Bill Martin, Mississippi State, 1975

Bill Martin
Mississippi State, 1975
Surprises and Lessons from Omega Mu
 
Never let them know they’ve surprised you.

This was an attitude I adopted early on as a field secretary for the Fraternity. I had heard that chapters sometimes liked to play tricks on the field secretary or do other things to put him off balance, and I was determined not to give anyone the satisfaction of knowing they had done that.
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As I drove out of Lexington, Kentucky, in early September 1976, everything east of Ohio was a new adventure for this small-town kid from Mississippi who was still figuring out how to be a field secretary. After a visit with the Vermont Chapter, on Friday morning, September 10, I headed out of Burlington across New Hampshire and the backroads of Maine. As I made my way farther east and north, I had the sensation that I was nearing the edge of the earth. 

​My trip diary, which I still have, says that I arrived at Omega Mu at 5:00 p.m. As I pulled up, the brothers had just chosen sides for a touch football game. One of the teams graciously took me – a late arrival of unknown talent -- in the supplemental draft. It was a great way to work out the kinks from a day in the car and begin to build rapport with the brothers. 

Here was my first surprise: These Yankees would have been pretty competitive on the intramural fields at Mississippi State.
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The second surprise came that evening, when some brothers took me out for a few beers at a bar. On campus!! The county where Mississippi State is located was dry until midway through my junior year, and even after a majority of the voters decided that their fellow citizens could handle the temptations of demon rum, it was still illegal to have alcohol on campus. I was now in a whole new world.

The next surprise came later that night when I settled into my bed in the guest suite at the house. Who knew that a mattress could feel like sleeping in a canoe?
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On Saturday morning most of the brothers pitched in to clean up in and around the house. Then, after a quick lunch, we all headed to the football stadium to see the Black Bears take on St. Mary’s University of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Wait! I thought. After working all morning, aren’t you brothers going to shower? Don’t you wear a blazer and tie to the games? Don’t the coeds dress up like they’re going to a fashion show? That’s how we did it in Mississippi, late summer heat be damned. Surprise, Bill! It’s a football game, not a cocktail party. Mainers are not as status conscious as southerners. Never since have I worn a blazer or tie to a football game.

​On Sunday afternoon, I joined the brothers at an intramural football game. I don’t recall which fraternity was the opponent, but I do recall being surprised at the amount of contact that was allowed along the line of scrimmage and that, whatever the rules about contact, Craig Shaknis pushed them to the limit.

Craig Shaknis

​Somewhere among all the amusements of the weekend, I conducted my formal field secretary duties, meeting with each of the chapter officers, a number of the committee chairmen, and Dean Dave Rand. I don’t recall any details from those meetings, but I do recall that Omega Mu was well lead and that the brothers cared about their chapter and made fraternity fun.

Dave Rand

On Monday afternoon, September 13, I headed south to continue my swing through New England. I had many surprises during this visit to Omega Mu, all of them pleasant – except for the canoe bed. But here were the most meaningful surprises, and lessons: Fiji hospitality has no regional limits, and Fijis everywhere are a lot more alike than we are different.

I had a new perspective on Phi Gamma Delta and a much more positive expectation about my experience as a field secretary. ​

Fraternally,

Bill Martin
Mississippi State, 1975
Executive Director Emeritus

​Perge!

Eugene D. “Buddy” Cote III
His Impact on Phi Gamma Delta
Buddy Cote (Omega Mu 1981) is one of the most consequential leaders of Phi Gamma Delta of his era. I say this based not just on the scope and length of his service, but on the impact he has had on the strength of the International Fraternity and its standing in the interfraternity community.

Buddy’s Omega Mu brothers recognized his innate leadership abilities and elected him president of the Chapter. In this role, he caught the attention of the Fraternity’s headquarters staff, who targeted him as a prospect for the Field Secretary position. Phi Gamma Delta won a tug-of-war with Procter & Gamble for Buddy’s post-graduate services, and from 1981 to 1983 he served as a Field Secretary, traveling to chapters in the western and southern regions of the Fraternity. 

As Buddy’s term as Field Secretary neared its end in spring 1983, Executive Director Bill Zerman (Michigan 1949) persuaded him to remain on the staff as Director of Chapter Services. He served in that position until the fall of 1985, when he accepted a job in the private sector with the Balfour Company, and he and his new bride, Lisa, returned to New England, settling in North Attleboro, Massachusetts. 

Then began a lifetime of volunteer service to Phi Gamma Delta, in both formal and informal roles, that continues to this day. At the 2000 Ekklesia, Buddy was elected Archon Councilor, a position on the Fraternity’s board of directors, and in 2002 he was elected Archon Secretary, serving until 2004. He then served on the board of the Phi Gamma Delta Educational Foundation until 2006, when he was elected to a two-year term as Archon President, the top position in the Fraternity.

Through Buddy’s leadership and inspiration, in fall 2006 the Fraternity embarked on a growth initiative known as “170 X 170” and grew from 113 chapters and colonies to 165 in spring 2018. This effort greatly expanded the Fraternity’s footprint, influence and strength. Notably, the growth initiative brought the chartering of four new chapters in New England, at UConn, UMass, Quinnipiac and Northeastern. 

In 2010 Buddy was elected to the board of the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC), the trade association of men’s social fraternities. He served as chairman of the NIC from 2014 to 2015. This was a time of tremendous change for the NIC, and Buddy managed the process with skill and diplomacy. Since 2016 he has served as Phi Gamma Delta’s representative on the NIC Governing Council.
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Over a number of years, Buddy advocated with fraternity leaders to select Boston to host an Ekklesia. The last Ekklesia in New England had been in Swampscott, Massachusetts, in 1958. However, hotel rates in Boston in late summer, when the Ekklesia is held, were appreciably higher than the Fraternity found in other regions. But Buddy was patient and persistent, pressing the point that, while Boston might cost a little more, the brothers who attended would have such a great time that the cost would not be an issue. Eventually he made the sale, and he chaired the Host Committee of area brothers who would assure a memorable experience for the attendees. When the 168th Ekklesia was held at the Westin Boston Waterfront on August 10-14, 2016, over 900 brothers and guests attended, and there is no record that any of them complained about the cost. Only one other Ekklesia in fraternity history has had a higher attendance. 

Even as Buddy has done so much for greater Phi Gamma Delta and the fraternity movement, he also has contributed at the local level. He has served as president of the Boston Graduate Chapter and chairman of the Board of Chapter Advisors at Northeastern and has been continuously engaged with Omega Mu and the other graduate brothers who support the Chapter.
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Seeking neither recognition nor applause, Buddy has worked tirelessly for the glory of Phi Gamma Delta. His direct impact on the Fraternity and his devotion, character, temperament and personality mark him as one of our truly great leaders.

“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!