What can you do if you’re a group of fraternity brothers who haven’t seen or interacted with each other for 50-60 years? Well, let us tell you. There was a group of four Phi Kaps who had been in sporadic contact with each other over the years. One of the four, Dave Ehlke, sent an email to the other three in early June and suggested that they initiate a Zoom call.
This was eagerly welcomed since everyone had been sequestered for weeks because of the pandemic. During the call, it was agreed that they should invite other Phi Kap brothers into the call for the following weeks. The group quickly grew to eleven.
After some discussion, the participants decided to schedule weekly Zoom calls and generated a prioritized list of discussion topics. And so it began. It’s interesting that each member enthusiastically attends these zoom calls.
The weekly Zoom meetings started with discussions of:
“What are you most proud of in your life since graduation?”
“How did you meet your wife?”
“What are your favorite fraternity memories?”
Some then and now photos of the brothers attending the virtual reunion.
Some of the other planned discussion topics identified so far include:
“How has the virus impacted you and your family?”
“What types of investments have you made?
“What are the favorite places that you’ve visited?”
In addition, a permanent record of everyone’s life after graduation, lovingly called the “Geezer Report”, is being created by each person. The report is a short review, written by each member, in their own words, which describes their jobs, their family and what they are currently doing. One member, John Lozan is the editor of these reports.
So, what have we learned from these sessions? Well, as you see from the map, the brothers are currently scattered across the country. How did they get there? In addition, we found that the careers of the group members are more varied than you might expect from a group of graduate engineers. One member is a real estate developer (Tom Prioreschi). One owns a winery/vineyard (Gerry Pasterick). Six were business executives (Con DeLetis, Dave Ehlke, Maynard Isabell, Al Muren, John Lozan, and Frank Stilwagner). Two of the brothers are physicians (Joe Crawford, Don Macko) and one was a college professor/provost (Dave Schrady).
Another interesting observation is that many of them have advanced degrees and one member, (Joe Crawford) has 5 degrees. Only one member, (Dave Schrady) actually followed and used his degree in Operations Research. Three were entrepreneurs with their own businesses, (Dave Ehlke, John Lozan and Tom Prioreschi),
The members have been married an average of 51 years.
Besides the usual hobbies of golf, hiking, travel, cruising, there were some unusual hobbies including racing cars (Dave Schrady, Al Muren), collection of credit cards (Con DeLetis), photography/slide shows (John Lozan), ham radio (Joe Crawford), oil painting (Don Macko).
Examples of giving back include; criminal justice reforms (Dave Ehlke), food bank/homeless projects (Frank Stilwagner), scholarships and educational reform (Con DeLetis), civic and non-profit involvement (John Lozan), others supporting non-profits financially (Gerry Pasterick, Al Muren, Joe Crawford, Maynard Isabell,)
While each brother took a different path in life, each has agreed that there was real value in the bonds formed during those early years at Case and in the fraternity. There were many things that the college/fraternity life prepared us for.
Some of the common threads were: the importance of family, the value of education, a life well lived, grateful for opportunities, no significant regrets. In addition, all continued to be in relatively good health (for octogenarians).
It’s been a fascinating and positive reunion. How have you remained in contact with your Phi Kap Brothers?
Let us know by contacting us for a news story!