TexaS H Fiji The longhorn Fiji–The University of Texas at austin established 1883 Fall 2011 Tau Deuteron Thanks Graduates for involvement The WalTmon Family: Four Generations of Fiji Tradition Chapter Experiences Successful Rush and Elects New BCA President Great MeMories HiGHliGHt tHeir History or the Waltmon family, the Fiji tradition is engrained and a strong am happy to report that all is well at Tau Deuteron. The spring se - Fpart of their history. From the oldest graduate, DeWitt Waltmon imester included a successful Pig Dinner and Parent’s Weekend. ’19 , to the youngest, Austin Waltmon ’11 (pledge), Fiji has been a life- Jon Brumley ’57 was the keynote speaker at the Pig Dinner and altering experience for four generations. gave a wonderful talk that was enjoyed by all. DeWitt Waltmon Sr. ’45 grew up in Hearne, Texas. But due to his fa - ther’s untimely death when he was only two years old, he never heard Chapter Completes Successful Rush firsthand how much Phi Gamma Delta meant to his dad. Nevertheless, Tau Deuteron put a lot of effort into a very successful 2011 rush. The through his mother, his father’s college photo albums, and influence captains effectively managed the rush budget and pledged 55 out - from other family and friends, primarily his uncle, Ghent Graves Sr. standing young men. We have a great Chapter because of the under - ’20 , he maintained the family tradition and pledged Fiji with his cousin, graduates who value and proudly carry on the Texas Fiji tradition. If Ghent Graves Jr. ’44 . “I pledged because of the all the Phi Gams before you have sons, grandsons, nephews, or brothers who are thinking me, including my dad.” As an undergraduate, he held the position of so - cial chairman. “My undergraduate experience meant lifetime friend - Chris Re - about the University of Texas at Austin, please inform ships.” DeWitt Sr. graduated with a bachelor of arts. From his life naudin ’10 so that he can get their name on a recruitment list for experiences, he offers sound and simple advice to younger alumni. next summer. “Maintain your friendships, marry well, and raise a great family.”
marshall merritt ’79 elected BCa President Over the years, DeWitt Sr. has had a chance to experience leadership and councils individuals to “be a good leader or a good follower, listen I extend a hearty welcome to Marshall Merritt ’79 , who is the in - to others.” Both of his sons, DeWitt Jr. ’76 and Scott ’83 , carried the coming Board of Chapter Advisors president. Marshall, along with Waltmon Tau Deuteron Fiji tradition to the third generation. the board, has helped guide the Chapter with the fall and spring (Continued on page 2) schedule. On the schedule are tailgates at Buen Retiro starting two hours before every home football game. Other members of the board who have made an impact on the Chapter’s schedule include Bill Fowler ’73 , who is in charge of pledgeship oversight, Robert Canon ’72 who helped plan and execute the Pig Dinner, and Mark Winter ’79 , who has overseen the Chapter’s finances.
We also extend a thank-you to the many graduates who support the Chapter with their time, talents, and resources. Please stop by the house before any home football game. The undergraduates are look - ing forward to visiting with you and hearing about your time at Tau Deuteron. Glad to be a Fiji!
GTBO, Bobby Orr ’75 , Outgoing BCA President [email protected]
Perge! Three generations of Waltmons enjoy a Fiji tailgate. From left: Scott ’83, DeWitt Sr. ’45, Austin ’11, and DeWitt Jr. ’76.
inSiDe: Fiji maintains academic Standard page 3 • 2011 Pledge Class page 3 • Donors page 4 H Phi Gamma Delta Page 2 The WalTmon Family (Continued from front page) DeWitt Jr. pledged Fiji and never looked back. so much in life and continue to be the individ - “Regardless of my family history at Fiji, I uals I look up to, respect, and just plain enjoy went through full rush with all the other fra - being around. Those relationships bring re - ternities, but ultimately decided on Fiji be - wards and successes on a personal, financial, cause of the active Chapter at that time. In the and spiritual level for the rest of your life.” end, it was a 1-2 punch that made the decision a no-brainer.” That attitude has continued and For over 30 years, DeWitt Jr., Scott, and their DeWitt Jr. says that his time spent as an un - father have been responsible for hosting mul - dergraduate was the greatest time of his life. tiple Fiji gatherings, including rush parties, “Who I am and the successes I have achieved, bus trips to and from football games, and re - and most importantly, the enjoyments in my unions at their river home in Hunt, Texas. De - life, all revolve around the relationships I Witt Jr. remembers, “My dad was such a made at Phi Gamma Delta. Members of my friend and gracious host to all of our Fiji pledge class are still my very closest friends.” friends, that they gave him the nickname He graduated with a degree in marketing. ‘Summer Santa’ for being so jolly and jovial year round.” In 2008, DeWitt Jr. hosted a 25th The leadership opportunities available at Tau reunion for his Fiji brothers, which was fol - Deuteron still have a huge impact on DeWitt lowed the next year by a surprise gathering Jr., much like his father and grandfather before where DeWitt Jr. and his father were honored him. “The brothers of our Fraternity taught me with the gift of installing new lights at their river home tennis DeWitt Waltmon ’19 and Ghent Graves Sr. ’20 court, along with a stand outside Buen Retiro. plaque commemo - rating the apprecia - Texas. He is a self-described goof-off and a tion the Texas Fijis member of the board of Phi Gamma Delta Ed - had for the many ucational Foundation. Scott and his wife, years the Waltmon Emily, have three boys: Travis, John, and Ben. family helped keep DeWitt Jr. and his wife, Karen, live in Hous - them all together. ton, and DeWitt is a member of the Tau Deuteron BCA. DeWitt Jr. and Karen have DeWitt Sr. is now three children: Amanda, Matt, LSU ’05 , who retired and lives was the first fourth-generation Fiji, and with his wife, Mar - Austin ’11 , the first-ever direct fourth-gener - garet, in Houston, ation Tau Deuteron Fiji.
The plaque honoring DeWitt Sr. ’45 and DeWitt Jr. ’76 for their dedication to Tau Deuteron.
meet the Board of Chapter advisors
President Graduate Philanthropy/Service Recruitment (South Texas) Advisory Member Marshall Merritt ’79 Relations/Newsletter Evan Williams ’78 Bobby Orr ’75 Carcy Clinton ’76 Dallas, Texas DeWitt Waltmon Jr. ’76 Austin, Texas Houston, Texas Irving, Texas marshall@ Houston, Texas merritt-capital.com Pig Dinner Ritual Advisory Member (214) 987-9808 Insurance Robert Canon ’72 David Duke ’87 Ardon Moore ’77 Peter Pincoffs ’73 Austin, Texas Austin, Texas Ft. Worth, Texas Chapter Administration Austin, Texas Mark Muecke ’00 Pledge Education Advisory Member Purple Legionnaire San Antonio, Texas Legal/Risk Management Bill Fowler ’73 Brad Fowler ’56 Max Reinbach III ’07 Bryan Campbell ’78 Austin, Texas Austin, Texas Austin, Texas Finance Austin, Texas Mark Winter ’79 Recruitment (North Texas) Advisory Member Austin, Texas Jeff Hickey ’77 Delano Womack ’56 Dallas, Texas Austin, Texas Page 3 Texas Fiji H Fiji maintains academic Standard and Community involvement
e have had an incredible summer at Buen Retiro. Recruitment went Fijis around the World Wexceptionally well and a lot of the credit goes to the four state re - I would like to highlight some unique experiences from brothers during the cruitment captains. We surely have one of the most summer vacation. Michael Atmar ’09 interned at exceptional pledge classes in Tau Deuteron history. a seminary in Barcelona before traveling to Israel. Jack Holtzman ’09 , Trevor Howard ’09 , and Will academic Success a high Priority Carabasi ’09 made a trip to the Running of the Texas Fiji maintains our record of academic excel - Bulls in Pamplona, Spain. lence. We were ranked in the top 10 among all IFC fraternities for yet another year. Starting from the As we look forward to the year, graduates, here are moment a brother receives a bid to the day he grad - a few things to keep in mind for the fall semester. I uates, the brother’s academic support of other broth - would like to cordially invite all family and friends ers creates a learning environment incomparable to to congregate at Buen Retiro before each Longhorn other fraternities on campus. New members attend Luke Stone ’09, Charles Beckendorf ’09, Milam home football game this season. Food and music weekly study hall sessions and are encouraged to Miller ’08, and Tripp Ballard ’09 worked in New will be provided, and the tailgates will begin two use the study house. York City this summer. In lieu of Fiji Island, the hours before each game. Parent’s Weekend will be brothers found the closest thing to the famous October 28-30, the weekend of the Kansas home Undergraduates involved in the sand-filled front yard at Buen Retiro. game. We look forward to seeing you and we would Community and intramurals like to thank you for your continuing involvement and support as we begin another exciting year for Tau Deuteron recently held a raffle benefiting the Texas Fiji! Beyond Battens Disease Foundation. Thanks to the support of many Fiji families, the Chapter was able Yours in the Bond, to make a sizable donation to the foundation. Fijis Chris Renaudin ’10 also continue to set example in athletics: we won Chapter President the intramural softball championship and placed [email protected] second in intramural basketball. Patrick McNa - mara ’08 , a wide-receiver walk-on, led the Texas Perge! football team in receiving yards this past spring. Jess Cole ’09, Nick Barham ’09, and Jeff Wilson ’09 spent this summer touring Europe. 2011 PleDGe ClaSS Gus Chestnut Burwell Thompson Hayden Carson William Case Chris Fouggerousse Mickey Chevans Amarillo Corsicana Ft. Worth Houston Lufkin Tyler
Sam Boyce * Brian Cavanaugh Connor Mannon William Reade Ross Montgomery Will Deshazo Amarillo Dallas Houston Houston Midland Tyler (Beaumont Boyce ’04 ) John Paul Ackels Dillon West Matt Luna Nelson Grimes * Graham McGregor * Austin Shealy Dallas Houston Houston Midland Wichita Falls Atlanta, Ga. (Link Grimes ’83 ) (Robert Edwards ’66 , Zach Dorflinger Holden Hamblen Buc Howard Joe Flack ’69 , Billy Bedillion Dallas Houston Houston Carter Thurmond Mark Edwards ’74 , Joe Austin San Antonio Flack III ’98 , Alex Bryan Graham Bayley John Cotton * J.P. Finley ’01 ) Brew Houston Southlake Houston Houston George Shaw Austin (Taylor Cotton ’11 , San Antonio Will Huddleston Cole Marlow Jay Mullen John Cotton ’14 ) Wichita Falls Reid Hairston * Dallas Houston James Uhl * Austin Chase Russo San Antonio (Kyle Hairston ’10 ) Carson Ashbaugh Matt Williamson * Houston (Arthur Uhl ’77 ) *Legacy; relative in Dallas Houston parentheses Spence Howden (Brant Williamson ’09 ) Austin Waltmon * Richard Sparr Austin Harrison Duncan * Houston San Antonio Eagle Lake Steven Gay (DeWitt Waltmon ’19 , Jack Scharnberg (Vance Duncan ’74 ) Houston DeWitt Waltmon Sr. Coley Kellogg Austin ’45 , DeWitt Waltmon San Antonio Preston Moore * Thomas Duncan * Jr. ’76 , Scott Waltmon Reed Clemons Ft. Worth Houston ’83 ) Taylor Thornton * Corpus Christi (Arden Moore ’77 , (John Duncan ’12 , San Antonio Tucker Moore ’11 , William Duncan ’14 ) Dylan Case (Mark Thornton ’72 ) Hudson Moore ’12 ) Lubbock
Lyles Carte r* Will Schumacher Joe Robertson * Mauricio Garza Kelly Kuni * Rye Hinkle * Austin Austin Burnet Dallas Houston Lake Travis (Carl Brumley ’50 , (Robby Robertson ’76 , (Doug Kuni ’78 ) (Carl Brumley ’50 , Harold Brumley ’51 , Tyler Robertson ’93 , Charlie Fitzpatrick Harold Brumley ’51 , Jon Brumley ’57 ) Will Robertson ’08 ) Houston Jon Brumley ’57 ) Save the Date H october 28-30 TexaS Fiji Greek Parent’s Weekend texas vs. Kansas
april 12, 2012 Phi Gamma DelTa Pig Dinner BUen ReTiRo CommiTTee P.o. B ox 4769 Please mark your calendars: two hours aUSTin , Tx 78765 before every home football game, there will be a tailgate sponsored by the men Address Service Requested of tau Deuteron. Please join us!
hoUSe CoRPoRaTion
President Jim Rodman ’82 Austin, Texas
Robert Heiser ’74 Austin, Texas
Kevin Snodgrass ’78 Houston, Texas
Buddy Pletz ’56 aTTenTion: this newsletter is intended for alumni and parents. if your son is still attending the San Antonio, Texas University of texas , he will receive a copy at the Chapter House. if he has graduated, please send us his permanent address to update our records. thank you. Donors Who Made Recruitment 2011 Possible hank you loyal donors for supporting Tau Deuteron’s recruitment. If there has been a mistake recording these names, please contact Marshall TMerritt ’79 at [email protected]. Marshall Adkins Kent Collins Preston Hart Jim McCuistion Scott Petty C.B. Team Thomas Allen Porter Corrigan Matt Hawkins Scott McDonald Buddy Pletz Scott Tellkamp James Armstrong Gary Cox Ned Heiser Tom McGaughy Charles Plummer Jr. Taylor Thaggard Steve Arnold Richard Danner Robert Heiser Barton McLaughlin Thomas Rachal Clayton Thomas David Aycock Doug Dawson Jeff Heller James McLaughlin Karl Rathjen John Thomas Brian Bacharach Danny Dexter Steve Herrmann Matthew McLaughlin Brent Ratliff Layne Thompson Craig Bailey Stephen Dexter Jeff Hickey Joe Merritt Robert Ray Mark Thornton Jeff Bailey Gardner Dudley Bruce Hill Marshall Merritt Michael Reilly Trent Thrash Michael Ball Robert Dullnig Brian Hodges Fred Middleton Max Reinbach Tim Timanus Brian Barnard Billy Dwyer Brandon Holcomb John Mitchell Rick Renaudin * Keller T. Towns Rick Beeler Ross Eastman Reeves Hollimon Taylor Moody Marvin Rickabaugh Arthur Uhl Charlie Berkey Michael Ellington Clayton Hudnall Ardon Moore Rick Roberts Ryan Wald Tim Blonkvist Howard Etheridge Charlie Huey Glenn Mortimer Tom Robinson Patrick Walker James Broussard Jim Fallon Grant Johnson MarkMuecke David Roche Rob Walls Jay Brown Will Fawcett Cullen Kappler Matt Muecke Jeff Rochelle Scott Waltmon John Buchek Jr. Robert Flannery Allan King James Murphy Will Rogers DeWitt Waltmon Jr. Ben Bufkin Campbell Foster Bill Kingman Jack Nahoum Trebes Sasser DeWitt Waltmon Sr. Kyle Burnett Stephen Fox John Kinzer John Nelson James Satel Jeff Webb James Burke * Casey Fry Richard LePere Tom Newton David Shulman James Wells Zane Buttler Brian Gammill Adam Lieck Michael O’Shell Scott Sledge Kirk Wiginton Will Campbell Richard Gannett Larry Loyd Mike Oldham Michael G. Smith Larry Wilkey Robert Canon Bert Graham Bill Lyons Steve Oldham Kevin Snodgrass James Willerson Lon Carpenter Joseph Gray Will Marsh David Ott Clayton Stanley Evan Williams Scott Carr Eric Greenfield James Mason Bobby Orr Chris Stellar Ron Willis Clint Chaffin William Griffin James Mason Jr. Scott Parsons Russell Stith Jack Womack Scott Christy Andrew Guinn Wilson Mason Stephen Pearce Ned Stocker Charles Woodward Marshall Clegg Stephen Gunn Larry McAfee William Penny Jr. Herbert Story Robert Wooten Carcy Clinton Mark Hablinski * William McAfee Carter Perrin Max Stubbs Dan Zocht Roy Coffee Jr. Hall Hammond Dick McCaleb Paul Peters Ryan Taaffe *Indiciates Fiji Dad