Theta Crescent. Homecoming 2000 A Fierce. From the Noble Ruler s Desk. Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity Fall 2000

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1 Theta Crescent Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity Fall 2000 From the Noble Ruler s Desk Greetings! I hope that this report finds all of you in good health and humor. The members of the Theta chapter of Alpha Gamma Rho have all returned for another action packed semester here at Ol Mizzou. This summer, members of the chapter attended the Alpha Gamma Rho National Convention in Savannah, Georgia. Not only was Savannah a beautiful town, but it was also very good to us. The Theta chapter brought home 8 national awards, including the prestigious Maynard Coe award. With the construction of a new chapter house underway, we are currently living in a facility located just down College Avenue on the campus of Stephens College. Although there have been some growing pains, for the most part the change has not set us back. We have another great group of new initiates and are looking forward to a successful fall rush as well. With activities such as Homecoming, Ag Week, and several philanthropies well under way, there is very little time to spare. As you can tell we are making great strides here at the University of Missouri and with the construction of the new chapter house hitting full stride, it truly is a great time to be an AGR Tiger! Fraternally, Travis Lathrop Noble Ruler Homecoming 2000 A Fierce With the beginning of a new semester comes new classes, responsibilities, and for the men of Alpha Gamma Rho, Homecoming This year we are very excited to be paired with the women of Alpha Delta Pi. Together with them we hope to do surpass last year s 2 nd place finish with a number one finish overall this year. This year s overall Homecoming theme is A Fierce Presence and to make our presence known we will participate in numerous activities involved with Homecoming from the talent competition to campus decorations. The talent competition theme this year is an act with a famous rivalry: Coke vs. Pepsi. This rivalry will be incorporated into a mock Seinfeld episode. The house dec this year appears to be superstitious as it falls on Friday the 13 th. To incorporate this superstition, the theme for our house dec is a lucky rabbit s foot. In keeping with the murky theme of Friday the 13 th, we will be entering one of our legendary floats, which will be based on the Grim Reaper in the Homecoming parade on Saturday morning October 14 th. The men of Alpha Gamma Rho would like to invite you to come out for the house dec, parade, and to see MU defeat the Kansas Chicken Hawks to round out the 89 th Mizzou Homecoming. Chris McGeeney Homecoming Liaison

2 Alumni Spotlight Brother Karl D. Stout graduated from Richland, MO, High School in 1952, and joined Alpha Gamma Rho in He majored in Poultry Husbandry and Ag Journalism while at Mizzou and was president of the Ruf Nex. Karl was a photographer for the Student and Savitar as well as editor of the College Farmer. He was married during his Junior year and later went on to have five children. Upon graduation Karl was commissioned Ensign, USNR and served three years in the U.S. Navy, was designated Naval Aviator, appointed Squadron Legal Officer and Personnel Officer. He flew P5M seaplanes and PV2 land based planes while on active duty, in addition to twelve years in the reserves. The family turkey business came calling in 1960, and they grew in excess of 100,00 market turkeys annually on 2,200 acres along with 220 brood cows. The nation came calling again in 1961, and Karl was called to duty for the Berlin Crisis. He later served as President for the Missouri Turkey Federation, Director of the National Turkey Federation, and was on the Advisory Council on Agriculture under Gov. Warren Hearnes. All agricultural interests were divested in 1972 and he became Director of Public Relations for the Missouri Dept. of Agriculture, a position he would later resign in order to conduct a campaign for the U.S. Congress. In 1973 Karl became account supervisor for the Missouri State Fair, and for other accounts such as Carey Salt, and NuLabs. While with NuLabs he named and developed the probiotic concept which encompassed the use of beneficial bacteria, which is now widely accepted in the agriculture industry. Karl formed an ad agency in 1976, and started St. Joseph Magazine in 1977, which were both sold in 1979 when he founded Scottsdale Monthly Magazine (Arizona). The advertising and publishing continued in 1981 in Colorado where he published five inflight magazines. He retired from publishing in 1997 and is currently consulting with a start-up Internet website company among other interests. Brother Stout has recently accepted the challenge to continue the efforts in fund raising for the Theta of Alpha Gamma Rho Building Association to attain the $2,300,000 goal to construct the new Chapter House. Karl will be following up each class leader s assignment and asking those who have not yet decided to pledge a gift to please do so. Editor s Note: As of September 12 th the total amount pledged is $1,940,000 and we need to achieve at least $2,300,00 to assure our project. The foundation footings are poured, and the building is on schedule to be finished August 12, The site is closed during construction for reasons of safety and security, however special site tours will be held three hours before Homecoming kickoff on Saturday October 14 th, and during Founder s Day February 10, Crescent Publishing Service This issue of the Theta Crescent was published through the Crescent Publishing Service (CPS). This is a special project of the AGR Home Office to assist chapters in improving communications with alumni. Chapters pay a small fee for the service, below the actual production cost, to encourage regular contact. This project is made possible by donations from alumni like you. Please consider contributing using the enclosed card. If the rate of change inside an organization is less than the rate of change outside, the end is in sight. -Jack Welch, CEO of General Electric

3 Fall 2000 New Initiates This fall the men of Theta chapter are proud to welcome 18 new men into our brotherhood. This class has a lot of potential to do great things both in the house and on campus. They have done well in their first month of adjusting to college life at the University of Missouri and Hillcrest Hall. Below is a list of our new brothers. Mark J. Baker, Ag. Business Management, Linn, MO Daniel J. Bauer, Ag. Education, St. Joseph, MO Douglas M. Bonderer, Ag. Business Management, Chillicothe, MO Andrew E. Branstetter, Ag. Education, St. James, MO Douglas G. Felter, Ag. Systems Management, Ag. Econ, Benton, MO Matthew A. Hill, Fisheries and Wildlife, Bowling Green, MO Clint L. Guier, Ag. Business Management, Sweet Springs, MO Matthew A. Jones, Ag. Education, Palmyra, MO Van B. Malter, Animal Science, Malta Bend, MO Gregory P. Meier, Animal Science, Jackson, MO Lucas S. Miller, Animal Science, Carrollton, MO Cody G. Millsap, International Business, St. Joseph, MO Brett M. Ordnung, Biology, Savannah, MO Joshua G. Phillips, Ag. Education, Lathrop, MO Garrett J. Riekhof, Ag. Economics, Higginsville, MO Seth R. Swindler, Ag. Business Management, Braymer, MO Benjamin S. Thompson, Ag. Education, Russellville, MO Whitney C. Venable, Ag. Systems Management, Slater, MO New Alumni Big Brother Brotherhood, the basis of our Fraternity is very strong in the current undergraduate chapter. Since my freshman year I have seen the power of brotherhood and what it can accomplish. Through brotherhood and hard work we have won numerous awards, competitions, and philanthropies. Today as I enter my third year of college and begin to further plan my post college career, I realize how lacking our undergraduate chapter is in its knowledge, association, and brotherhood with our alumni chapter. I know that in the past year and a half the Theta alumni chapter has made an incredible contribution and pledge by contributing to the future of our Alpha Gamma Rho at the University of Missouri. Now I ask you to make a small time commitment to the future of the undergraduate chapter. This fall we will again try to kick off our Alumni Big Brother Program. Our hope is to pair each freshman with one alumnus within the industry he plans to work. They will be asked to contact their alumni big brother by phone a couple of times and possibly meet if it is convenient. Not only will this improve our freshmen s networking, but this will also give you, the alumni, a contact in the undergraduate chapter. This should make it much easier to find out what is going on with our fraternity and the new house. If you have questions, or would like to become involved with this program, please call Trevor Jenkins at (573) or - tajinx@hotmail.com

4 Alumni Feature Rising Sun Sinking is the dramatic story about the fighting men of the Striking Sixth Marine Division Reconnaissance Company and their experiences during the invasion of Okinawa in 1945 during World War II. Paralleling the day-by-day activities, and sometimes foot-byfoot combat from Brother Jim Boan s own experience, are chapters explaining the planning, strategies, and tactics from the joint chiefs of staff, the commanders in the Pacific theater of operations, down to the Okinawa field commanders decisions. Beginning with the overview of the operation to individual battles and skirmishes, Jim covers all of the Battle of Okinawa, from the dash to the northern tip of the island to the southern surrender. A 1942 initiate in Theta Chapter, Jim graduated from the University School of Journalism and moved into advertising. He and his wife later published the Bloomfield Vindicator for ten years before he became a free-lance writer. Brother Boan is a charter member and former vice president of the Heartland Writers Guild. He now makes his home in Bloomfield, Mo. Editor s Note: The following is an excerpt from a synopsis of Jim Boan s new book, Rising Sun Sinking The Battle for Okinawa/Sixth Marine Reconnaissance Company, published by Eakin Press. As we sailed into the China Sea offshore from Okinawa, I had never seen so many ships all kinds and sizes as far as the horizon. We were on the USS Noble; we called it the Global Noble. None of us slept much that last night. One reason was our bunks were full of gear for the landing the next day, April 1, April Fool s Day broke with a beautiful sunrise, but there was plenty of action. As Japanese planes came over, several ships would be firing; and we d all cheer when a plane was shot down. About noon we scampered down the cargo nets and climbed into our landing craft and then roared off to a landing pattern for our turn to go ashore. The wind had picked up, and waves were sending a spray over the sides of out craft several of us got wet. Landing was unbelievably quiet, but our hearts were pounding as we scrambled over the beach for a place of protection. As we moved inland there was little opposition, just minor sniper fire. The first night we were cold, scared, and just plain miserable, but come daylight we were on the move. And for the next several days we moved swiftly with little hard-core resistance. The most memorable incidents were of the natives we coaxed out of the caves. I had never seen such misery: barefoot, ragged kimonos, flea-bitten to the point of blindness, ill fed, and poorly informed. Just old men and women, and young mothers with children no young men or women of military age. October 14 Come watch Theta win Homecoming 2000, and the Tigers rip up the Kansas Jayhawks in the oldest rivalry west of the Mississippi! Calendar February 3-4, 2001 AGR Classic preview show. This is one of the best shows in the Midwest, so come on out and see the Men of Theta at work. November 4 Alumni weekend and tailgate party before the battle with our other Kansas Big XII foe, K-State. Please call Josh Terhune at (573) or Thad Koenigsfeld at (573) with any special requests or suggestions. February 10, 2001 Founder s Day Progress as Promised. August 12, 2001 New Chapter House completed.

5 Old Theta House...Under The purpose of Alpha Gamma Rho states, To make better men...by surrounding our members with influences...for the development of better mental, social, moral and physical qualities. -Golden Crescent Coming soon... The New Theta House!

6 Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity North Executive Hills Blvd. Kansas City, MO NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID Kansas City, MO Permit No RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED Theta Chapter Crescent HELP BUILD AGR BRICK BY BRICK "Own A Piece Of Theta" You can support our effort to build a new chapter house for Theta by "buying" a brick with a contribution of $200 per year for five years. Your support will mean more than you can imagine as we strive to build a state of the art facility for brothers who will enjoy the many benefits of Theta Chapter of Alpha Gamma Rho in the 21st Century. A special feature of the new chapter house will be a "Wall of Honor" to those who have made a personal commitment of $200 per year for five years, dedicated to each brother who stepped forward to ensure the bright future of Theta Chapter in the 21st Century. A pledge of $200 per year for five years will entitle each brother and/or his family to have their name placed on a nameplate to be attached to a brick in the Wall of Honor. Those brothers who have made larger commitments will be further recognized for their generosity. Naming opportunities are also available for various rooms and areas of the new Chapter House. You can play a vital role as a Man of Theta, building for the 21st century, by pledging $200 per year for five years. Contact Ed Turner at or Karl D. Stout (see related article) for more information.