Delta Dispatch, Summer 2023, electronic - Alpha Tau Omega

Introducing the New 125 Chancellor Street!

After seven years of fundraising and planning, we are thrilled to introduce the new and improved 125 Chancellor Street. The recently completed $2.3 million redevelopment – which finished on time and under budget – expanded the size of the house by 55%, from 3,550 sf to 5,490 sf. This included a complete gut renovation of the historical front section of the house, demolition of much of the back half, and the addition of a new West Wing that includes a Great Room, enlarged kitchen, 5 new bedrooms, and a gang-style bathroom.

The interior details and finishes are also impressive. The house features modern mechanical systems and safety features including central heat and air, Wifi signal boosters on all floors, security cameras, fire alarms, and a sprinkler system. We retained and refinished the original hardwood in the historical section, laid new hardwood throughout the West Wing, and tiled all bathrooms, the kitchen, and the bar.

We’ve included several pictures in this newsletter, and you can see the full construction process from start to finish on our Capital Campaign webpage.

As a result of this project, the Delta Chapter now owns one of the best fraternity houses at UVA. We should celebrate and be proud of this milestone. We’ve earned it. But as most of you have heard by now, 125 Chancellor Street will unfortunately not be home to the Delta Chapter for at least the next two years. Following three years of disappointing Rush results, the Active Chapter simply could not afford to rent the house at the level we needed to responsibly cover our operating costs and debt service. We therefore made the painful but necessary decision to rent 125 Chancellor Street to another fraternity for a two-year term.

This is a bitter pill to swallow, and all the more so given what a beautiful property we’ve created after so many years of effort. But rather than be disheartened or discouraged, this new house should serve as the ultimate motivator for us to bring the Delta Chapter back to full strength as soon as we can. If we all work together and support the Chapter like we have these last seven years, 125 Chancellor can be home to the Delta Chapter as soon as fall 2025. Keep reading this newsletter for more details on how we plan to make that happen – and what you can do to help.

What Comes Next

The Alpha Sigma Phi (Asig) fraternity, which colonized at UVA in 2014, took occupancy of 125 Chancellor as of August 1 and will pay the Delta Chapter $140,000 per year in rent. This will more than cover our debt service and operating costs and leave us with a mild surplus. We expect to use this surplus to pay down debt and jumpstart our Capital Sustainment Fund to assist the Active Chapter as they rebuild their membership.

Rest assured: We will monitor our new tenants closely to ensure they don’t trash the place. Our lease with ASig requires them to cover any and all repairs from damage they cause, as well as any minor repairs ($300 or less) arising from normal wear and tear. ASig is also responsible for any required maintenance to kitchen appliances such as oven, microwave, and refrigerator. We have a $11,667 security deposit to help enforce this. The only repairs that ATΩ is responsible for are breakdowns in large mechanical systems such as plumbing, electric, HVAC, etc., and given this is a brand new house with all new systems, we don’t expect any to break in the near term.

We will keep everyone updated on the management of 125 Chancellor Street, as well as the financial requirements and expected timeline for the Delta Chapter to reclaim occupancy. For any questions on any of this, please do not hesitate to contact the officers of the ATΩ Holding Corporation.

Active Chapter Recruitment Plans

An update from the Worthy Marshall and Rush Chair, Colin Fogarty ’25
The Actives, the BOT, and the Alumni Recruitment Committee have been working closely over the past month to develop a Rush strategy for the 2023-2024 academic year. Together, we have developed a social calendar for each week that is aimed at cultivating a list of potential new members and building relationships with first years. Events on the calendar include group outings with Actives and potential rushees, larger events focused around increasing name recognition around Grounds, smaller events where closer relationships can form, and sorority mixers. We have high confidence that the events being planned will open the right doors to bring in a second/third year pledge class in the fall, while also setting us up for a successful spring Rush with first years.

While lacking a formal house for Rush is a logistical challenge, several Alumni have already stepped up, offering connections to local venues and meeting spaces in order to help with social events and creating a meeting space for the Active Chapter. We are working on securing these venues for larger events like Rush, socials, and chapter meetings. Additionally, the Chapter is already hard at work securing a house for the 2024-2025 academic year.

Part of our revamped social calendar will include a formal Fall Rush Week for upperclassmen, during the week of September 3-9. Most UVA fraternities do not participate in Fall Rush and there is no formal support from IFC, so our competition will be limited. As such, Fall Rush, will consist of small, low-cost events such as basketball matches, card games, and cookouts. Thanks to some excellent initiative by the Actives, we’ve secured space in the Rotunda for Open House. We’ll end the week with a small bar social and a Bid Day celebration. We’ll be advertising all this through fliers, email lists, and social media. Our goal is to find at least three new pledges that we can initiate during the fall semester.

Our chapter’s recruitment strategy must also expand beyond Rush events to engage potential new members. As such, the Chapter is overhauling other efforts, such as revamping our philanthropic endeavors. These kinds of signature events increase ATΩ’s name recognition and are also a good way to engage potential new members.

Furthermore, we must further reconnect to our chapter’s culture and ask ourselves “What does it mean to be a Delta?” When we hear Alumni tell stories about John Rich or Bill Schmidt and how these men impacted their lives, we are reminded that being a Delta means more than booze and partying: it stands for brotherhood and service to others. We must continue engaging with our Chapter’s culture, history, and traditions. To this end, we encourage any alumni to share photos and stories about their time as an Active on our Facebook page.

I would also like to briefly address the general concerns that Alumni may have over the state of the Chapter. We are all disappointed in the current membership numbers and the Active Chapter’s inability to occupy 125 Chancellor Street. Trust me, no one is more disappointed than the Actives themselves. But we are the Delta Chapter; we bear the honor of the oldest active ATΩ chapter. Our Chapter has endured difficult times in the past, including two World Wars and a seven year hiatus following the loss of 502 Rugby. Being a Delta means being a fighter, and like we have since 1868, we shall persevere, and we shall overcome.

In order to set the Chapter up for success, we have laid out some key goals that we believe are important if the Chapter is to reach its former highs, as well as what alumni can do to help:

Secure at least three pledges during Fall Rush. If you know or have connections to any current second or third years who are not in Greek Life, please pass any names our way.
By the end the end of the fall semester, identify at least 100 first years who are likely to attend ATΩ’s Spring Rush Open House. The Actives have already been hard at work identifying potential first years in the Class of 2027 Facebook groups, and we are beginning outreach there.
Identify 10-15 first years with a high likelihood of pledging ATΩ in the spring. This would be a tightly focused list that will help us be more targeted in our recruitment for the spring. To reach a sustainable Chapter size of 40-50 Brothers, we need to recruit 10-15 men per year. If we can achieve that this year, it would have the outsized impact of doubling the size of the Chapter.
Integrate Alumni gatherings into Recruitment efforts wherever possible. If you are hosting any small gatherings, tailgates, or other events in Charlottesville, we would love to attend with people from this more targeted list of potential recruits and roll out the “full court press” to truly get them ingrained into the ATΩ culture ahead of Rush.
Supplement the Active Chapter budget with Alumni donations. We will need alumni financial support for all of this. Today, the Active Chapter is forecasting a funding gap of $9,500 to get us through fall and set the stage for a successful Spring Rush. We will likely need additional support in the spring as well. Rest assured your donations will be spent wisely with appropriate oversight from the BOT and Alumni Recruitment Committee.

We will be sharing the finalized fall and spring calendars in the coming weeks; however, as it stands, major events (e.g. tailgates, bar tabs, etc.) will be open access for Alumni to help bring liveliness to the Chapter, as well as offer an opportunity to contribute in kind through offering your stories and experiences to potential rushees.

Thank you again for all the help and thoughts already provided to the committee, and do not hesitate to reach out to Rush Chair, Colin Fogarty (ank6rs@virginia.edu) or Alumni Rush Committee Chair, Kyle Guzik (kguz76@gmail.com) with any thoughts, questions, or concerns.

L&R,
Colin Fogarty, Rush Chair ’25

Calling All Alumni!

A note from Jim O’Reilly ’79
Alumni interactions and connections are a major part of being in a fraternity and a lifelong brotherhood. Many of our Active Brothers missed out on that side of fraternity life during the pandemic and its aftermath. With the Active Chapter facing a challenging year ahead, we want to provide them with every possible opportunity to interact with our rich and vibrant alumni community. There are many things you can do to engage with the Active Chapter (and potential new recruits as well).

For local alumni or anyone visiting Charlottesville, please consider whether you are planning any activities or meet-ups that would be appropriate for Active Brothers or potential new recruits to join. If you’re going to attend a UVA sports match, see some live music, have dinner on the Downtown Mall, planning a group hike or a raft trip on the James, these are all excellent opportunities to consider inviting an Active Brother or two to join you. Just reach out to Worthy Marshall and Rush Chair Colin Fogarty and let him know your plans. His email is ank6rs@virginia.edu.

We also encourage you to review the schedule of social and recruiting events that the Active Chapter is planning for both the fall and spring semesters. Make an effort to drop by one or more of the events and introduce yourself. You never know what sort of connections you might have in common, and if potential recruits are there it’s a great opportunity for you to rush ‘em up!

L&R
Jim O’Reilly ’79

Board of Trustees

Ian Holman ’12, Chairman
John Sweeney ’09, Finance Chair
Kyle Guzik ’20, Recruitment Chair
Michael Bray ’10
Chris Hume ’21
Raymond Hyser ’16
Michael Lapp ’18
Jim O’Reilly ’79
Jason Watkins ’22
David White ’62

Housing Corporation

Christopher Tate ’04, President
Peter Elbaor ’10, Treasurer
John Sweeney ’09, Vice President
Greg Jacobs ’12
Matt Terry ’01

Capital Campaign Reaches $912,000 in Cumulative Donations since 2016

With the redevelopment of 125 Chancellor Street complete, we can take stock of what the Delta Chapter has accomplished since we launched the Capital Campaign. From March 2016 through May 2023, we had 265 donors contribute approximately $912,000. This was a truly grassroots effort where people answered the call by giving what they could, with donation sizes ranging from $5 to $100,000. Impressively, 75 alumni contributed $5,000 or more throughout the campaign, and 24 alumni contributed $10,000 or more. Endless thanks to all of our generous donors!

The Capital Campaign was more successful than anyone could have ever imagined at its outset, and this experience revealed two important truths that our Chapter should always keep in mind. First, the love for this fraternity runs deep – so deep that many of us are willing to donate immense levels of our time, energy, and money to ensure the Delta Chapter’s future success and continuity. Second, while we all have our differences, our Chapter can accomplish big things when we all work together towards a common goal. The devotion and unity that made this project possible will be critical to our Chapter’s success in the years ahead.

Capital Sustainment and Active Chapter Support

With construction completed and paid for, the primary goal of the Capital Campaign now turns to supporting the Active Chapter in their recruitment efforts. We also need to build up a solid cash reserve so that we can help the Active Chapter furnish 125 Chancellor Street as soon as they are ready to take occupancy. For anyone who has made a habit of giving to the Capital Campaign over the last seven years, our hope is that you will continue your support as we transition to a culture of Capital Sustainment.

We are grateful for any amount you are willing to contribute, and all levels of generosity will continue to be recognized annually in the Delta Dispatch.

The Active Chapter needs alumni support now more than ever. Their current membership levels do not provide sufficient financial resources to host a credible Rush process or memorable social events. Our goal is to supplement their budget with $18,000 in alumni donations. As demonstrated by our past seven years of fundraising, this is eminently achievable if everyone pitches in.

To make it easier to support the Active Chapter directly, we have set up an Active Chapter Fund within the Capital Campaign. If you are interested in donating directly to the Active Chapter’s efforts, you may do so by going through our usual Capital Campaign link and writing “Active Chapter Fund” in the memo.

Donor Recognition

As construction proceeded, the Capital Campaign closed out the 2022-2023 academic year with $109,000 raised from 66 donors. The annual donor roll is available on page eight. We’ve also provided a full listing of the 75 donors confirmed or on track for the Rebuilders’ Society. As a reminder, the Rebuilders’ Society recognizes anyone who donates at least $5,000 cumulatively to the Capital Campaign, by featuring their college ATΩ portraits on a multi-decade composite in the new Great Room.

If you’re interested in adding your picture to the wall, it’s not too late! Any recognitions and sponsorship opportunities that existed previously during the Capital Campaign (e.g., Rebuilder’s Society, room naming rights, etc.) will continue to apply until the Delta Chapter officially reclaims occupancy of 125 Chancellor. At that point, the Rebuilders’ Society Composite will be printed, and room name plaques will go up on the doors and walls. Please contact BOT Finance Chair John Sweeney for more information about the Capital Campaign, or to make a pledge or donation. His email is JohnHSweeney@gmail.com.

With a Bond as Strong as Right Itself

A note from the Board of Trustees Chairman, Ian Holman ’12
The Delta Chapter has reached a critical juncture in its history. As you all know, our long-running effort to renovate the Chapter house at 125 Chancellor Street has finally succeeded. But the Active Chapter faces significant headwinds to build membership back to a self-sustaining level. To that end, the Board of Trustees has formed an Alumni Recruitment Committee to assist the Actives with revamping their recruitment strategy, explore new innovations and approaches, and provide logistics and planning support as we kick off the fall semester. Building back the Chapter’s membership is no small task and the Actives need Alumni support to make this effort successful. Please contact the Recruitment Committee Chair, Kyle Guzik, for more information.

We’d love to have as many of you be part of the conversation as possible as we chart a path forward. The Delta Chapter Facebook group serves as our central online forum where Alumni can discuss the Chapter, ask questions, or simply banter. We will also post periodic informal updates to supplement official BOT communications in that group. Join the conversation in that group.

Please also consider any leads you may have on potential new members for the Chapter. If you know, or know of, a young man that is a rising first-year or second-year, let him know about ATΩ and your fraternity experience. If the young man is okay with it, share his name and any contact information with Colin and the Active Brothers can follow up with him.

As was previously announced, we recently welcomed five new members to the Board of Trustees: Sam Grimmelbein ’19, Kyle Guzik ’20, Troy Holsworth ’22, Chris Hume ’21, and Jason Watkins ’22. Additionally, we would like to thank Peter Elbaor ’10, Greg Jacobs ’12, and Matias Hahn ’18 for their contributions over the years as they step down from the BOT. Peter and Greg will continue their involvement on the board of the ATΩ Holding Corporation. Our Chapter is fortunate to have such talented and dedicated volunteers leading it, I am looking forward to chairing this newly energized BOT.

Lastly, I also want to recognize to work that has gone into getting us to this point, particularly from Michael Bray in leading the BOT for the last seven years, and John Sweeney for all of his blood, sweat, and tears spent leading the renovation of 125 Chancellor Street. While the current tenancy arrangement is difficult to accept, ATΩ’s physical future at UVA has been secured, and we can now turn our attention to the all-important task of boosting recruitment.

This coming year will be pivotal to achieving our recruiting goals, and it will take all of us to give the Actives the support they need. The Active Chapter has shown incredible resilience through many pitfalls over the last four years, and their enthusiasm to meet this latest challenge gives me confidence that they will succeed. I ask you to consider what expertise or support – financial, moral, logistical, or otherwise – you can provide to the actives to help them carry on the strong bonds of brotherhood that have had such a lasting impact on us all.

Love and Respect,
Ian Holman ’12

2016-2023 Financial Summary

In lieu of our usual Annual Financial Summary, we’ve provided a full accounting of every dollar collected and spent since launching the Capital Campaign in 2016. Our biggest expense was obviously the redevelopment of 125 Chancellor Street, which between construction, architecture, engineering, financing, and other miscellaneous expenses came to a total project cost of approximately $2.3 million. This was paid for primarily through donations, a new $1.4 million first mortgage, a $130,000 alumni bridge loan, and investment income. Thanks to some unexpected cost savings in the final invoices, we closed out the project with approximately $49,000 in reserves.

We borrowed heavily to finance this project, and paying down debt over time will be important if we want to ensure the Active Chapter can comfortably afford to rent the house. Our total debt against 125 Chancellor Street is $1,530,000, and the house’s monthly debt service now totals $8,878. That sets a high bar for any future leasing efforts with the Active Chapter, as we would need to ensure rent collections fully cover our debt service and other operating costs. The ASig lease provides $11,667 of monthly income, and after paying property taxes and insurance we should run a slight operating surplus over the next two years. We would like to have the flexibility to charge our Active Chapter less when they are ready to take occupancy of 125 Chancellor Street, and paying down our debt will give us more flexibility to do that.

Note: The above excludes the annual operating income and expenses related to the management of 125 Chancellor Street, such as rent, property taxes, insurance, and debt service. The above statement only accounts donations from alumni, how those donations were spent, and any additional debt that was used alongside alumni donations for the house construction.

Annual Giving Roll Call

5-Year Cumulative Donations

$100,000 – Top Donor Society + Rebuilders’ Society

John and Nancy Rich ’68

$10,000 – Temple of Friendship Society + Rebuilders’ Society

Seward Anderson ’69
Bill Beisswanger ’96
David Blount ’70
Richard Chandler ’69
Peter Elbaor ’10
Ed Ford ’68
John Frye ’68
Walt Hamill ’58
Bob Harrell ’67
Bruce Henry ’80
Jack Horn ’59
Benjamin Hughes ’12
Gary Koch ’75
Steve Mewborn ’80
David Muirhead ’00
James O’Reilly ’79
Michael Park ’82
Chris Schilling ’05
William Schmidt ’66
Michael Sharkey ’81
Marvin Smith ’66
John Sweeney ’09
John Wells ’01
Elliot Woltz ’70

$5,000 – Rebuilders’ Society

Ryan Ahearn ’06
Aaron Bernstein ’12
Robert Blankenbaker ’66
Michael Bray ’10
Greg Burns ’00
Lloyd Craighill ’50
Robert Field ’67
Matthew Godfrey ’10
James Hawks ’70
Ian Holman ’12
Gerald Hulsizer ’67
Stefan Illiescu ’11
Greg Jacobs ’12
Jason Jennings ’05
Matt Jennings ’00
Max Junker ’01
Michael Kaputa ’67
William Kirby ’79
Wayne Lalle ’68
Brian Levinstein ’14
Chris Lewis ’06
Willis Lyford ’09
Louis McCracken ’12
Leigh Middleditch ’51
Robert Moorefield ’64
Josh Nunn ’10
James O’Reilly ’79
Gouthan Peddi ’12
Olex Ponomarenko ’11
Chris Tate ’04
Andrew Taylor ’10
Matt Terry ’01
Ben Verley ’06
Thomas Wood ’63
Frederick Crow ’77
Michael Warden ’82
David Smith ’07
Whit Wilson ’00

On track for the Rebuilders’ Society

Henry Anderson ’54
Parker Campanella ’15
Vito Cetta ’63
Bib Fisher ’66
William Griffith ’09
Matthew Kelly ’98
Bruce Kirchner ’78
Thomas Martyn ’81
Stephen Raville ’69
Henry Roper ’67
Steven Stern ’75
Peter Sweeney ’75
Kevin Vincenti ’14

2022-2023 Annual Donations

$2,500 – Drewary Brown Benefactor

David Blount ’70
Michael Bray ’10
Frederick Crow ’77
John Frye ’68
Benjamin Hughes ’12
Gary Koch ’75
Louis McCracken ’12
Steve Mewborn ’80
Josh Nunn ’10
James O’Reilly ’79
Chris Schilling ’05
Marvin Smith ’66
John Sweeney ’09
Whit Wilson ’00

$1,000 – Rudolph Carey Benefactor

Henry Anderson ’54
Parker Campanella ’15
Ian Holman ’12
Greg Jacobs ’12
Jason Jennings ’05
William Kirby ’79
Robert Lumbye ’88
Mark McDonnell ’14
Michael Sharkey ’81
Ben Varley ’06
Kevin Vincenti ’14

$500 Glazebrook Benefactor

William Griffith ’09
Robert Hicks ’77
Scott Ilnicky ’85
Max Junker ’01
Michael Kaputa ’67
Bruce Kirchner ’78
Brian Levinstein ’14
Thomas Martyn ’81
Steve McCrickard ’09
Henry Roper ’67

$250 – Maltese Cross Benefactor

Otis Greg ’61
Mark Haley ’78
Matias Hahn ’18
Shant Harootunian ’81
Gerald Hulsizer ’67
Chris Insolera ’06
Tylman Moon ’58

$125 – Chancellor Street Benefactor

Scott Cairns ’73
Timothy Hicks ’66
James Noland ’69
Michael Norvell ’83
Ms. Jess Smith
Matt Terry ’01
Andrew Velarde ’05
Cranston Williams ’50

$75 – Delta Chapter Benefactor

William and Marguerite Cronin
Theodore Garnett ’56
Robert Newman ’84
Stephen Norris ’77
John Petchul ’77
Ralph Ricardo ’78
Michael Timbers ’63
David White ’62

Other Donors

Lucas Beasey ’20
Camden Bisson ’15
Maury Brassert ’56
Mark Egger ’78
Paul Kirchner ’75
Jack Richards ’99
Evan Teaster ’21