Jake Long blogs from Grand Chapter
The 2009 Grand Chapter is being held in Charleston, SC
- July 4, 2009
Brothers,
It so happens that my last day at Grand Chapter was my favorite of the three. In the morning was the first business meeting that actually dealt with what I consider to be the business of the Fraternity. We began talking about proposed changes to the Sigma Chi Constitution. There were three (or maybe four) major proposals that were brought forth. The first was basically a proposal to clean up the Constitution—essentially making punctuation, terminology, and capitalization consistent. The other proposals were looking to change actual content of the Constitution (though not anything overtly substantial). One dealt with changing the numbers of Grand Trustees and another looked to slightly change the election and succession of the Grand Consul. The Grand Trustees proposal was voted in; the Grand Consul proposal was shot down. The entire experience surrounding the discussions and considerations of the proposals was very insightful for me. It showed me that people can get nitty gritty and stick to their guns (even if it means having a four hour discussion about it) just as much at Grand Chapter, as they can at our own beloved Chi Chapter.
The afternoon business meeting was mostly filled with the installation of the new Grand Officers. Wayne Tucker, former Grand Pro-Consul, is now our 66th Grand Consul. The ceremony was a very special and wonderful thing to see. Brother Tucker of course had a very long acceptance speech, but who’s to say he didn’t deserve it? These sessions also showed me, if I didn’t know before, how important it is for everyone to be as familiar as possible with the constitution, bylaws, and Robert’s Rules of Order. These are very important to follow at Grand Chapter, particularly Robert’s Rules of Order (as a clarification of the rules actually swung one vote from not passing to passing). This is an area in which Chi Chapter, myself included, seriously lack.
The day finished splendidly at the Charleston Aquarium where all Sigs and their sweethearts were treated to a wonderful reception and buffet dinner. Before dinner, the International Sweetheart winner was announced. Her name is Alexa Stabler from the Iota Iota Chapter at the University of Alabama. After dinner, we all enjoyed a fantastic fireworks show looking out over the beautiful water across the way at the fireworks being shot off the Yorktown aircraft carrier. The fireworks in Charleston begin the way fireworks in Bloomington end. It was absolutely fantastic. I met some terrific guys, too. Namely, William Ray, one of the undergrads from Mississippi elected to be representative to the Executive Committee, was very intelligent and fun to talk to. The whole event kind of ended just as I was beginning to get very comfortable and familiar with my new brother-friends (briends?).
All-in-all, I’m very glad I made it out to Grand Chapter. It was an invaluable experience from which I will continue to learn and grow. The drive home was a little more adventurous than had been hoped, however. When my dad and I were in Salem, IN (just about an hour and a half from home) we hit a deer, doing over $1,000 worth of damage to the hood of the car. We spent about an hour and a half at the Salem Police Station filling out paperwork and such. Not exactly the kind of drama you want to handle when you’ve already been in the car for 12 hours and just want to crash in your own bed. On the bright side, no one was hurt (including, as far as we know, the deer, because after the collision, he was nowhere to be found) and the car is still very drivable.
All the best,
In Hoc,
Jake
- July 3, 2009
What better way to usher in your twentieth year than in the fine company of your brothers? Today was my birthday and it was a long one. Business meetings began this morning at 8:30 a.m. and went for a solid three (or more) hour block. Everyone was seated by province so I was with the brothers from Lambda, Theta Pi, and Xi—all great guys. This morning’s business was officer reports, mostly. Bob Jones gave is “State of the Fraternity” address. Other committee heads discussed their successes and progresses from the past two years and their planned initiatives for the subsequent biennials. It was refreshing to see that these older alums like Bob Jones and Mike Dunn aren’t just names on paper right next to prestigious titles, but hold active roles in bettering this fine fraternity, of which we all have the privilege of being a part. Lunch immediately following was of course another great opportunity to socialize and hear other brother’s stories and backgrounds.The second business meeting, in the afternoon, was occupied mostly by elections. Most, if not all, of the new Grand Officers ran unopposed, so it was a rather speedy process…until we got to voting for Grand Trustees and Grand Praetors. Still, the afternoon wasn’t a total bore. There was plenty of good conversation to be had while the upper committees were out counting our paper ballots. The fraternity’s first attempt at doing electronic elections failed when the system crashed because 250 brothers tried logging on all at the same time.This evening began with the International Sweetheart candidates giving their platforms during a reception. Again, they were all very well spoken and had wonderful things to say about Sigma Chi and why they should be chosen to represent us. Elections for Sweetheart will be held tomorrow morning. The reception was followed by a very nice three course dinner, at which were some more great guys from Florida, Virginia, and Princeton.After this long day, I’m pretty much beat, but of course I’m looking forward to tomorrow where we will be discussing proposed changes to the Constitution.In Hoc, Brothers,
Jake
- July 2, 2009
As requested by our wonderful chapter advisor, Scott Inman, I’m writing this blog to chronicle my time at the 2009 Grand Chapter in Charleston, South Carolina. Delegate events began today at 5:00 p.m. for the Delegate Orientation at which the three beautiful Sigma Chi International Sweetheart candidates introduced themselves and told about their first experiences with Sigma Chi. I stood out at the meeting as one of the few people a little overdressed (me in my red dress shirt, Sigma Chi pin, and khaki pants). Apparently “business casual,” which they explicitly define as being “collared shirts and appropriate trousers” means t-shirts and cargo shorts. At least more casual clothing will make the rest of Grand Chapter more comfortable, especially in the humid heat—though it’s not as bad as Indiana! Speaking of warm weather, just like every other warm place in the United States, Charleston seems to attract the most attractive people. Eye candy for all!
After the Delegate Orientation was a reception a few blocks away. I met a few brothers and sat with them at a table outside. It wasn’t long before one of the Sweetheart candidates, Anne Small from Drake University (originally from just outside Chicago—she lives just 10 minutes from headquarters!) sat down and chatted with us. She is a Delta Gamma, as is one of the other candidates. The third is a Phi Mu. Anne was incredibly nice and very sociable. It’s easy to see how she came to be in the prestigious position of International Sweetheart candidate and it would be no surprise to me if she took the win. At the same time, I haven’t met the other two candidates, though I’m sure they’re both lovely and as well-spoken as Anne. Later, I had dinner with three brothers, two from Gettysburg and one from Arizona. Overall, the orientation and reception were good, but I really need to bust out of my shell more and be more social and outgoing. Great first day!
In Hoc,
Jake Long