On Saturday, May 14, 2022, we were finally able to get together and enjoy T.A. Heckel’s fine wines from his personal cellar. We set a maximum of 100 participants, but felt compelled to allow the total to rise to 102 which was just right for brother Jahn Ballinger’s backyard. John is a collector of antique cars, and he displayed them as part of the ambiance of the wine tasting.
Wine Tasting Committee chairman, Tom Kusaka, paid the entry fee for six undergraduate brothers who enjoyed the event, but also participated by setting up tables and chairs, taking credit card payments and taking down tables and chairs. We thank them for their help, and acknowledge that we could not have done it without them. Wine Tasting Committee members included Greg Baxter, Steve Coleman, T.A. Heckel, Tom Licouris, Titus Moore, Jim Norquist, Mike Patton, Bruce Quan, Gary Renner, Dave Reuland and Mark Springer.
This year we were honored to have a special celebrity guest, Significant Sig Brandon Chaney (Indiana University 1993), proprietor and CEO of Fairwinds Winery in Napa Valley. Brandon brought and poured some of his In Hoc Nape Valley wines.
Although the primary purpose of the event is social, by creating a few fun ways to benefit our endowment, we were able to raise $24,000. We are told our endowment is the largest of any Sigma Chi alumni chapter in North America. We now have $2.250,000 donated or pledged with the ultimate goal of reaching a total of $3,000,000. The scholarships we give to our Active Chapter brothers not only encourage academic excellence and living in the Chapter House, but also provide for the long-term financial strength of our House Corporation. Living in the Chapter House provides the opportunity for brothers to learn leadership and social skills, and to form life-long bonds of brotherhood, all of which may only be possible for students today by being members of a fraternity or sorority. All six undergraduates purchased raffle tickets, two bought auction items and Bravo Bites the taco provider purchased the weekend at the Baxter’s Fish Camp cabin.
Brothers who registered for the event were: Tony Flores 56-S, Elwood Enns 60-F, Warren Williams 61-S, Tom Downing 62-F, Jerry Waters 62-F, Don Beauregard 62-S, Gary Renner 62-S, Mike Patton 63-S, Ted Harcksen 65-F, John Ballinger 65-S, Tim Vaux 66-F, Ken Blom 66-S, Jack Tacchino 66-S, Rich Barsanti 67-F, Greg Baxter 67-S, John Garcia 67-S, Steve Pavich 67-S, Tom Beggs 68-F, Michael Elliott 68-F, Jim Norquist 69-F, Dave Reuland 69-F, Shurl Rosenkrantz 69-F, Mark Scott 69-F, Larry Calvino 69-S, Don Ruiz 69-S, Peter Britton 70-F, Tom Licouris 70-F, Bill Robinson 70-F, Richard Wright 70-F, Michael Lynch 70-S, Chris Visser 71-F, Pat Beggs 72-F, Bruce Quan 72-F, Bill Smittcamp 73-S, Serge Tomassian 74-F, Kirk Wethey 74-F, Kevin Wren 74-F, Rodney Gavroian 76-S, Rob Hauser 76-S, Steve Coleman 78-F, Brad Fischer 78-S, Jon Hollenbeck 79-F, Tom Kusaka 79-F, George Neves 79-F, T.A. Heckel 82-F, Marc Graham 84-S, Sergio Ilic 87-F, Alan Hansen 88-S, Jason Weiner 90-F, Brandon Cheney 90-S λ, Mark Springer 09-F, Evan Selander 12-S, Mike Colgate 14-F, Trenton Benevedes 20-F, Christian Cruz 20-F, Matthew Tatum 20-S, Cooper Lilles 21-F, Payton Thomason 21-F and Zaid Srouji 22-S.