RMF Costs to Rise Again

Just when you think our insurance providers have screwed us the best they can, they do it again. As you probably remember, we were notified of an estimated increase last year of somewhere around 25% that turned out to be 70% year over year. We just got word that this will probably be another devastating year for fraternity insurance costs (according to our own Risk Management Foundation) as we have again been notified of another increase…this time in the neighborhood of 70%. Obviously this is devastating news for many chapters and is certainly far from good news for Eta Iota.

I honestly don’t know how many chapters will continue to stay afloat financially with these types of increases.
House Corp is awaiting the final figures to know exactly what our 2002-2003 premiums will come out to but we are already thinking of alternate payment plans for the actives to be able to afford such an increase without this becoming more of a crisis. We would gladly appreciate any assistance from our Insurance gurus in helping us identify ways to reduce costs. If you have any background in this matter, please contact either me at 214-979-0850 or Brian Lojko at 912-897-4659. Continue reading →

Brother Leo Shamlen

The following was forwarded to me from Steve Robinson via Bill Palmer. I do not have any further information at this time but will keep everyone posted:
From Steve:
I spoke to his [Leo’s] mom, who informed me that Leo passed away last year. It happened in Mexico, apparently due to a heart attack. The details I got were that Leo traveled quite a bit in his job and was living on his own at the time. His mom told me that it was about three weeks before she realized he was missing – because of the frequent travel. After she initiated the missing persons search, she was alerted that the body had been found on a beach in Mexico on the Baha Peninsula. She said there were a number of small fish camps in the area and apparently he had set up camp to fish.

His body was found on the beach with his sleeping bag rolled up under him as if he had fallen asleep that way. There was no evidence of violence or foul play at the time the body was located. That’s about all I got. When she first took the call, I asked if Leo could be reached through that number (I knew it was his parent’s address), she apparently thought I was calling about bills or other stuff. She spoke calmly, but you could tell she was still pretty shaken up talking about it. Continue reading →

Brothers,
As some of you have noticed, this is the first House Corp update of 2002 as I have been unable to devote as much time and energy to this position in the past few months as it deserves. American has been keeping me more than busy as we are approaching the launch of a brand new website for AA.com with a fresh new look and all sorts of functionality for our customers.

With it scheduled to launch later this month, my time for House Corp has been pretty limited. For those of you who are interested, we are having a beta-launch prior to the actual release for select customers. As airline employees and industry experts, drop me a line if you’re interested in trying it out before the general public and I can set you up. Continue reading →

I’m keeping this month’s email short because we are currently writing the next printed newsletter due out later this month. In the meantime, here’s what we have for this month’s email update:

Alumni Updates Wanted

If you’ve got anything you’d like the chapter to know about: weddings, anniversaries, newborns, new jobs, needing a job, we’d like to know about it this week so we can include it in the printed newsletter. This is the best way to get word out to our Brothers as almost everyone receives it so speak up if you want to be heard. Submissions can be emailed to me at magnum@ntplx.net and should be sent by November 12th. Continue reading →

I’d like to start this month’s update with a collective sigh of relief that our own Brothers from Eta Iota were not directly involved with the tragic events of September 11th. While some of us were closer than others by either being in the air or in the vicinity of the disaster sites, I was relieved to hear that our members are safe and not among the list of victims.

The terrorists’ actions of that tragic day have been both shocking and awakening for all of us as a nation and we are now beginning to feel it’s implications as aviation professionals. With the aviation industry already pounded by a slowing economy, the new regulations and financial crisis facing the industry are sure to bring home unwelcome news for many of us. With a state of emergency declared at most major carriers and over 100,000 layoffs and furloughs expected throughout the industry, I think it’s important to remind our Brothers that you find strength in the arms of our brotherhood. Continue reading →

University Status Letter

This past month, I received a letter from ERAU President, Dr. Ebbs, regarding their recent meetings on the topic of Greek housing following our 30th Birthday weekend. There was both good news and bad news in the letter and as we know well, it is too early to tell what will be done about the situation.

I’ll start with the bad news. Dr. Ebbs included a copy of a letter sent by Dr Ledewitz in 1999 referring to a study that the university had done with University Housing Services, Inc. (UHS) to evaluate the feasibility and usability of a Greek housing on campus. The outcome of this study was, for the most part, no surprise.

The letter stated, “This study was intended as a guide to continue upgrading the ERAU housing system to achieve a stated goal of housing 60% of the students on campus. A secondary goal of this study was to provide the University with the financial and market analysis to expedite the financing process for any proposed new construction.” Continue reading →

Eta Iota @ Grand Chapter

This past weekend, over 500 Sigma Chis converged on The Big Easy for the fraternity’s bi-annual Grand Chapter. Eta Iota was represented well with numerous undergraduates and alumni, including Tyrel “J-J” Gibson, Grant “big-britches” Petronsky, Julio “Papa-John” Varela, Tom “something’s growing on my face” Maugeri (he swears it’s not infectious), Jeff “Look who I’m dating” Fejfar, Mark “Have you seen my jet” Burroughs, Brian “any scissor lifts around here” Lojko, and the 99-01 Int’l Sweetheart Wendy Papson. A good time was had by all and the locals on Bourbon Street treated us well during the after hours festivities.

Continue reading →

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ETA IOTA

Although the party is still about 6 weeks away, it’s official this coming week: Eta Iota turns 30 on Tuesday, March 6th. What’s in store for our chapter as we approach this big anniversary? Who knows? But based on our remarkable history so far, it’s safe to say our chapter certainly has a bright future within Sigma Chi.

Looking back over the past three decades draws quite a picture of our accomplishments as a group as well as individual achievements. Starting from a group of 11 we have grown to over 700 brothers who, in my honest opinion, share some of the closest bonds of brotherhood within our fraternity. With a dozen or so Peterson Significant Chapter Awards we have proven our chapter to be comprised of true Sigma Chis capable of meeting and exceeding the standards of an exemplary chapter.

We have also had our fair share of hurdles and roadblocks along our journey but have emerged as a stronger chapter for having had those experiences. Just last year, Major General John Bailey set another milestone in Eta Iota’s history as his personal achievements earned him the distinction of being the first “Significant Sig” from our chapter. Congratulations again to Brother Bailey and I look forward to future achievements and successes from within our chapter. Continue reading →

30th BIRTHDAY UPDATE

We’re down to 3 weeks and counting until the preliminary deadline! Be sure to send in your registration and make your arrangements. Ticket costs go up after Feb 22nd and the hotel rooms at the plaza Resort & Spa are already filling up quickly at our discounted rate. American and Delta are also starting to fill up with the start of summer vacationers so be sure to book soon if you want to take advantage of the 5-10% discount we’ve arranged with both carriers. Continue reading →

On behalf of The House Corporation, I hope everyone and their family enjoyed a safe and happy holiday season. We have accomplished a lot in 2000 and are keeping up the pace into 2001 in preparation for the big projects and events planned for Eta Iota.

30th Birthday Update

You should have already received your complete invitation packet for 30th Birthday (they were sent out earlier in December so let us know if it has not arrived). We have posted complete information on the website at http://www.etaiota.org/birthday.htm including the full weekend schedule, hotel & travel discounts, contact information, pricing and even the ability to make online credit card payments! Continue reading →