Sigma Chi Alumni Chapter of Fresno

Annoucements

DR. ELMER “BUD” RICHTER ALL HONOR TO HIS NAME

“Dr. Elmer “Bud” Richter, a community giant who served a number of organizations in the Valley and established the Jan & Bud Richter Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning at Fresno State, passed Thursday January 28th.” 

The Fresno Bee https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article248876944.html

Brother Richter, S’47, Alpha Omega, Stanford University was 94. He is survived by his wife Jan of 72 years; son Brad and granddaughter Renee Vandermeer and her husband Nick; and two great-grandchildren Matthew and Maci. 

Brother Richter was a longtime supporter of Fresno State athletics and was on the steering committee for the construction of Bulldog Stadium. He was the recipient of the community’s highest honor, The Leon S. Peters Award in 2006. He served on the Fresno State Foundation Board of Governors from 1979 to 2006, when he was awarded emeritus status.

He joined the family business, Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company, following graduation from Stanford in 1949 and rose to the position of Chief Executive Officer. The company was founded in Fresno in 1895 as the Richter Bottling Company and was sold in 1977.

Brother Richter was dedicated to the Sigma Chi Fraternity and both Alpha Omega and Epsilon Eta Chapters. He was a longtime loyal Sigma Chi Alumni Chapter of Fresno member and supporter of our scholarship program. The following are memories of local Alumni Chapter Brothers.

“Bud Richter was a true gentleman and helped our Chapter in its early development.  I was honored to work with Bud when I was Public Relations and Fund Development Director for Community Medical Centers and he was a Board Member.  Bud not only contributed to the Chapter in our various campaigns but also raised funds.  He was always there when we needed him, even though he was a Stanford Sig.  He also gave Summer jobs to our Brothers at Pepsi, which he managed and his family owned.” Order of Constantine, Chuck Sant’Agata, S’56    

“Outstanding brother!  And we all are proud and glad that we can call Bud our Brother.” Order of Constantine, Tom Downing, F’62

“In April 1965 when I was elected to the city council, Bud took me to lunch. “Remember this,” he told me, “there is no expiration date on honesty, integrity, and trustworthiness”. I called on him often during those hectic years and he was always available and helpful, mainly because he lived by those words. Significant Sig, Elvin C. Bell, F’57

“He was a Stellar Individual, God Fearing, God Preaching… Even taught my dad a few things…  he was a good friend! And he will be missed” Bill Smittcamp, S’73

“A true gentleman has joined our Chapter Eternal and we are better men because of Brother Bud Richter. God bless you Brother Richter and we send our condolences to Jan and family.” Brad S. Fischer, S’78

“Bud gave me job at Pepsi when he broke the Union yoke and gave many FSU students a job when he was the active CEO at Fresno Pepsi. He was a wonderful man and Brother for Sigma Chi. When I was honored as a FSU Top Dog, he was the first to congratulate me as I came down from the stage. We all shall miss him.  All Honor To His Name.” Significant Sig, Dante Simi, F’58

Services are pending for Brother Richter. Dr. Saúl Jimenéz-Sandoval, Interim President, California State University, Fresno has ordered flags to half-staff at Fresno State on the date of his service.

White Rose Scholarship Fund: https://www.fresnosigsalumni.org/product/donation/

Sigma Chi Leadership Institute Earns Accreditation Candidacy from Middle States Association Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools

A milestone for Sigma Chi and a groundbreaking moment for Greek-letter organizations, the Sigma Chi Leadership Institute (SCLI) is formally accepted as a candidate for accreditation by the Middle States Association Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools (MSA-CESS), which is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, the Fraternity and SCLI announced Monday.
“This status is one that Greek-letter leadership education has never before achieved, and it instantaneously places an added value and benefit to becoming a Sigma Chi,” said Sigma Chi Leadership Institute Chairman Mike Greenberg, ILLINOIS WESLEYAN 1982. “This added layer of third-party validation highlights that Sigma Chi is the preeminent leadership brotherhood aimed at changing the world for the better.”
SCLI’s candidacy approval marks a new milestone for Greek-letter organizations. All aspects of the organization from its leadership to its faculty and staff to its curriculum and services are on track to meet the MSA-CESS standards for accreditation.
Sigma Chi members will be able to earn SCLI’s certificates, credentials and micro-credentials that display their character, values and ideals to future employers or chapter members — a differentiator undergraduates can use to elevate the Sigma Chi experience across campuses in North America.
Sigma Chi’s leadership certificate offerings will enhance, evolve and demonstrate a mastery of important leadership and social skills identified to be underdeveloped in today’s collegiate experience according to industry research.
“Sigma Chi Fraternity continues in its goal to be the preeminent leadership development fraternity within the fraternal world,” said Grand Consul Steve Schuyler, ARIZONA 1979. “This accreditation candidacy milestone by SCLI comes after several years of a shared vision, investment of time and capital, and just plain hard work. This step is just the first of many as we seek to redefine fraternity membership and create value through the personal and professional development of our existing and future members and select third-party partners. I invite all of you to watch for upcoming and future news on SCLI and our quest.”
The leadership development arm of the Fraternity and a pioneer in Greek-letter education, SCLI was formally unveiled in 2019 following more than two decades of work in groundbreaking educational programming opportunities. This work began with the development and launch of the pioneering Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit in 1999 and continues today following the launch of Sigma Chi Online and the transformative Preparation for Brotherhood new member program in 2016.
In 2020, Sigma Chi became the first Greek-letter organization to offer its own state-authorized education to its members for the development of transformational leadership following SCLI’s approval by the Illinois Board of Higher Education’s Private Business and Vocational Schools Division. It also marks a landmark moment for alumni whose decades of generous funding and support for Fraternity programming through the Sigma Chi Foundation have enabled the SCLI training courses and certifications that allow Sigma Chi members to become Transformational Leaders.
“This is a groundbreaking moment for the Greek-letter world and further builds a case for the ongoing support from our alumni and donors, showing what Sigma Chi can and will become through hard work and support,” said Sigma Chi Foundation Chairman John Forst, GEORGE WASHINGTON 1984. “By no means is our work complete. This accreditation candidacy signifies that our support for this work and our members is as important today than at any moment in our Foundation’s history and we must do everything to ensure its success.”

 Watch the webinar with Michael Greenberg where he explains how this project is a game changer for Sigma Chi. You will provide your name and email address and then be sent to the webinar.
Additional details on the accreditation candidacy, initial leadership certificate programs and educational partnerships will be unveiled over the coming weeks at sigmachi.org/scli.

Fresno Sig Writes Novel During Covid Lockdown, Donates Net Proceeds to House

Fresno Significant Sig and retired Air Force Colonel, Elvin C. Bell (57-F), has been a prolific author during his long career. Many of his books we will never be able to read because they were written when he was working at the Pentagon and are still highly classified.
Over the last six or seven months, Elvin has written a mystery thriller called The Film-Flam City. His agent is discussing movie rights with producers in Los Angeles, and it looks promising so far. Sigma Chis can now purchase a signed copy direct from Elvin. The story is exciting mixing murder, political corruption and the military, plus Elvin has laced the book with local characters such as on page 60 he mentions the character, Roy, who “only night hunting was for coeds at Sigma Chi Fraternity keg parties.” This book will have special meaning for all of us.

In addition to many books, in May 2018 Brother Bell wrote a short story that chronicled the career of our late brother Phil Sanchez (52-T). Phil was his mentor, best man at his wedding and substitute father for 64 years. We Fresno Sigma Chis are truly fortunate to have made the decision to join our fraternity, and thus be able to have so many long and strong friendships. Elvin’s continued commitment to our chapter is reflected in his offer to donate his book’s proceeds to the Chapter House.
The charge per book including processing and mailing is $30.00. The proceeds, after expenses, will be donated to the our Chapter House Maintenance Fund.  Orders with checks enclosed should be mailed to Elvin Bell, 2130 W Rue Saint Michel, Fresno CA 93711. It will take about 2 weeks for processing.

House Corporation Completes CCTV for Exterior of Chapter House

Fresno Sigma Chi House Corporation president, John Ballinger 65-S, announced on July 15, 2020 that the video surveillance  project is complete. Almost every square foot of the exterior is covered by 14 high-definition cameras in 8 separate housings.

Through the years there have been some car break-ins and thefts in the parking lot at night. Although the exterior lighting was upgraded several years ago to increase the foot-candles by a factor of 10, it still happens occasionally. There also have been a few Chapter House break-ins.

We have had uninvited party crashers in the recent past. They were asked to leave, refused and then caused physical harm to brothers and guests. These new cameras will capture any future incidents of this nature and will be evidence for law enforcement.

The cameras and lighting provide 24-hour surveillance and more than 30 days of storage. Evan Selander 12-S, the House Corporation’s Chief Financial Officer, says the cameras may qualify for a discount for the House’s insurance. The night lighting is adequate to allow for color recording for better identification of wrongdoers.

Fresno Sigma Chi Endowment Awards $28,000 to Active Chapter Brothers

 

Mike Patton (63-S), Fresno Sigma Chi Endowment President, announced that the Endowment Board has awarded 14 scholarships of $2,000 each to undergraduate members of the fraternity for the fall 2000/spring 2021 school year.  The scholarships are split into two payments, September 2020 and January 2021.  Monies for the scholarships are from earnings from endowments held by the Fresno State Alumni Association and the Sigma Chi Foundation (Headquarters).

Fresno Sigma Chi alumni began creating the endowments and making donations in 1975 to recognize and reward academic excellence, outstanding chapter leadership and outstanding brotherhood contributions.

The undergraduate brothers who accepted the scholarships are Jordan Ayerza (17-F), Sham Batth (17-F), Cole Blagen (17-F), Brayden Bronson (17-F), Diego Fernandez (18-F), Tyler Gardner (20-S), Taj Gill (20-S), Raj Johal (20-S), Luke Karagozian (20-S),  Cody Koch (20-S), Matthew Morales (20-S), Gio Primavera (17-F), Lane Pulliam (20-S), Christian Reta (18-F), Gabe Rodriguez (20-S), McKay Romero (18-F), Nick Sheehan (20-S) and Bryson Stephens (20-S).

The scholarship pool consists of those brothers who successfully apply on the Fresno State scholarship portal, and who are living in the Chapter House during the 2020/2021 school year. The purpose of the scholarships is to offset part of the cost of tuition, books, fees, supplies and equipment required to attend Fresno State.  The 2020 undergraduate tuition and fees are now $6,591 for California residents, and the estimated annual cost for books and supplies is $1,918.

In addition, undergraduate brothers Nolan Long (20-S) and Christian Reta (18-F), both Smittcamp Scholars, each received a $1,500 scholarship, and Luke Karagozian (20-S) received $3,000 from the Dante Simi (58-F) Endowment.  All three Simi recipients are 4.0 students.

Past Epsilon Eta Consul and Significant Sig Dante Simi

The Fresno Sigma Chi endowments totaled $821,467 on January 1, 2020 allowing Epsilon Eta to fund more scholarships than almost every Sigma Chi chapter in North America.