Nearly 300 brothers and guests gathered in Columbus over the weekend of October 3-5, to celebrate our first century of Ohio Gamma SigEp, and to look forward at the future. Ohio Gamma Alumni met on Friday night in the hospitality suite of the DoubleTree hotel in Worthington, Ohio. Among the distinguished guests present was Grand President Steve Shanklin, who said some kind words about the fraternity's future and how great an asset Ohio Gamma is to the SigEp nation.
On Saturday morning we joined for the strategic planning committee session discussing the use of our current funds, and our future intentions for raising more money. The discussion was led by Strategic Planning Committee Chairman, George Smith '63, and Bob Barnett '71, Chairman of the Ohio Gamma Foundation. Much conversation revolved around the future of housing and scholarships, the tangible byproducts of fundraising.
We proceeded to the chapter house at 1943 Waldeck Avenue, for house tours, lunch, and campus tours. Many alumni were pleasantly surprised by the pristine condition the house is in without the "old-time luxury" of having pledges! The undergraduates also prepared an Alumni Reaffirmation Ceremony which they held at the Indianola Church, across from SigEp. Alumni were reinvigorated with SigEp Pride and reminded of the special qualities of the ritual.
Finally, the Brothers, Alumni Brothers, and guests of honor joined together at the DoubleTree Hotel and Banquet Center in Worthington, Ohio. The banquet began with an address from emcee John "CJ" Waggoner. CJ was followed up by Sean Mittleman (undergraduate President), Dr. Rich Hollingsworth (VP of Student Affairs), The Honorable Archie Yeatts (Past Grand President), and finally Bob Barnett (Ohio Gamma Foundation President.) The speeches recalled memories, shared inspiration for the future, and called all brothers to action so we can move into our second century. To help jumpstart that, the brothers in attendence who graduated between the years 2000-2008 made a joint donation of over $20,000 to the foundation!
The event concluded with dancing and watching the Buckeyes beat Wisconsin on the big screen TV. Brothers are looking to get together on a regular basis for regional events to keep up the spirit of brotherhood that has built up for the Centennial Celebration!
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