of sustained fraternal good at the University of Maine since 1874. ​

Although there have been many different iterations on our fraternal traditions and activities, all the variant expressions, for the most past, have created the basis for a wonderful fraternal life, all the while knowing that fraternities fare less well when they do not have good, sustaining traditions. Our traditions were, and they remain, our sustaining hope because they exist for the common good. The tradition, activities, and duties set the daily, weekly, and seasonal tone of our fraternal life together, in every measured way. Thematically, the traditions, activities, and responsibilities were different. Some were very mundane because the were concerned with daily practical matters, whereas as some were more suspenseful, mysterious and fun like the RAM and Fiji Island, and some were magisterial and dignifying like Pig Dinner and escorting the housemother into dinner. However, all of them made things work within the house and preserved the cooperative and enjoyable world of our Omega Mu life. We enjoyed all of them, and we did not discuss whether they were their relevant, old-fashioned, or out-dated. On the contrary, and I think we would all agree, they were all sensible, reasonable and enjoyable. In retrospect, all of them are the underpinning of our historic success, and they remain relevant now. They established, collectively so, a balanced and cooperative fraternal life for everyone that was satisfying. And, perhaps, it is not far-reaching to say that they shaped us a little for the better. I believe they did. They certainly did not hurt. Simply put, our Omega Mu memories resonate powerfully with all of us, still, because these events and traditions link generations of Omega Mu Fijis. ​

Clear and distinct Omega Mu memories still cause us to smile and be proud that we are Omega Mu Fijis. We are, as you all know, an exemplary brotherhood. What’s more, that is a certain historic fact and truth since 1874. Upon that fact there is no debate. We remain proud of this fact through life, and we have no problem telling others, with fraternal, evangelical pride, that we lived in a beautiful fraternity home with a great group of men during college, and we continue to champion the fraternal life. Furthermore, I am equally sure that we are all thankful for whatever coincidence brought all of us to the front door of the Castle, our historic fraternal home. Thank God we did not turn back!

​We are, rightly so, a brotherhood family. That being said, I believe all Omega Mu Fijis will smile with understanding, in the truest way possible, what Dietrich Bonhoeffer stated about home in Letters and Papers from Prison:

​“Most people have forgotten nowadays what house can mean, though some of us have come to realize it as never before. It is a kingdom of its own in the midst of the world, a stronghold amid life’s storms and stresses, a refuge, even a sanctuary.”