ZAHM HOUSE 2 Welcome from the Rector First Years, Welcome to Zahm! While your natural intelligence and academic gifts prepared you for the University of Notre Dame and your commitment to excellence earned your way into our hallowed campus, it is through grace and providence that you find yourself among the men of Zahm. Our hall House has had a long tradition of being one of brotherhood, mutual support, excellence in service, and great comradery. We are excited that you will be joining us in the Fall for your time here at Notre Dame. Hopefully this Red Book will assist in your preparation for joining us. My name is Fr. Matthew Hovde, csc. I am a Holy Cross priest, recently ordained to serve God’s people. It is with great joy and zeal that I serve primarily as the Rector of Zahm, and serve this community. Zahm is a unique community, recognized across the campus for its unwavering commitment to each of our men. No matter where you are from, what major you hope to pursue, what your likes and dislikes are, no matter how you define yourself, you are a member of Zahm. You are welcomed, valued, and honored here. Your brothers are here to support and assist you, not just because they happen to share a building with you. You belong here because you bring a tremendous deal to this community: yourself. I encourage you strongly to get to know the rest of the men who call this place home. Even though your time at Notre Dame will be busy in a way that you may have never before experienced, you are not coming to here to be mindless drones that do nothing but turn junk food and caffeine into papers and passible test scores. You are brought to Notre Dame to thrive! It is important to balance your academics with personal health, recreation, socialization, service, and personal interests. Look to your upperclassmen in the dorm. See how they strike this important balance. Study with them. Serve with them. But also have fun with them. You may find as you walk through the hallways that ESPN is a staple of most college men’s news sources, Ping-Pong and Pool can be incredible stress relievers, and that playing cards with your section is just what you need to decompress. Inter-hall sports will unite the dorm in a common cause. Your sections’ bookstore basketball team may need either assistance on the court or in the stands. Notre Dame will challenge you in new ways. I think the most important among these is learning to live with some folks who may be different from you. Learning to share with and respect your brothers in the dorm is a lesson that will serve you well in life. College is one of the most important experiences you will have in your life. You will be taught amazing new things, challenged to think and feel in new ways, stretched beyond what you thought were your limits. You will converse, debate, reconsider, recommit, and articulate deeply held convictions in new and powerful ways. You will learn from others, who you may disagree with. You will make tremendous relationships. You will learn as much about yourself as you do other people. The relationships you make here, the greatness you will be schooled in, and the person you will become through your time here at Notre Dame is an incredible experience. My greatest advice to you is to dive right into it. Don’t hold back. From day one, engage those around you, and always be authentic to who you are. You made it into Notre Dame. You were excepted. You belong here; at Notre Dame, and in Zahm. I look forward to meeting you all in August, and sharing in this amazing journey that lies ahead of you. In Notre Dame, Fr. Matthew Hovde, C.S.C. ZAHM HOUSE 3 2016 WELCOME CREW Welcome Crew Captain: Rudy Bernard Welcome Crew Ambassadors: Alex Bonino, Andrew Stineman, Ankur Kumar, Anthony Smyth, Chris Brendza, Chris Page, Eddie Griesedieck, Harry Federspiel, Jack Horvath, John Brolly, Kelson Pike, Matthew Bushland, and Niko Martinovic. Greetings and welcome to the University of Notre Dame. More importantly, welcome to Zahm House, the finest residence experience the University of Notre Dame has to offer. The men listed above have been selected to welcome you and the other members of our Class of 2020 and immerse you all into the 79 years of august tradition and impassioned spirit that makes Zahm House the home you will find it to be. Before you even get out of your car, we hope that you will begin to understand that Zahm is not your average residence hall. As your Welcome Crew, it will be our distinct pleasure and honor to assist you in getting settled and acquainted with your new digs. We will help move and unpack your things, introduce you to your new classmates, and tour you around this beautiful campus — in tried, true, and classic Zahm style. As the first week of college can prove to be difficult for many, we look forward to relieving as much of your stress and anxiety as possible. Our first effort at assisting you is this Red Book. In it you will find information about the Welcome Crew members listed above, various and sundry information about the ND/South Bend area, and some vital facts about your home for the coming years. Remember that although we have as yet to meet each other, we are already your brothers. Not only are we here to help but we also want to help. When you arrive we’ll be the really enthusiastic guys in the red shirts that your parents think are either a) really nice or b) a little too excited. Do not hesitate to ask us for anything you might need throughout Welcome Weekend and beyond. Through our efforts, we hope that you will experience the fullness of what it means to be a Zahmbie. ZAHM HOUSE 4 Greetings from the Welcome Commissioner Men of Zahm, Class of 2020, Welcome to the one, the only, the House - Zahm House! We congratulate you on your admittance to heaven (a.k.a.the University of Notre Dame du Lac), which we can claim honestly and biasedly to be the greatest place on earth. (We wanted to say, “happiest place on earth” but apparently this Walt guy really locked down that phrase a while back.) You are now a part of the tradition that is Notre Dame: waves of swaying students singing the alma mater after every sporting event, the Grotto, intramural sports, invigorated arts and academics, Touchdown Jesus, hanging out on the quad, and countless other memories you will take with you and hold dear forever from this place. Notre Dame is truly a special place. Being in your shoes just two years ago, I know what it feels like to be in your position, getting ready to move away from home to start the best four years of your life. It can be challenging. But I’m here for anything you may need, along with your other freshmen brothers and 13 ludicrous Zahmbies in red ready to help in any way possible. Don’t hesitate to ask. The truly warranted congratulations, however, goes to your “random” (we know it to be an act of God) selection into the most spirited, most renowned, and hands down all around best residence on campus. We’re so far above everyone else it’s actually a bit scary; we’re not even a dorm: we are a House. Your home for the coming years embodies tradition — from our famous alumni (Joe Theisman, Regis Philbin) to beloved customs (‘Roni Za, Zahm Carnival, and countless more, of which you will soon be a part). Despite what may have held true in the days of Yesteryear, today Zahm sits on the most prime of all real estate on campus. Located on North Quad, we live a stone’s throw away from North Dining Hall, a window’s view from the Dome, and a pleasantly short stroll from Hesburgh Library and the LaFortune student center. Moreover, the lovely ladies of Cavanaugh (our sister dorm), Farley, and BP grace our presence on the quad. And — it ought to be noted — we charitably allow the boys of Keenan, Stanford, and St. Ed’s to wallow in the shadow that extends from our grand home. So, for those of you that have already begun slacking and skimming, here are some Cliffnotes: Zahm has housed the finest men (and continues to do so) that Our Lady has to offer, it possesses a superb location, and it epitomizes tradition. Now let us proceed to some more specifics. In Zahm, you will have some 200 or so brothers to constantly bump elbows with. We understand and remember that at times your rooms may become boring, restrictive, and maybe even lonely. So, when you feel the need to escape from them, stop by a common room, find a seat on a couch, and hang out. Common rooms are notorious for stealing away useful time. The five-mans, which now actually house 4, (at the end of the hall in the B-sections) are the main common rooms to hang out in along with the “House Commons” in the A-sections. We also have study lounges on the second and third floors (by the A-section bathrooms), along with the Xavier Murphy Study Lounge on the first floor near the double study lounge across from Fr.