Quote:
Originally posted by Eric_Berger
Just wanted to clarify a few things about the BU & MIT houses...
Boston University did not exist in its current location until the 40's-50's. It originally started out closer to the downtown area. As such, the first BU Lambda Chi houses were closer to the Public Library (if you know the area). As the 1900's moved on, the campus moved further west towards and past the Kenmore Square area. The 157 Baystate Road house was bought in 1951 by the Alpha Zeta Alumni Association. This was the Chapter house until all Greek groups were booted off campus in the late 60's.
The Alpha Chapter was recolonized in 1981 and began renting a house at 523 Newbury Street in 1983; the Alumni Association bought that property in 1985. Due to difficult times in the Chapter and issues with licensing and repairs, the 523 Newbury Street house was sold in 1995.
Since the MIT chapter has been living at 99 Bay State Road for a very long time (which, yes, is right in the middle of the BU campus), it was ironic that, when I was in school, the MIT chapter was located closer to BU than the BU chapter and the BU chapter was closer to MIT than the MIT chapter.
Another interesting side note about the closing of the Alpha Chapter and its recolonization...the last Pledge class President before the Chapter was closed was a gentleman named John Saporito (note that this was before AM's). I was recruited in the second recruitment effort for the recolonization. John's Alpha Number is 860 and mine is 888; only 28 apart even though there were 14 years between our Initiations. John had a daughter named Jill; Jill was friends with a girl named Tracey; Tracey worked at the Massachusetts General Hospital in the mid-90's; I worked at Mass General in the mid-90's for a girl named Tracey; in 2002, I married a girl named Tracey who worked at Mass General, who was friends with a girl named Jill, whose father was a Lambda Chi, who attended our wedding. Yes, Lambda Chi's are everywhere and you never know how or when you might meet one.
in ZAX,
Eric
A888
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Another BU alum on the board..nice to see other Terriers around. (BU grad 2003, Kappa Sig alum).
Lambda Chi is indeed going strong at Boston U. When I graduated the chapter wasn't especially large, but was involved all around campus, and was generally a nice bunch of guys overall.
It's interesting to see the rise and fall of the Greek system at the school; there's a lot of history there with fraternities and sororities, and the comeback that the system made in the mid-80s says a lot about those who participated. It's still not a Greek-friendly school by any means, but advances are being made.
Houses are always a problem, for the reason listed...the price to rent/buy a place is quite steep. However, many people do it, either through alumni donations, a housing corporation or just getting enough guys together to make renting affordable. It can be done...it just takes a bit of work. None of the Boston U. chapters have on-campus housing, as that still remains a dream for the years to come.
It's nice to have the Alpha chapter up and running...too bad Boston U. took the approach it did in the late 60's/early 70's, or maybe there'd be more stories like that.
Interfraternally,
Collin