Significant Sig Elvin Bell 57-F has announced in a press release that he is donating some of his books to our chapter. A graduate and former adjunct professor and lecturer at Fresno State, who served five elected terms in public office, is donating nineteen books he authored to the Fresno State Epsilon Eta Chapter of the Sigma Chi Fraternity. Seven additional books brother Bell wrote while on active duty in the White House and Pentagon will be subsequently donated to the fraternity when the Department of Defense down-grades the books’ current top-secret classification.

In 2013, he was recognized by the fraternity as a Significant Sig in appreciation of his five terms in elected public office in California, and his remarkable combat and command leadership during a 31-year military career. The highlight of one of brother Bell’s assignments occurred on June 18, 1973, when President Richard Nixon, who knew of Bell’s intelligence work on Russia, ordered Bell transferred from his senior faculty position at the National War College in Washington, DC to the White House. During the next four long days Bell participated with President Nixon and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in negotiating the first Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT) with Russia’s leader, Leonid Brezhnev. Prior to the White House SALT summit meeting, Bell led sensitive and highly risky intelligence missions into Russia, Poland, and Czechoslovakia.

During his three-plus decades of military service, he commanded seven different military units, including a Squadron and Group, had four assignments in the White House, a four-year tour in the Pentagon, and was deployed to six different foreign countries. As well as serving 16 years in elected office, Bell is also a retired Air Force Colonel after service in the Army National Guard, the Army, Air National Guard, and the Air Force.

Those attending Bell’s June 30, 1985, military retirement ceremony in the Pentagon included Vice President H. W. Bush, members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and California Governor George Deukmejian, who presented Bell with the honorary promotion to Brigadier General in the California Air National Guard.

Bell earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a master’s degree in public administration from Fresno State. He was a pledge in the Sigma Chi Fraternity ’s Fall 1957 class. He was also an Honor Roll graduate of Fresno’s Central High School. During his student years at Central he was editor of the school newspaper, winner of the annual American Legion speech contest two consecutive years, a champion debater, on the varsity track and basketball teams, President of the Sequoia League of Student Councils, and President of the Hi-Y, the boys’ Christian association. His Central track records in the high jump and the 1,320-yard race prevailed for 21 years before they were broken.

When he campaigned in 1965 for the Fresno City Council at age 27, he became the youngest person ever elected to public office in a major California city, according to the California League of Cities.

In addition to his BA and MPA degrees from Fresno State, brother Bell also has a law degree from LaSalle Law School, a master’s in international relations from the Air War College at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama, and a PhD in business administration and management from California Coast University, Santa Ana.

At noon on Thursday, July 1, 1976, Fresno Mayor Pro Tem Elvin C. Bell hoisted the historic bicentennial flag up the flag pole in front of City Hall where it waved in unison for five days with the Stars and Stripes and the California state bear flag. On the morning of July 5, 1976, Bell lowered the flag, folded it in the appropriate manner, had it appraised in value at $138,000, and placed it in his bank vault safe. It stayed there for 40 years. He found a permanent home for the flag at Fresno State when then President Joseph Castro accepted the flag as a prized gift. President Castro directed the flag be flown on campus on July 4, 2016. During subsequent years the flag is displayed at two different sites; a prominent wall display along with a proclamation that describes its significance, in the Henry Madden Library, and in the President’s office “Unfortunately,” Bell said, “the flag’s current fragile condition can no longer withstand being posted, but it is still available to be seen on campus and enjoyed because of its historic significance.

Contributed by Elvin Bell – In addition to donating the flag, I am pleased to provide the books to my Sigma Chi Fraternity library because my years as a Sigma Chi and a Fresno State student were the positive turning points in my life. I will always be grateful to the Sigma Chi leadership who saw and developed a talent in me that helped me win elected office five times, and serve my country on assignments in the White House, the Pentagon and in foreign countries.

 On Saturday, November 6, 2021, the Active Chapter performed the required Sigma Chi ritual and initiated the last new brothers into Epsilon Eta ending the first 100 years of bringing in new members.  Past Consul and Magister, Gio Primavera (17-F), proudly taught the history and values of Sigma Chi to the pledge class of fall 2021 with the help of assistant magisters Luke Karagozian (20-S), Trey Wood  (20-F), and Nolan Sumter (20-F).  There were nineteen new initiates in the Fall 2021 pledge class including brothers Erik Barrera, Joseph Bernardo, Emilio Carranza, Maher Dimassi, José Gonzalez, Connor Gotz, Matt Habig, Noah Hornburg, Bassel Khoury, Rafael Lanzagorta, Cooper Lilles, Max Mahoney, Chris Miller, Seth Preheim, Anthony Rojas, Navid Sadavi, Chris Sousa, Payton Thomason and Austin Tuell.

An aside to initiation, when the solar installation was complete on August 4, 2018, two electric vehicle chargers were installed.  Many alumni asked why, and the answer was that electric vehicles were the future, and Sigma Chi wanted to be ready.  As soon as the chargers were installed, Quaestor Sham Batth (17-F) began to use the chargers with his BMW i8 Roadster, an awesome-looking car, and he continues to use it today.  On November 8, 2021, two days after initiation, this Tesla Model 3 was seen charging.  It belongs to new initiate Navid Sadavi (21-F).

Consul Jordan Ayerza (17-F) is officially and literally in the Epsilon Eta history book after his scholarship award of $10,000 from Sigma Chi International.  Brother Jordan was selected out of 900 applicants to be awarded the Founder Thomas Cowan Bell Academic Scholarship which is only awarded to seven brothers across the nation and is the first brother to have ever received this scholarship in Epsilon Eta history.

From the Sigma Chi International Website – Jordan Ayerza, CAL. STATE-FRESNO 2022 | Bob & Sabrina Johnson Scholarship

 

A major in Agricultural Biology, where he is working towards a career as a Botanist, Brother Ayerza held a 3.1 GPA entering his senior year at California State University-Fresno while serving as Consul of the Epsilon Eta chapter.  Within the chapter, he has continuously held offices from his date of initiation also serving as Kustos, Philanthropy Chairman, Brother at Large, Social Chairman, Consul Fall 2020-Spring 2021 and again as Consul Fall 2021-Spring 2022, while volunteering annually through Epsilon Eta’s Derby Days and Kids Day events.  Through his leadership as Consul, the chapter pulled through the COVID-19 pandemic with strong brotherhood, a full chapter house and collective GPA exceeding the school’s all-men’s average. 

His academic pursuits have been entirely self-funded through scholarships and a full-time position at the agribusiness company Wilbur-Ellis, which specializes in agri-chemicals.  Ayerza plans to continue work for the company post-graduation as works towards his career objectives.

Jordan has served in many leadership roles as an undergraduate including Kustos, Philanthropy Chairman, Brother at Large, Social Chairman, Consul Fall 2020-Spring 2021 and again as Consul Fall 2021-Spring 2022.  For his strong and persistent leadership in the Active Chapter and his academic excellence, Jordan received the Alumni President’s Citation at the November 18, 2021 Alumni Chapter Dinner.  He is the first Epsilon Eta undergraduate to receive this honor.

Jordan has now scored a trifecta at Epsilon Eta, he is the first brother to serve as Consul for four straight semesters, he is the first brother to receive a Founders Scholarship from the Sigma Chi Foundation, and he is the first undergraduate brother to receive the Alumni President’s Citation.

The Sigma Chi House Corporation board members work hard to run the House as efficiently as possible so that rent for our undergraduate brothers can be kept at a minimum. Apartment owners play the supply/demand game and charge as much as the market will bare.

Fresno Sigma Chi charges $650/month during the school year which includes meals, and $425/month during the summer without meals. The rent includes all utilities, cable TV and the fastest commercial broadband that Comcast offers. Apartment rent excludes all three. Average energy cost in Fresno is $220 while cable/broadband starts at $80.

There really is not an apple-to-apple comparison though since apartments don’t offer the experiences available at a fraternity house such as enhancing brotherhood and learning leadership and social skills.  And 50% of the Chapter House is common area that all brothers can enjoy, even those who cannot live in. In addition, brothers who apply, academically qualify and choose to live in the Chapter House can obtain $1,000 scholarships for each semester of the school year.  But suffice it to say, the Fresno Sigma Chi House Corporation is holding the line as apartment rents rise in Fresno.

Apartment Rents in Fresno Rise 19.8%, Makes International News

The Guardian, a British news and media website on November 6, 2021 presented an article relating to apartment cost increases, and noted that the largest increase was in Fresno, California. With a median cost of $1,141 for a one-bedroom and $1,421 for a two-bedroom, Fresno rents are still below those of San Francisco or Los Angeles. 

Fresno is the largest city in the agricultural Central Valley, and has historically been one of the most affordable places to live in California. But during the pandemic, rents began to rise dramatically, climbing by 26% over 12 months.

Locals attribute the surge to people seeking to escape the high cost of living in Los Angeles and the Bay Area. But even as life returns to pre-pandemic norms, those who live here say the situation isn’t getting any better. Rents, which had been steadily climbing for years before the pandemic, are still rising and, coupled with a shortage of homes, that’s hitting low-income residents hardest.