Spring 2013 - Oglethorpe University

alumni
alumni
Road Trip
unplugged
In April, Oglethorpe University officially
dedicated Lupton Hall’s bell tower as
The Lale Özgörkey Bell Tower.
The dedication ceremony featured special guest speakers
Georgia Governor Nathan Deal and Muhtar Kent, chairman
and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company. The name recognizes a
generous gift from the Özgörkey family to benefit Oglethorpe’s
new campus center. Cemal Özgörkey ’84, chairman of
Özgörkey Holding, is a member of the Oglethorpe’s Board of
Trustees. Both he and his brother, Armagan Özgörkey ’85, vice
chairman of Özgörkey Holding, are Oglethorpe alumni. The
bell tower’s new name honors their mother, Lale Özgörkey.
New Sophomore Tradition Celebrates
the Legacy of Thornwell Jacobs By Weatherly Richardson ’13
The Oglethorpe sophomore
class gathered in October
for the inaugural Thornwell
Jacobs Legacy Celebration, a
new annual tradition for the
sophomore class. The event
celebrated Thornwell Jacobs,
Oglethorpe President from
1915–1943, who fulfilled a
lifelong dream of restoring
Oglethorpe to its present location
on Peachtree Road in Atlanta.
Georgia Governor Nathan
Deal, Cemal Özgörkey
’84, Armagan Özgörkey
’85, Coca-Cola’s Chairman
& CEO Muhtar Kent and
President Schall.
Sophomore students gathered
to learn interesting history and
facts about President Jacobs and
his mission from award-winning
author and historian Dr. Paul
Hudson ’72. Later over dinner
in Hearst’s Great Hall, students
heard from Sophomore Class
President Kurt Reynolds, Alumni
Association Vice President
Austin Gillis ’01, and Georgia
State Representative Dar’shun
Kendrick ’04, an alumni
volunteer who spoke about
her OU experience and how it
helped to shape her career and
future. View the video about the
event on Oglethorpe’s YouTube
channel, or scan this QR code
with your smartphone.
Oglethorpe’s Georgia Eta Chapter, founded in 1859 as
the 11th Chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon National Fraternity,
celebrated its 40th Re-Charter Anniversary Celebration in
September 2011. The celebration brought more than 120 active and
alumni brothers, spouses and guests to Oglethorpe. On October
2, 1971, 35 brothers were initiated on campus, marking the first
initiation of Georgia Eta brothers since 1863.
By Barbara Bessmer Henry ’85
What does an international studies major soccer player,
who moonlights as a music producer, have in common
with a thespian, fraternity brother who is still known for
the funky neon green 1967 VW bus he drove during his
freshman year?
What about an Aussie with career interests in human resources,
and the co-captain of the cross country team who plans to return
to Moldova after graduation to work with an organization that
assists in the prevention of sex trafficking amongst young girls?
As you likely have guessed, all of these students are “typical”
Oglethorpe students with impressive career ambitions and
interesting backgrounds. During the fall 2012 semester, these
eclectic students and others were selected as members of the
new O Team. This group travels to alumni events with President
Schall and Alumni Relations staff to present “OU Unplugged,” a
panel presentation about student life at Oglethorpe today. During
the fall semester, O Team members Stephanie Croston ’13, Kai
Street ’14, Weston Manders ’12, Krista Gray ’14, Justin Munson ’14
and Tirzah Brown ’14 presented to alumni in New York City and
Washington, D.C.
“The whole
experience was
special from
beginning to
end, but the star
attraction of our
trip was definitely
the conversations
we had with
alumni.”
Tirzah admits that “before the trip, I
was quite familiar with the passionate,
interesting and altogether wonderful
students at OU. However, I learned
from my conversations that alumni
who graduated before I was born share
those same traits. Every person that I
spoke with is living a life of purpose. I
had the opportunity to connect with a
fellow Alpha Phi Omega brother, discuss
economics with a software engineer
originally from Cameroon, and meet a
sweet elderly couple that spends part
of each year in my hometown of Fort
(above) Members of the O Team include (l-r) Tirzah Brown ’14, Stephanie
Croston ’13, Justin Munson ’14, Krista Gray ’14 and Kai Street ’14.
Myers, Fla. I treasured every conversation with each graduate and
I enjoyed observing people who had never met connecting over
their shared Oglethorpe experiences and memories. I look forward
to attending alumni events when I graduate and meeting OU
students of the future.”
Several of the traveling students had never visited either city and
one student enjoyed his first trip on an airplane. Following the
alumni events, the O Team wasted no time sprinting to visit as
many important sites as they could fit into their 40-hour visit.
Photos posted on Facebook revealed the busy students at Times
Square, Ellis Island and on the steps of the U.S. Capitol.
The trip became a chance for the group to explore undiscovered
places, but the personal connections made really stood out. “The
whole experience was special from beginning to end,” said Tirzah,
“but the star attraction of our trip was definitely the conversations
we had with alumni.”
24 CARILLON | SPRING 2013
spring SPRING 2013 | CARILLON 25