Alumni Gram

Alumni Gram Alpha Phi Omega Omega 5/3/09 Volume 1, Issue 1

Hey There Strangers! Yesterday I was rooting around in a storage closet near SLC to find supplies for another organization when I found an open, rather decrepit cardboard box with a wooden turtle sitting on top. Since I pledged APO in the spring of 2007 I've been excited by all things turtle so I instantly dove for it. It was a pledge paddle with the names and fingerprints of the pledges. It was from fall 1999 and I didn't recognize a single name on it other than Melissa Bartecki-and that's only because she was the pledge class namesake in spring 2004. I continued to root through the forgotten box and, aside from the Beta Dacy 2002 scrapbook, found things a bit more recent. Theta Schroeder's pledge paddle, Delta Handcock's (also a turtle), the Iota Pringle scrapbook, and a massive binder that probably has 800 years of Omega Grams in it.

Inside this issue:

Laugh if you'd like, but I love finding and looking at old APO things. I like to sit in my room, surrounded by remnants of past chapters, and think about brothers I never met. I get nostalgic. It's weird. How can you be nostalgic for things and people you never experienced or knew? I'm not entirely sure, but I don't think you need to know someone to be connected to them. We, the current and former members of Alpha Phi Omega Omega are connected. We're connected by brotherhood. By leadership. By friendship. By service. And now we're connected here. Please read and enjoy our newsletter and don't hesitate to contact us with questions and comments at [email protected].

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Meet the EC!

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Omicron Weber Pledge Class Relay for Life

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Thoughts on Concessions

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I Have A Dream Game Night Pictures!

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Always yours in LFS, Meagan Savage Omega President 2009

Interesting Facts about Omega’s Spring of ‘09:

Omegas at Conferences In December 2008, five brothers from Omega chapter met in Boston for the National Convention. Meagan Savage (S'07) served as a voting delegate on the Awards and Recognition reference committee while Joshua Baker (S'07), Julia O'Brien (F'07), Elizabeth Olson (F'07), and Meira Sondov-Gold (S'08) all

Omegas at Conferences

attended beneficial workshops about pledging, retention, membership, and publicity. They also met up with Omega alum Liz Bales (S'04), who currently serves on the Region IX staff as the communications chair. In February 2009, six Omegas traveled to Ames for the Sectional Conference hosted by the Xi 1

chapter at Iowa State. Two pledges, Laura Jordan (S'09) and Dan Mursewick (S'09), attended and both completed the LAUNCH course of LEADS. Active brother Elizabeth Olson (F'07) also completed LAUNCH.

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Total members (not including pledges): 33

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Total pledges: 13

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Total service hours: 805.25

Meet The Executive Council! President - Meagan Savage (S'07) Year & major: Junior - Magazine journalism and English. Hometown: Parker, Colorado. Favorite service: Night Eyes Favorite Fellowship: Formal Service VP - Jenny Koska (F'07) Year & major: Sophomore – Environmental Science Hometown: Geneva...IL not Switzerland Favorite Service: Anything outside/phone bank for the Iowa Senior Olympics Favorite Fellowship: Watching Grey’s Anatomy Service VP - Carol McFarland (F'07) Year & major: Junior – Neuroscience Hometown: Portland, OR Favorite Service: Ronald McDonald House Favorite Fellowship: Coffee in Olmsted Membership & Alumni VP - Sarah Tucker (S'08) Year & major: Sophomore – Secondary Education & Mathematics Hometown: Hoffman Estates, Illinois Favorite Service: Kidsfest Favorite Fellowship: Relay for Life Fellowship VP - Kelly Ippolito (S'07) Year & major: Senior – Psychology Hometown: Chicago Favorite Service: Boys & Girls Club.. or Relay for Life Favorite Fellowship: Formal for sure! :)

Pledge Educator - Joshua Baker (S'07) Year & major: Junior – Secondary Education/ Biology Hometown: Centerville, Iowa Favorite Service: Heaven Favorite Fellowship: Study Tables aka Facebook time Treasurer - Becca Lee (F'08) Year & major: Junior – English & Secondary Education Hometown: Lees Summit, MO Favorite Service: Animal Rescue Leave Favorite Fellowship: Formal Historian - Brittany Swanson (F'08) Year & major: Sophomore – double major in Theatrical Technology & Design, and Writing Hometown: Blaine, MN Favorite Service: Habitat for Humanity Favorite Fellowship: Anything involving food Rush Chair - Cara Pratt (F'08) Year & major: First-Year Environmental Science and Policy, International Relations Hometown: Kenosha, WI Favorite Service: Habitat for Humanity Favorite Fellowship: Just getting coffee and watching movies with my bros!

Omicron Weber AKA Baker’s Dozen! Omega Chapter would like to welcome its new members!!! We had thirteen pledges this semester and we're all super excited to have them with us! On April 26th, all thirteen members of the Omicron Weber pledge class went through activation! Josh, their pledge educator is VERY proud of all of them!

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Hilary Dietz Justine Ahle Carley Stieg Christopher Bartak Luke Gutknecht Anna Goodman Laura Jordan Lindsay Miller Tia Derflinger

Julie Baldassarra Amanda Hanzlik Daniel Mursewick Lauren Phillippi

Relay for Life 2009 This year marked the 25th Anniversary of Relay for Life and I got to take part in the fun. It was a great experience for me to raise cancer awareness and to spend time with my APO brothers. As a campus we raised over $20,000 toward the fight against cancer. I walked for five hours and I really felt like I was making a difference. APO had 6 people walk the full 12 hours from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., the most of any campus organization involved.

There were many activities throughout the night. Mad Chad the chainsaw juggler, two Drake acapella groups and the Drake Dance Team performed. There was a pickle spitting contest and lots of music, which made the time fly. I had such a great time. I can’t wait to help out again next year. – Lindsay Miller

Relays Concessions: Are They Really That Bad? It’s that time of the year again: Relays, fun, and…concessions. Every year for the past few years our chapter has been doing concession shifts at Relays to help raise money. And every year I have the same response, “Oh, great, why do I have to do a relays concession shift when I just want to have fun at relays.” It always seems like it is going to be a boring and tedious task. I have never had any interest in food service of any kind, and

and you even get some free food while working. Every time after I start my concession shift, I always wonder why I thought it was going to be so bad. I always enjoy my shift, and it is never as lame as I think it is going to be. In fact, I find concession shifts to be a really fun time. It is the best opportunity to have fun, hang out, do some service, and make a great amount of money for our amazing chapter!

concessions just does not sound that exciting. After I got to the shift, I started realizing how fun concessions was going to be. Not only does it give you some real bonding time with other APO members that you might not see often or hang out with as much, but it also gives you a few other perks as well. You get to meet some fun and interesting people, you get to spread the APO name around,

-Camie McBee

I Have A Dream Game Night This year APO partnered with the I Have A Dream Foundation and hosted a family game night for the 2nd graders of Moore Elementary in December. The I Have A Dream Foundation sponsors a class of inner-city schoolchildren

from kindergarten through college, ultimately paying for their higher education.

parents came to campus for an evening of games, pizza, crafts, and cookie decorating.

We were very excited to Work with IHAD and our family game night was a huge success. About 75 dreamers, siblings, and

We worked very hard to put this event together and we're thrilled we were able to give the dreamers and their families a night of fun.

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Meagan Savage

A look back at the Spring 2009 semester! [email protected]

1. Omegas at Sectionals 2. Omegas at Nationals 3. EC at Formal 4. Omicron Weber Pledge Class 5. Street painting! 6. APO square

www.drakeapo.blogspot.co m

Leadership, Friendship, & Service

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