Alpha Pi hits the Poconos

Last weekend (December 19-21), the chapter went on our annual excursion to the Pocono's. We rented a vacation house that was way too nice for us in a community that was way too quiet for us. The house had a pool table, game room, lots of hang out space, and most importantly, an outdoor hot tub. Suffice to say, everyone had an awesome time. Brother-at-Large Steve Brecher was responsible for planning the entire weekend and did an outstanding job. 30 brothers went up for the weekend, which made meals interesting. Over the course of the 3 days, we consumed about 12 pounds of meat and cheese and 3 loafs of bread in addition to a 25 pound turkey, 22 2-liter bottles of soda, dozens of pieces of fried chicken, and lots of miscellaneous snacks. The weather was interesting on the way up with snow and ice reducing the driving speed on the Northeast Extension to about 25 MPH. But everyone made it up fine, and the drive was well worth it.

Picture: (L-R) Mike Abrams, Jon DeSantis, Joe Raffanello, and Steve Brecher enjoy the outdoor hot tub in 15 degree and snowy weather.

Fall 2008 Awards

Congrats to the following brothers who won awards during the fall semester:

September:

Brother of the Month-Brian Engle

Minor Board of the Month-Joe Raffanello (Philanthropy Chairman)

Executive Board of the Month-Jon Kriner (Rush Chairman)

October

Brother of the Month-Harrison Bobbins

Minor Board of the Month-Andy Markowitz (Jewish Organizational Chairman)

Executive Board of the Month-Alex Shelow (Exchequer)

November

Brother of the Month-Pesach Kessler

Minor Board of the Month-Mike Abrams (TUGA Representative)

Executive Board of the Month-Jeff Gutkin (Pledge Master)

Brother of the Semester-Brian Engle

Minor Board of the Semester-Harrison Bobbins (Sports Chair)

Executive Board of the Semester-Steve Brecher (Brother-at-Large)

Alumni Chapter hosts first event

Yesterday, Alpha Pi's new formed Alumni Chapter hosted its first event: a brunch at The Ugly American restaurant in South Philadelphia. 20 men were at the event, and it was a great launching point for what will be an incredible organization for Alpha Pi men. Brotherhood is for life and is not a merely a 4 year undergraduate experience. A particular thanks goes to the alumni who organized the event and are spearheading the alumni chapter including Jeff Silverman (Class of1986), Dan Grossmann (Past Master, Class of 1984), Marc Prine (Past Master, Class of 2008), Brad Hoffman (Class of 2008), and Matt Raisman (Class of 2007.) Also, Alumni Chairman Alex Shelow and Lieutenant Master Mike Shulman put much time into the planning and excution of the event. The next event will be a Temple men's basketball game at the Liacouras Center on campus in mid-February. If you are interested in the alumni chapter or have any questions, please contact Jeff Silverman at jeffsilverman@optononline.net.

Picture: Alumni and undergraduate brothers at the restaurant

Flyers at Date Party

Last night, Alpha Pi held its end of the semester Date Party at Plough & the Stars in Old City. It was a great evening, but at about midnight we got a special surprise. The General Managerof the bar told us several members of the Philadelphia Flyers were in the bar celebrating their overtime victory over the Carolina Hurricanes (about an hour beforehand.) He asked if we would mind if they joined our event, and of course we said no. Jeff Carter (the NHL's second leading goal scorer), Mike Richards (the captain of the Flyers), and others were there, and they all were very courteous in taking dozens of pictures and talking to everyone. It really capped off an incredible night.

UPDATE (12/15/08) The event has picked up some online sports blog interest. Check out this article on SportsbyBrooks.

UPDATE: (12/18/08) The event was featured in an article in yesterday's Philadelphia Inquirer. You can read the article online. The original SportsbyBrooks article (see above) has been syndicated on at least a dozen other blogs and wire sources, and has on the original site alone, had over 36,000 unique views.

Picture: Above (L-R) Alex Schwartz, Jon DeSantis, the Flyer's Jeff Carter, Mike Shulman, a date, and Harrison Bobbins.

New officers elected

This afternoon the chapter elected three positions. Our new Rush Chairman is Brian Engle; our new Pledge Master is Ben Nadell, and our new Social Chairman is Jeff Gutkin. Congratsulations!

Picture: Below: the Spring 2009 Executive Board. Top row: (L-R) Pledge Master Ben Nadell, Rush Chairman Brian Engle, Brother-at-Large Steve Brecher, House Manager Alex Mandel, Sentinel Mike Slutsky, Exchequer Alex Shelow, Master Jon DeSantis, and Scribe Brandon Cohen. Bottom row: (L-r) Lieutenant Master Mike Shulman and Social Chairman Jeff Gutkin.

Congrats Phi Deuteron

The Phi Deuteron Pledge Class became brothers of Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity last night with the ritual ceremony at 2000 North Broad, the first of many pledge classes to be initiated in the Mansion on the Corner. The chapter now has 61 undergraduate brothers and over 725 alumni brothers. The new brothers are: Dan Lyons, Aaron Wolf, Rob Farber, Alex Gionet, Jason Hoffman, Tyler Seidman, Alex Lassoff, Ziv Noah, Shane Gottlieb, Scott Levine, Max Lieberman, Dave Paley, Daniel Israel, and Michael Stoll.

A Great Past 10 Days

It has been an exciting time to be a college student at Temple lately. In the last days, the Phillies won the World Series, we celebrated Halloween, and Obama won the election (despite your personal politics, an Obama victory in North Philadelphia made for a lot of fun.) For the Phillies pennant victory, the largest celebration on campus took place outside our house at the corner of Broad & Norris Streets. In the end police blocked traffic in both directions, and hundreds of students celebrated the win.

Pictures: Above: brothers, pledges, and friends on election night after Obama's big win. Below: (L-R) Jeff Gutkin as a survivor, Joe Littman as Joe the Plumber, Mike Abrams as himself, Matt Muchnick with green hair, Joe Raffanelllo as a a survivor, Sean Rapp as ?, Alex Shelow as a Sixer (should be a great season...), and Alex Schwartz as gothic. Mike Shulman (in front) as the joker from the Batman movies. Far below: the Phillies pennant celebration outside our house.

Alpha Pi Hits the Big Apple

Last Friday night into Saturday, several brothers and pledges went up to New York city for a night on the town then spent the evening at Brother Jeff Gutkin's house in central Jersey. While regrettably having to be in New Jersey for a bit, everyone had a great time.

Picture: Brothers in the city. Top row: (L-R) Steve Zhitnitsky, Jon DeSantis (on statue), and Addison Levitt. Bottom row: (L-R) Alex Shelow (in red hat), Jeff Gutkin, Brandon Cohen, Mike Abrams, Brian Engle, Mike Shulman, Harrison Bobbins, and Joe Raffanello.

Alumni event this Saturday

The chapter is hosting an alumni event this Saturday along with Alpha Epsilon Phi Sorority. The event begins at 1 PM and is at the Draught Horse located on Cecil B. Moore Ave on campus. Not only will you get to see all your brothers as well as friends from the sorority, you can also enjoy football on the restaurant's large TVs. Hors d'oeuvres and soft drinks are on the house, and there is a cash bar. This is also a great chance to meet our new pledges. RSVPs are appreciated in advance, and can be made to Alumni Chairman Alex Shelow at aepi@temple.edu. Pictures will be posted here after the event.

Intramurals Update

Currently, the chapter is participating in soccer, football, and volleyball. While thus far, the volleyball and soccer teams are struggling, the flag football team is having an impressive season. After suffering a tough loss in the opening week, the team has scored two straight victories, including a 2 touchdown victory yesterday evening. The team is led by Quarterback Michael Abrams and Wide Receiver Steve Brecher, but everyone on the team has been contributing to its success. Next week, we begin intramural basketball play, and this year looks promising on the court. Harrison Bobbins has been doing all of the work in getting teams signed up and in getting brothers to participate as the chapter's Sports Chair.

Picture: Our beloved Flag Football Captain, Brandon Cohen

Alpha Pi participates in AIDS Walk

Yesterday, 30 AEPi brothers and pledges were some of the over 4,000 walkers in the 8.4 mile Philadelphia Aids Walk. The purpose of the walk was to raise money and awareness of the disease. The walk began in Eakins Oval in front of the Art Museum, continued down Kelly Drive, crossed the Schuylkill River, and then returned to the Art Museum on the oppositeite shore. It was an extremely cold day, but everyone had a great, crossed the time walking for a great cause.

Picture: (L-R) Brother Matt Muchnick, pledge Dan Lyons, and brothers Jon DeSantis and Sean Rapp walking down KellyDrive..

Phi Deuteron Pledge Class Inducted

Yesterday night, the chapter inducted 14 pledges in the ritual ceremony. The new pledges are: Jason Hoffman, Daniel Israel, Tyler Seidman, Michael Stoll, Max Lieberman, Dan Lyons, Scott Levine, Alex Lassoff, Ziv Noah, Aaron Wolf, Shane Gottleib, Alex Gionet, Rob Farber, and Dave Paley. Their Pledge Master is Jeff Gutkin (class of 2010), who has prepared a sound pledge program that will prepare the pledges to be great brothers. Past Master Dan Grossmann (Class of 1984) was on hand and participated in the ceremony. The chapter was able to conduct the ceremony in our soon to be home: 2000 North Broad Street, which drastically improved the seriousness, importance, and impact of the ceremony.

Picture: (Above) Picture of the Phi Deuteron Pledge Class L-R front row-Daniel Israel and Dave Paley. second row-Max Lieberman, Shane Gottleib, Jason Hoffman, Tyler Seidman, Scott Levine, and Dan Lyons. third row-Alex Gionet, Rob Farber, and Michael Stoll

Phillies game and rush

Rush has officially begun! The two week rush period kicked off Friday night with dinner at Hillel and an after party at our house. Some upcoming events include a Poker Tournament, a night out in Chinatown, and an Around the World party. We've had over 30 guys by the house before rush even started, and we're very excited about the upcoming weeks. As usual alumni are invited to any event.

On September 8th, the brotherhood enjoyed a night out to the Phillies - Marlins game. The Phillies won the game 8-6, and Brother Alex Bord got drilled by a foul ball in his arm. He got taken to the first aid station, but he's just fine. 25 brothers were at the game, and we even managed to get yelled at by stadium employees for taunitng Marlins left fielder Josh Willingingham.

Alumni Spotlight: Jonathan Alexander

What years were you active in Alpha Pi?
I pledged in the Fall of 2003 and graduated in May 2007.

Which positions did you hold in the chapter?

On the Executive Board, I served as Lieutenant Master, Master, and Sentinel.

One funny AEPi story from your time at college:

There are so many but one that sticks out to me was during my freshman year, one of my pledge brother's pledge name was Screech from Saved By The Bell. He hated the name and one day after he became a brother he walked into a room of a bunch of us. We said "Hey Screech, what's up?" He replied with "Stop calling me that, I really hate that name." Without missing a beat, the Lt. Master at the time said "Fine, you're Boner." The name is still with him today.

One piece of advice for undergraduate brothers:

Work hard to be the best brother you can be. If you don't always recall what it means to be a brother, go and read the ritual manual when you have a few minutes. There is a lot of good information in there that you don't always remember. Additionally, don't set limits for yourself. Strive to constantly raise the bar. This applies in school, in the fraternity and in life in general.

How has AEPi helped you since graduating?

AEPi landed me my first job which was working for the fraternity at it's international headquarters in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was a great experience in which I learned a lot about the fraternity as a whole. The things I learned will also help me act in an advisory role for whichever chapters I work with since I have been exposed to so many other chapters from all over the country.

What do you do now professionally?

I will be going back to school in the Fall to pursue a career in dentistry.

Married? Kids?

Single

Which brothers have you most stayed in touch with?

I am a recent graduate so I am still close with many brothers including some undergrads. I couldn't narrow it down to a few but I am close with at least 15 guys from my time.

If brothers want to contact you, how can they?

Brothers can contact me via email at jaaepi@gmail.com. That would definitely be the most efficient way.

Pictures: Above-(L-R) Matt Raisman (Class of 2007), Jonathan Alexander, and Marc Bodinger (Class of 2007) as undergrads. Below-(L-R) Marc Prine (Class of 2008), Rabbi Shalom Denbo, and Jonathan Alexander in Israel this previous summer.

Hoops for Hope

Yesterday, the chapter raised over $350 for one of our official philanthropies: Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem, Israel. Shaare Zedek is Israel's largest provider of medical care to victims of terror and also the official health carrier for the Israel Defense Forces. The event was called Hoops for Hope and was held at the Bell Tower in the middle of campus. People participated by paying $1 to take a basketball shot and if they made the shot, they won a free piece of pizza courtesy of Owl's Nest Pizzeria. People could also pay with their Diamond Dollars, which is a debit account associated with student ID cards through the University. Not only was this event great for charity, but it was held on the first day of classes. AEPi's name was in the most popular spot on campus with thousands of students, staff, and administrators walking by and participating. This was great for our image and for publicity. It was also probably the first time in Temple history that the administration allowed a group to set up a basketball net at the Bell Tower. Joe Raffanello (Philanthropy Chairman) and Mike Shulman (Lieutenant Master) were primarily responsible for the event, and they both did an awesome job. We continue to prove that we are the best there is at Temple University. Everyone had a great job juggling the first day of classes with raising money for a great cause.

Pictures: Above-Doug Kahn can shakes. Below-brothers in front of the Bell Tower with the basketball net and banners.