Famous People in Your Fraternity/Sorority

[susan314]

I know that she's not "famous", but I have always had such awe for Emily Helen Butterfield (one of our founders).

She's in the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame for her accomplishments http://hall.michiganwomenshalloffame.org/honoree.php?C=0&A=69~133:

- The first licensed female architect in the state of Michigan
- She helped found the Detroit Business Woman's Club in 1912, which was the first professional woman's club in the United States (and now is part of the Business and Professional Women's Association)
- She served as Postmaster General for a town in Michigan during World War II (which I suspect was quite a rare position for a woman to hold at that time)
- She was an expert in heraldry, and designed the Coat of Arms for multiple fraternities and sororities. Including Alpha Gam, of course. See her Wiki entry for a list - she may have designed your COA! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emily_Helen_Butterfield
- She was a published author and a recognized artist.
- And, of course, she was one of the founders of Alpha Gamma Delta. As an accomplished architect, she designed 2 chapter houses - Alpha (Syracuse) and Chi (Michigan State). I feel honored to have lived in an Emily Helen Butterfield house.

Anyhow, not to go on and on about her, because all of the founders of all of our organizations are important to us historically. But I have always felt a certain special sense of awe for Emily Helen Butterfield - even above and beyond the rest of our 11 founders. The things that she accomplished were so unusual for a woman in her era, and she was such a pioneer for women in the state of Michigan. (Obviously, which is why she's in the Women's Hall of Fame.)

I feel a much stronger sense of pride in her accomplishments than I might for someone who happened to become "famous" in certain other ways.

[Laak 315]

People of importance in your fraternity/sorority don't necessarily have to be what we would call "famous". While I agree that every member of a Greek letter organization is just as important as any other member, I would not dare say that I have done as much in my life or for my fraternity as say, Ronald Reagan, another Teke. That's just plain ridiculous. More Americans knew him than they know me. That's where my question stemmed from. I'm not trying to make it come across as some sort of a popularity contest. I was just genuinely interested in famous people and people of importance by today's standards who are members of your fraternity/sorority. It's a simple question of who in your fraternity/sorority is known by many people (i.e. famous or of importance) so as to help get the name of your fraternity/sorority out in the public better. If I was to stand next to Ronald Reagan (RIP) in a store and we both told people we were Tekes, who do think people would be more interested in listening to about Tau Kappa Epsilon. I think the answer is obvious...

[Laak 315]

With all that being said, here are some famous/people of importance in Tau Kappa Epsilon:

Famous
Ronald Reagan (Eureka)
Willie Nelson (Stephen F. Austin)
Elvis Presley (Arkansas State honorary)
Lawrence Welk (Drake)
Merv Griffin (Miami)
Conrad Hilton (Founder of Hilton Hotels, New Mexico State)
Charles Walgreen (Chairman of Walgreen Drug Stores, Michigan)
Terry Bradshaw (Louisiana Tech)
George Halas (Illinois)
Marv Levy (Coe)
"Digger" Phelps (Rider)
Phil Simms (Morehead State)
Paul Wight (Southern Illinois)

People I Consider of Importance
James P. Evans (CEO of Jenny Craig, Eastern Illinois)
James M. Kitts (Chairman/CEO of The Gillette Company, Knox)
W. Alan McCollough (Chairman/CEO of Circuit City Stores, Missouri Valley)
Robert L. Nardelli (President/CEO of Home Depot, Western Illinois)
Robert L. Barr (Congressman, Southern California)
Robet C. Byrd (Senator, George Washington)
Wes Watkins (Congress, Oklahoma State)
Dr. John Joseph Conrad (Vice President University of Kansas, Kansas)
Scott Cowen (President Tulane University, Connecticut)
Gregory Geoffroy (President Iowa State, Louisville)
John L. Seaton (President Albion College, Albion)
Arthur Steller (Superintendent of Oklahoma City Schools, Ohio)
Andrew Allen (Astronaut, Villanova)
William E. Beseth (Captain U.S. Army Special Forces, Marist)
Rolf T. Bjornson (Commander U.S. Coast Guard, Marist)
Gerald P. Carr (Commander U.S. Skylab IV, Southern California)
Roy K. Flint (Dean, U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Albion)
William A. Fowler (Nobel Prize for Physics, Ohio State)
Dr. Frank M. Jirka (President of American Medical Association, Knox)

[CasperDU173]

From my chapter, Kent State, we had a couple.

Lou Holtz, led Notre Dame to a college football national championship in 1988.

Thurmon Munson, catcher and captain for the NY Yankees. In 1976 he was the AL MVP.

[deeznutz]

@lanesig
Good point!!!!

And while I'm thinking about it.How many of these famous celebs are active financially and chapter wise?I mean, true its nice to have these people listed in your membership but, if they aren't doing anything within their chapter actively or financally then whats the point of braggin' about who's a member?Because I know a whole lot of "letter wearers" who take part in the membership intake process but, DONT EVEN PAY THEIR DUES! and Im quite sure you some of them....

[PANTHERTEKE]

Originally Posted by Laak 315

With all that being said, here are some famous/people of importance in Tau Kappa Epsilon:

Famous
Ronald Reagan (Eureka)
Willie Nelson (Stephen F. Austin)
Elvis Presley (Arkansas State honorary)
Lawrence Welk (Drake)
Merv Griffin (Miami)
Conrad Hilton (Founder of Hilton Hotels, New Mexico State)
Charles Walgreen (Chairman of Walgreen Drug Stores, Michigan)
Terry Bradshaw (Louisiana Tech)
George Halas (Illinois)
Marv Levy (Coe)
"Digger" Phelps (Rider)
Phil Simms (Morehead State)
Paul Wight (Southern Illinois)

People I Consider of Importance
James P. Evans (CEO of Jenny Craig, Eastern Illinois)
James M. Kitts (Chairman/CEO of The Gillette Company, Knox)
W. Alan McCollough (Chairman/CEO of Circuit City Stores, Missouri Valley)
Robert L. Nardelli (President/CEO of Home Depot, Western Illinois)
Robert L. Barr (Congressman, Southern California)
Robet C. Byrd (Senator, George Washington)
Wes Watkins (Congress, Oklahoma State)
Dr. John Joseph Conrad (Vice President University of Kansas, Kansas)
Scott Cowen (President Tulane University, Connecticut)
Gregory Geoffroy (President Iowa State, Louisville)
John L. Seaton (President Albion College, Albion)
Arthur Steller (Superintendent of Oklahoma City Schools, Ohio)
Andrew Allen (Astronaut, Villanova)
William E. Beseth (Captain U.S. Army Special Forces, Marist)
Rolf T. Bjornson (Commander U.S. Coast Guard, Marist)
Gerald P. Carr (Commander U.S. Skylab IV, Southern California)
Roy K. Flint (Dean, U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Albion)
William A. Fowler (Nobel Prize for Physics, Ohio State)
Dr. Frank M. Jirka (President of American Medical Association, Knox)

Frater you forgot the following:

Bruce S. Gordon, former president of the NAACP (Gettysburg College)
Mike Huckabee, presidential candidate (Arkansas State honorary)
Kevin Christiana, contestant on season 4 of Project Runway lol (Ramapo College of New Jersey)
DeWayne Jessie, actor who played Otis Day in National Lampoon's Animal House

[AlphaFrog]

Frieda Riley - who is the teacher that inspired the movie October Sky (the real teacher, not the actress), was an ASA.

[DSTCHAOS]

http://deltasigmatheta.xohost.com/in...hp?id=0305AH4N

This isn't an exhaustive list.

[AOII Angel]

Tim McGraw is a Pi Kappa Alpha from Northeast Louisiana University (now University of Louisiana at Monroe.) His video for down on the farm (like 10 yrs ago) included many active members on the Pike fire engine (does any other chapter own a fire engine?...I always wondered what that was about.) The same year he built a huge wooden deck on the back of the double wide trailer they called their chapter house.

[AlphaFrog]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

(does any other chapter own a fire engine?...I always wondered what that was about.)

There's a thread kind of close to the top of the Pike forum where they're discussing which chapters have a truck.

[SoEnchanting]

While looking up the results of the fight last night, I came across THIS. Did y'all know Roy Jones, Jr was initiated into Tau Kappa Epsilon last fall?

TKO for TKE: Glove dispute resolved when Jones agrees to change
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/boxin...95647336_x.htm

[DSTCHAOS]

Originally Posted by SoEnchanting

While looking up the results of the fight last night, I came across THIS. Did y'all know Roy Jones, Jr was initiated into Tau Kappa Epsilon last fall?

TKO for TKE: Glove dispute resolved when Jones agrees to change
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/boxin...95647336_x.htm

Yikes! : Roy Jones is in the "world's largest social fraternity."

http://www.tke.org/news/116

But why is he in it? :

[Phrozen1ne]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...Alpha_brothers

[SoEnchanting]

Originally Posted by DSTCHAOS

Yikes! : Roy Jones is in the "world's largest social fraternity."

http://www.tke.org/news/116

But why is he in it? :

Seemed like an odd match to me as well. I wonder what this 40 year old boxer has in common with the brothers at his undergraduate chapter?

[kathykd2005]

Originally Posted by SoEnchanting

Seemed like an odd match to me as well. I wonder what this 40 year old boxer has in common with the brothers at his undergraduate chapter?

Maybe he wanted to be in the chapter when he was an undergrad, but was focused on boxing at the time and couldn't? Just a guess...