Southwest Messenger - January 12th, 2020

PAGE 4 - SOUTHWEST MESSENGER - January 12, 2020
Opinion Page
www.columbusmessenger.com
College fraternities can offer a positive experience
Even the most cursory scan of the news
these days will quickly spot some less than
positive clip about a college fraternity on
what’s become an all too frequent basis. It
might be a senseless tragedy, hazing incident,
house suspension or probation, or
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just a negative narrative denouncing an
entire campus Greek system. It’s become
widespread, scanning major and smaller
college campuses across the country. The
sad incidents are real, the outrage
deserved. But memories of my college fraternity
days are vastly different, and I’m
convinced there remains that other side of
the story, a good side, that’s become lost in
the media’s patented stereotyping rubble.
It’s one that will always provide me with
many positive and invaluable memories of
my life.
If there was ever a kid who didn’t fit the
image of a ‘frat rat’ heading to college, it
was yours truly. I hadn’t fit into the high
school mold. My high school chums disgustedly
called me, Goody Two-Shoes, Dudley
Do-Right and Goody Angel. I didn’t swear,
drink, or smoke and considered girls to be
a dangerous, unknown powerful force, a
fear I still carry after 40 years of marriage
as I continue to agree with that book, “Men
are From Mars, Women Are from Venus.”
Heading off to college, two of my favorite
songs were Neil Diamond’s, “Solitary Man”
and Simon and Garfunkel’s, “I Am a Rock.”
When I arrived on campus for my freshman
year, I realized I didn’t fit the college
mold. In those days, there was a freshman
football team and some of them ended up
on my floor. Academic standards for athletes
was close to nil in those days. Most
couldn’t spell ‘study’
let alone figure out
how to open a book
to attempt it.
Instead, they just
ran around the floor
like little kids creating
havoc. The dorm
was impersonal and
a challenge to even
attempt any academic
efforts. The
library became my
sanctuary.
The one great
experience I recall
from that first year
was football
Saturdays. Game
day campus spirit
was incredible. To
get to old Archbold
Stadium, this was
prior to it being
replaced by the
Carrier Dome, I had
to walk by fraternity
row. I’d wander
by looking at the big
houses with their
Greek letters prominently
displayed
wondering about all
the unknown mystique they represented.
On the trek back following the game many
frat porches had live bands playing and
passersby, including me, congregating in
front them to enjoy the music and gameday
spirit. Everyone was having fun, something
dorm life wasn’t providing. I didn’t
see myself as part of the fraternity scene at
that point. I remained in my shell, but
something must have subconsciously registered
within me.
It wasn’t until the spring term of my
sophomore year that I gave another
thought to fraternities. My dorm roommate
had just pledged one in the fall and encouraged
me to. He insisted it wasn’t what my
perception was. No, it wasn’t an Animal
House of total chaos the 1978 movie with
John Belushi running toga parties every
night at a 1962 fraternity would later portray.
Still not enjoying the dorm scene, I
decided to give it a try. That spring I
became a pledge. I’ve never regretted it.
The fraternity was officially listed as
‘social and professional’ although I think
the latter was wishful thinking. The only
thing I considered professional was everyone
was a forestry student. That was a big
selling point to me, similar interests, our
environment, a common bond. We were
known as ‘Stumpies’ to the large college
our small school was a part of. There were
many academic forestry disciplines reflected
within the fraternity house. Mine was
wildlife management. But we were all
bonded by being proud ‘Stumpies’.
The pledge period was a challenge, but
nothing like you hear about so often in
today’s media. It gave them a chance to
learn more about us and us about them. It
concluded with the infamous hell week. It
was a long week, but we weren’t hazed, at
least not what I considered that to be. We
didn’t get much sleep during the week,
painted the house interior and had to
attend our classes. There were some fun
team building traditions along the way. For
example, there was an ‘Amazing Race’ kind
of exercise. A few brothers would set up in
little bars about the city. We’d get clues
and walk to find them. We’d buy them a
cold one, sit and chat a few moments, then
move on to find the next waiting brothers.
I had to endure much worse the next year
at my ROTC summer boot camp. The week
took on a special meaning for me when I
was given a handsome beer stein at the initiation
dinner, engraved with the wording,
Most Outstanding Pledge Spring 1969. I
still proudly display it and smile when I
look at it.
I moved into the frat house my junior
year. It’s amazing how many fond memories
I still have from those two short years.
In case you’re wondering, I was no longer
being called by my high school nicknames.
Guest Column
Dave Burton
These were the
Woodstock days and
the hippie movement
was in full
swing. I always kept
the shell nearby but
occasionally emerged
from it to look
around and become
a work in progress. I
made decisions, learned from resulting
mistakes and enjoyed a few successes. The
new opportunities the fraternity provided
helped me grow and mature.
As I look back, I still marvel at how that
fraternity was able to function as successfully
as it did. Today’s Congress could have
learned from us. You throw a large group of
kids, fresh out of high school, into a house
and expect them to take their newfound
independence, step up and run a student
filled house and their new lives smoothly
and responsibly. Too many fraternities
haven’t been able to do that and hence the
root cause of so much of the recent negative
publicity. By no means was our fraternity
house a perfect place. But we ran it,
matured and grew in it using close teamwork
and developed some lifelong friendships.
Yes, we would party hardy, some too
much. We had a few goofballs we had to
deal with, but most knew there were
boundaries we weren’t to cross. We took
pride in our fraternity house and the image
we portrayed. We elected house officers
and filled numerous functions to keep
things running. We participated in campus
and community charity functions and
sports intramurals. Many brothers studied
hard and excelled in academics and graduated
with honors, me included. We always
had members elected as our college class
officers. I was senior class secretary-treasurer.
I must admit, when graduation came, I
had finally pushed aside my shell and was
ready to leave. The grass is always greener
on the other side of the fence and I was
ready to step over it to a beckoning world.
But it didn’t take long to start looking back
with a smile, and after all these years, I
still realize joining that frat house was one
of the better decisions I’ve made in my life.
I’m confident today’s fraternities haven’t
changed that much. I’m betting there’s still
the good, along with the bad and ugly.
Dave Burton is a guest columnist for the
Columbus Messenger Newspapers. He
lives in Grove City.