Cross & Crescent

With over 2,500 initiates in just 60 years, our Zeta-Rho chapter at Florida State University represents successful operations within Lambda Chi Alpha. And it hasn’t been luck. Many would say it has resulted from the dedicated work of brothers who had dreams, dreams upon which to build a great brotherhood.

James H. Lee (Florida Southern 1950) relates the beginning: “William ‘Skip’ Knight (’50), and I were initiated into Lambda Chi Alpha during the one year we spent together at Florida Southern University in 1947. Although we loved Florida Southern we both wanted to transfer to Florida State University, which at that time had just become co-ed. When we got to Florida State we had one specific goal and that was to establish a chapter of Lambda Chi Alpha on the campus. Skip was a real go-getter and he worked tirelessly to attract good men and to complete the paperwork required of a colony. He was the colony president. It was an exciting time on the campus and we thoroughly enjoyed establishing a Lambda Chi chapter. We had good times and it was particularly thrilling competing with the other fraternities on the campus for the best men.” The chapter began with 20 men, followed by 12 pledges. Of these 32 men, a Lambda Chi was president of the Student Government Association (SGA), three were SGA Senators, one was secretary of the IFC and would later become High Alpha, and still another was president of the freshman class.

Bob Ryals (1950), later became a High Alpha and fondly remembers those early days. “Joe Ingalls was the High Alpha in 1950 when we became a chapter of Lambda Chi Alpha. Joe was an outstanding student in the school of business and was a very popular brother. In those early days there was no place to house the chapter or the men so we were taken to Dale Mabry Air Force Base which became known as the West Campus. The University solved these problems by giving us the use of ex-Army barracks. Seventeen men lived in that first ‘house’ and the rent for the entire house was $152 per month. “We had a grand time in those early years. The chapter was initiated by a team from the University of Georgia. Jim Gunn, who later became a chapter advisor, was aggressive in securing our next chapter house. We had a housemother and with her, her husband and two children. A little known story is that we had brothers who fished along the coast and that enabled the chapter to feed ourselves as well as many of the football players…for a price of course. We were a fun-loving group of men, tight as fraternity brothers and we loved intramurals. Some of our brothers were from Indiana and they could really shoot a basketball and we won basketball championships. During my term as High Alpha we began the tradition of a tackle football game with proceeds going to charity.”’

John Armel was the High Alpha in 1957 and went on to work for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms for 26 years. “I have good memories of the campus involvement of the brothers. We had a large chapter with many veterans, so it was a mature group of men. My greatest memory of Lambda Chi Alpha is our initiation and I still carry the memories with me. I regretted leaving the fraternity atmosphere when I graduated and I always wanted to work with students again.” One of John’s chapter brothers at that time was Jim McNeil. Jim states, “I was voted the outstanding pledge and outstanding active during my time in the chapter. The fraternity was so good to me and taught me so much. I vividly remember being selected to attend a management training seminar held at Ball State University. Well, alcohol was not allowed during the seminar, but I tried to sneak some into my dormitory where we were staying. Unfortunately, I dropped the bottle on the stairs and it broke with a loud crash. I hurried to my room without cleaning it up because I didn’t want to get caught and be sent home. Shortly thereafter I came out into the hall and saw George Spasyk cleaning it up and I pretended to know nothing about it. I quickly went back to bed. I carried that guilt with me for 40 years until I wrote a letter to George confessing to be the culprit.” George still has that effect on brothers. “Another fun thing was the wedding held in the chapter house. One of the brothers got married during the school year so we had a huge turnout. The housemother was the organizer and Dr. Ashby Stiff ’60 (later to become professor emeritus of hospitality management at Florida State University) oversaw the preparation and service of all of the food. No alcohol was served, but the food and cake were delicious and one bottle of champagne was given to the bride and groom along with a $36 wedding present. I also remember several of us pushing the groom’s ’52 Hudson to get it started.”

1978 was a year of celebration at Zeta-Rho for they were awarded their second Grand High Alpha Award. Ed Picillo ’78 was the High Alpha and remembers his fraternity experience fondly. “Lambda Chi Alpha was a fantastic experience, and we always attracted a diverse mix of good men. Some fraternities at that time wanted to know if your family had money, others wanted only men from the south. Lambda Chi looked for good men, who were diversified in their majors, would be active in the chapter, were interested in intramurals and wanted to be involved in charitable activities. I was from Rhode Island, lived in the house for three years, served in three different chapter offices and I remember Dr. Gunn was the chapter advisor. The fraternity gave me everything that I needed in my life; an ability to develop everything to succeed in life. It taught each person good values, teamwork, provided a stable foundation, taught social skills and time management, and each of us learned that it was okay to fail as we learned the importance of helping one another. It brings friendships for life and gives the personal satisfaction of accomplishments within the fraternity.”

In 1981, Clarence Smith (1970) began talking with older brothers about establishing a chapter tradition. He proposed the creation of a club called ‘The First 100’, referring to the first 100 Zeta-Rho brothers. “It was made official in 1982, and every year since we have met during Homecoming Weekend to have dinner and then to attend the football game. It was a way for us to keep the friendships and also give back to the chapter with a few thousand dollars for house repairs each year. Sixty of the first 100 brothers have attended at one time or another. We have stayed loyal to Lambda Chi Alpha because of the relationships built through the years and we have never forgotten those wonderful days spent as an undergraduate.”

The 1970s constituted a golden age of successes for the chapter. Two Grand High Alpha Awards were followed by yet another one in 1981. Many leaders emerged. One in particular was a dreamer named Doug Mannheimer (1978), an attorney with the firm of Broad and Cassel, and a recipient of Lambda Chi Alpha’s Order of Merit in 2008. “In 1980 the chapter moved away from university housing thanks to the efforts of Bob Ryals, Brian Swain, Rick Baker and Bill Roberts. A couple of brothers took the risk and bought a former sorority house, providing a home and a good base to recruit from. We were in that home for 24 years. During those years the chapter was very successful because we recruited a diverse group of men who were active in athletics, were good scholars, had great personalities and were active outside the chapter. The chapter also had superb leadership in the High Pi position with brothers such as Jim Hunt, Steve Lancaster, T.K. Hannah, and Wayne Rubinas, who has been dedicated to the brotherhood in that capacity for the past 20 years. In 2000, myself and a non-Lambda Chi alumnus, began to work together to create better Greek housing at Florida State. With the assistance of the president of the university we identified 32 acres not being used otherwise. Subsequently, a revenue bond was issued on construction on a Greek Park named Heritage Grove. We had done our homework in identifying what today’s college student wanted in a living environment, in other words, what they would rent if they lived outside the fraternity house. We have 39,000 square feet of space housing 61 students and one housing director. It is state-of-the-art with brothers living in two-bedroom and two-bath apartments with privacy. Each apartment has a kitchen with stove, microwave, and refrigerator as well as a washer and dryer. The buildings are equipped with sprinkler systems and in between them is a basketball court, putting green, and barbeque area.” The pictures with this article tell the story. There are two halls named for two brothers, Ron Hobbs and Warner Peacock, who invested heavily in this dream. “The total cost was $3.9 million and over 300 brothers contributed $1.3 million in cash to make this dream a reality. We are very indebted to Mark Bauer, executive vice president of the Lambda Chi Alpha Foundation for his assistance.

Pat Patterson is the current High Alpha, leading an active chapter of 128 brothers with a GPA of 3.3, and by the time this article appears will have recruited an additional 20 associate members. “We are dedicated to the seven core values of Lambda Chi Alpha and we live the ritual of our great fraternity. We are a diverse chapter enjoying successes in activities outside of the chapter, thriving on intramural competition with winning the basketball championship in the fall, and emphasizing philanthropy within the Florida State community by sponsoring the Watermelon Bust, the FSU Dance Marathon, and taking pride in a high participation rate in the Annual Red Cross Blood Drive. Two of our brothers, Robby Hayes and Matt Shead are on the swim team with Hayes an Honorable Mention All-American. We are fortunate in having brothers such as Wayne Rubinas and Doug Mannheimer. Wayne is one of a kind with so much passion for Lambda Chi and especially the Zeta-Rho chapter. He and Doug have been constants for improving the chapter, always striving to make us better men, keeping us going up, encouraging us and willing to do whatever it takes to get us to the next level.”

What a journey this chapter has taken! From an abandoned Army barracks to a multi-million dollar structure; from 21 brothers to 140; the one constant is the love of Lambda Chi Alpha and what she stands for and what she represents, now and in the future.