News
How Has Phi Tau Influenced You?Thank you to our alumni members who recently responded to let us know how Phi Kappa Tau has influenced their lives. Here’s what a few brothers had to say about their time in the fraternity:
Jason Birdsell ‘99: “As an only child, I had a lot to learn about living with so many people. I learned to appreciate people for who they are, regardless of differences between us. This has allowed me to be a strong relationship builder which has helped me in my career. However, more importantly, it’s allowed me to be a much happier person.”
Brian Chodrow ’78: “The Omicron Chapter of Phi Kappa Tau assisted me in establishing organizational skills and the ability to communicate effectively with others. In my current position, much of my work involves organizational skills and communicating with a myriad of individuals and organizations both internally and externally.”
Jens Thorsen ’00: “I made great friends and have great stories from living at the house. I think there are great lessons for people to learn including ‘how to work with people different from yourself’ and ‘how to lead without formal authority.’”
To read more, click the continued link.
Continued... Kicks 4 Kids Needs You!As many of you know already, Omicron alums Ben Eltz, Andy Cecere, Rich Hoffacker and Matt Shaner co-founded a charity organization in 2000 with the Chapter that host youth soccer tournaments. What was once a small tournament benefiting our National Philanthropy (Hole in the Wall Gang Camps), Kicks 4 Kids (
www.kicks4kids.org) is now a growing organization that attracts youth soccer teams from throughout the east coast and of all ages to participate in soccer tournaments of unprecedented quality. For the past 10 years, Kicks 4 Kids has hosted a tournament in Hershey, PA that now annually raises an average of over $25,000 for the Hole in the Wall Gang Camps and is into its 4 year hosting a tournament at Penn State's Intramural Fields. To date, we have raised almost $100,000. This tournament annually hosts over 250 youth soccer teams bringing an estimated over 35,000 visitors to the Hershey & State College areas.
We need YOUR help! We need at least 60 volunteers at each event to help make it a success.
2009 Tournament Dates June 20-21, 2009 (Hershey, PA) August 8-9, 2009 (Penn State's Athletic Fields)
In addition to the satisfaction of volunteering for a great cause, there are many perks to being a volunteer for this event! Continue reading this article for the full story.
Continued... Phi Tau on FacebookPhi Tau has a presence on Facebook now! Even Lap has an account!
To link up with other brothers of Omicron, search for 'Phi Kappa Tau - Omicron Chapter Alumni' to find our group. You have to request to join so the group can be limited to members and close friends. (Or this link may work):
Phi Kappa Tau Omicron Alumni Continued... We Need Your MemoriesIn recent years, the walls of our chapter house have become bare and what remains is very staid (composites). As the chapter continues to grow and improve, the time has come for some much needed updates. Our goal is to deck the walls with items that celebrate the long and colorful history of our chapter.
The benefits of these updates go beyond simple aesthetics to do the following:
- Improve the spirit and pride of the undergraduate members
- Convey the ideals of the chapter to potential new members
- Celebrate the memories of alumni who pass through the chapter house
Alumni
Brother Jason Birdsell (Spring ’95, “Gilligan”) is undertaking the task of creating custom displays/frames for our chapter.
You can send your items to alumni brother Jason Birdsell (contact info below). If you live in the Philadelphia area, Jason can also arrange to meet you.
Mailing Address: 64 Treaty Drive; Wayne, PA 19087
Email: phitau_gilligan@hotmail.com
Phone: (609) 932-3830
Continued... We Need Your PicturesWe need your pictures! Electronic copies are preferred, where possible. If you don’t have them in electronic form, you can send your photos directly to Brother
Jason Birdsell. He will then scan or make copies of the photos and promptly return them to you. Please include any helpful information (dates, people, event, etc).
We need pictures of the following:
a. Social Functions – parties, socials/mixers, formals, etc. Our goal is to cover each of the decades with a custom display. Send whatever you can and include the year of the event, if possible, and any other meaningful details. Many of these pictures will end up being framed and the others will be put into an album.
b. Whales Tales – Though not unique to our chapter, this game is a colorful part of our chapter history. Please send any photos you have of those great “Tales” games.
c. Special Traditions – We want to celebrate the many traditions of our chapter and allow other alumni to enjoy and relive them as they pass through. Maybe, this can even help revive a few old favorites. Please provide details about the tradition!
d. Old Time Rock ‘n’ Roll – Rumor is that this tradition started in the 80’s. In the ensuing decades, rarely a Phi Tau wedding is complete without this traditional dance. Please send along your photos.
e. House Games – Send along any pictures you have of brothers playing pool, darts, card games, board games, etc.
f. Penn State Sports – We want your pictures that show the chapter’s love for PSU sports. Photos from Beaver stadium, tailgates, basketball games or whatever. We want to show off the school spirit of our chapter across the decades.
g. Philanthropy – A great part of our chapter’s history is the philanthropic nature of our brotherhood. Please send any photos or other memorabilia that you may have from philanthropies. Please include the event and any other details.
h. Greek Life Activities – Homecoming, Greek Sing, Spring Week, Thon…whatever it is. Please send along any pictures or memorabilia that you may have.
You can send your items to alumni brother Jason Birdsell (contact info below). If you live in the Philadelphia area, Jason can also arrange to meet you.
Mailing Address: 64 Treaty Drive; Wayne, PA 19087
Email: phitau_gilligan@hotmail.com
Phone: (609) 932-3830
Continued... We Need Valuable Information a. Pledge Class Details - We will be dedicating a section of the house to all of the men who achieved brotherhood in our chapter. Each brother’s name will be inscribed into the chapter house. To that end, we would like to know any pledge class details that you have. In particular, names of pledge brothers, pledge class nickname, and pledge year/semester (e.g. Spring 1995). We have the names of all initiated brothers, but we want to honor them by grouping them with their pledge brothers.
b. Favorite Traditions and Memories – Anything that you can think of that makes you smile or proud about your time in the chapter, we want to know. We hope to create a list of all these things and use that list to find ways to celebrate and remember the wonderful things that make our chapter great.
You can send your information to alumni brother
Jason Birdsell (contact info below). If you live in the Philadelphia area, Jason can also arrange to meet you.
Mailing Address: 64 Treaty Drive; Wayne, PA 19087
Email: phitau_gilligan@hotmail.com
Phone: (609) 932-3830
Continued... Interact with Phi Kappa Tau BrothersWe’re excited to introduce a new place in our new alumni community, where you can interact directly with groups of Phi Kappa Tau brothers. You can participate in the brotherhood community, create a new group for you and your friends, or join an existing one! Within each group’s page, the members have control over the content. You can upload and share links, videos, photos, events and comments with other members. Create and/or join as many groups as you’d like...such as a group for your pledge class, another for alumni in your major/career field, and maybe another for brothers in your state/region.
Click here to get started!
Continued... All News