Wabash College - Class of 1991

Sphinxsters, sure to save the date...

Homecoming - October 4, 2008
Sphinx Club Reunion

Yeah, I'm talking to you Aitken, Jason Albaugh, Mike Aslin, Brian Burdick, Rich Calacci, Drew Crousore, Mike Cunningham, Brian Deleget, Jerome Dixon, Scott Firestine, Will Grannan, Brad Gregory, Scott Handlon, Matt Hanson, Kaizaad Kotwol, Todd Kingsbury, Mark Kosior, Jay Krause, Aaron Kroemer, Brett Miller, Timothy Oliver, John Panozzo, John Plaster, Ron Pitcock, Phil Stutz, Bryan Wickens, and two other FIJIs with illegible names. (Did I forget anyone?)

During the day, you can

• Attend a pregame Celebrating Leadership Luncheon
• Cheer the team onto the field with all reunion attendees
• Perform a celebratory pushup and a couple of cheers
• Join the others for a reception following the Little Giants' Homecoming win over the evil Allegheny Gators

Here's your To Do list:

1. Find your pot (the College has some you can order)
2. Dig out your coveralls and that old Sphinx Club shirt (if your wife hasn't thrown it out or made it into a quilt!)
3. Call up a fellow club member or two and make sure they come
4. Mark your calendar
5. Do a couple of practice pushups...just to avoid a career-ending injury!
6. Buy a zucchini

Hopefully, we'll see you there.

Writing in his Scottish brogue, the poet Robert Burns probably said it worst: "The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft a-gley" (go often awry).

So it was with the visit of General Earl Johnson '38 to the Phi Delt house.

As I mentioned at the end of my Chapel Talk, this was the first time that the former air force pilot and veteran of three wars had been up to Crawfordsville to see the new fraternity house.

During Commencement, which had to be held in Chadwick, the College bestowed on Gen. Johnson the honrary degree Doctor of Laws. Afterward, I found him in an athletic classroom in the Allen Center being tended to by Alumni Director and fellow Air Force vet Tom Runge. The General is about 92 now, and he was sitting in a wheelchair, but had used a cane during the ceremony. I introduced myself, and while he hadn't seen the house yet, he made sure to mention to me he knew it wasn't painted white.

His cousin and daughter were preparing to take him over to the new house, so I told him I'd meet him there. They drove and I walked back across campus, but when I entered the new front door, all hell was breaking loose.

The lights were off and the fire alarm was blaring. Turns out winds had downed a tree or limb into a power line and knocked out power to all or most of Crawfordsville! I'm still not sure why a power outage would trigger the fire alarm, but they couldn't get it shut off. Everyone was filing out, including Gen. Johnson and his namesake, the big St. Bernard named General.

  Amid all the chaos the soldier and the dog were the most calm.

We stood there by the entrance as the wind picked up. The weather much better resembling an early fall overcast and gusty football Saturday than Mother's Day. One by one, the new graduates came up to him, introduced themselves and congratulated him. And pictures were taken before Gen. Johnson was escorted to his car.

I'm sure none of use will forget that day anytime soon.

P.S. Gen. Johnson e-mailed me this morning saying, in part, "My visit to the Phi Delt house was superb. I couldn't believe that I saw The General. And the people that must keep him were so very nice. ...It was too bad all the lights went out and I couldn't see the rest of the house but I will come back some day and make the tour."

Thanks to class political correspondent Dave Stone, for reminding me that "In other political news, Randy Head won the Republican primary for State Senate in his district."

Randy dominated his other three opponents to win a State Senate seat in District 18, which covers the north central counties of Cass, Fulton, Kosciusco, Miami, Pulaski, and Wabash.

He'll face democrat Linda Klinck in the fall. Congratulations, Randy!

Here's his Web site.

Here are the results:

I couldn't resist adding a picture of Randy atop his campaign mascot!

ALSO: Incumbent Indiana State Senator Brent Waltz '96 cruised to win the republican nomination on Tuesday with 75% of the vote.

If it sounds like a new talkshow on CNN or Fox News, it probably should be. Last night, I was flipping channels here in Indy to catch the results of the Indiana Primary. On local CBS affiliate WISH-TV, there were two political analysts, one democrat, one republican...both Wabash men.

Sharing expert analysis were classmate and former Indiana legislator Luke Messer and former Indianapolis deputy mayor Steve Campbell '92. I have to say, both were really good, giving really inciteful, honest analysis as the precincts began reporting in. (Telegenic is the word.) And I'm not just saying that because they're good friends of mine!

Hey, you guys get a show, and I'll produce it!

I managed to download two clips, but I'm worried I'll get thrown in copyright jail if I post them on YouTube. I'll work on getting permission to show them. In the meantime, here are some stills.

Last month, I felt a little like Paul Revere decrying the Dannies' feeble attempt to challenge us at annual giving. A new visit to their giving Web site reveals that they have excised their rallying cry to "Beat to Wabash."

Typical.

But all this school rivalry distracts from the fact that the College's fiscal year is coming to an end. And we need your help.

The real incentive is what it always has been. Not class pride, not beating the cursed Tiggers, but helping our students.

Trustee Tom Hays '55 issued a $1.1 million challenge to up our alumni giving. If we meet this challenge, his gift will boost the scholarship endowment. I'm here to tell you that some of our students need this much more than we'd like to think.

Wabash will tell you that their retention rate is really good. And it is. What's hidden in the numbers are those students who have to drop out because of financial reasons. I've seen it happen too often.

These aren't kids who refuse to take out student loans. They aren't guys who feel they are entitled to the world like the stereotype of so many in their generation. They're not spoiled rich kids (like those that still go to DePauw).

They're good, decent, bright kids who believe in the strong work ethic that Wabash fosters.

Unlike our class, Wabash doesn't award percentage scholarships anymore. So when tuition increases, even moderately, these kids have to pay more out of pocket each year. I'm not entirely sure why Wabash switched away from percentage scholarships; maybe it's because of large classes like ours. (Remember hearing that rubbish that we were "the best class that money could buy"?)

As you might suspect, I'm a good alumnus of Wabash when it comes to giving. I donate each year to the annual fund, not because of some need to show leadership as your Class Agent.

I want to.

On the flip side, I'm really a horrible alumus of my grad school, Northwestern University. When they call me, I blow them off. Cold.

What's the difference? Is it because I had a nice 80% Presidential Scholarship to go to Wabash and Northwestern forced me to pay full tuition? (Is it because I really hate wearing the color purple?) Not really. Don't get me wrong, I had a great experience at Northwestern. Medill is a top-notch school of journalism, and I really learned a lot there.

But Wabash taught me more. Just as it does our students today.

We can never pay the College back for what we received during our time at Wabash, but we can, as they say, "pay it forward" and help ensure that the experience of current students is every bit as meaningful as ours was 15 or so years ago.

That's why I give.

I hope you feel the same as I do about Wabash.

The fiscal year ends June 30. We want to see your name on the list. And, yeah, we wanna beat those damned Dannies!

For comparison, last year 85 of you gave, or 32.46%.

Those are heartening numbers given that we have a harder job of soliciting funds from the largest class Wabash has produced.

It also points up that we have a good cadre of donors from our class and some of you guys who give one year and not the next. That's natural. It was clear that when we contacted some of you last June, many of you had simply just forgotten. It happens. It also means that it's incumbent on us to remind you.

So if you're on that list of 51, expect a little reminder in the coming week.

On the macro level, if each of the 2,407 alumni who have made a gift in the last four years made a gift by June 30, the College’s alumni participation rate would be 51%.  Getting a little over half of the 2,407 to give by June 30 will increase the alumni participation rate to 40%.  There are less than 60 days between now and June 30 to make a gift. 

Here's how you can give:

• By phone: 877-743-4545
• On the Web: www.wabash.edu/alumni/egift
• By mail: Wabash Annual Fund/PO Box 352/Crawfordsville, IN 47933 (checks payable to Wabash College)

For questions about making gifts of stock, please call 877-743-4545