Sigma Chi Alumni Chapter of Fresno

News

Sigma Chi’s Highest Honor Dinner Saturday May 18, 2019 at Mike & Ellen Patton’s

Planning for the event quickly shifted to Plan B when the forecast predicted a 100% chance of rain. It was to take place on the patio where it was last year during the normal heat wave Fresno experiences continuously from May to October. The ever-resilient Sigma Chi alumni simply adjusted quickly to climate change.

There were many things to celebrate that night. First and foremost, brother Brad Fischer (78-S) requested a moment of silence for 2000 Order of Constantine, Oran McNeil (52-T). Oran entered our Chapter Eternal on April 7th.

He than introduced Significant Sig Colin Kelly (62-F) who, with his wife Karen, travelled all the way from Newport Coast to be back with us in Fresno again. Brad also congratulated Chuck Sant’Agata (56-S) for being named Top Dog by the Fresno State Alumni Association. He was nominated by the School of Arts and Humanities and is the 22nd Sigma Chi to be a Top Dog. Other Top Dogs present at the dinner were Mike Patton, Leo Wilson and Brad Fischer.

Brad noted that there have been 11 Fresno State brothers awarded Order of Constantine since the award’s inception at the 1948 Grand Chapter. Present were Chuck Sant’Agata, Mike Patton, Greg Baxter, Tom Downing, Dave Reuland and Bill Matesso.  And there have been 14 Fresno State brothers named Significant Sigs since that award’s inception at the 1935 Grand Chapter.  Present were Colin Kelly, Marvin Meyers, Col Elvin C Bell, Leo Wilson, Tim Vaux, Tony Flores and our 2019 recipient Mike Patton.  In 2011 the International Fraternity created the Seven Lights Alumni award which was given to Henry Brock in 2014 and Brad Fischer in 2018.

After introducing Chapter Advisor, Dusty Lacefield, Brad turned the program over to Bill Matesso.  Bill offered congratulations to brother John Ballinger for being the 2019 recipient of the William T. Bringham Best House Corporation Officer Award, the only one awarded in 2019 in North America.  John serves as president of our Epsilon Eta House Corporation.

Tony Flores (56-S) finished the program by announcing that during the previous week the Fresno Sigma Chi Endowment board had voted unanimously to take steps to raise the goal for the amount in our endowments from $1 million to $3 million.  The earnings generated annually will be used for scholarships awarded to undergraduate brothers who choose to live in the Chapter House and who achieve a minimum GPA.  When we reach our goal, he noted, Fresno Sigma Chi will be the first Greek housing in North America to provide affordable housing to its members.

Three undergraduate brothers were on hand at the dinner to help set up, serve and clean up.  They did a great job and we really appreciated their help.

Pictured above are brothers Kane Sawyer (18-F), Christian Cline (18-F), McKay Romero (18-F), Dusty Lacefield (12-F) and Dusty’s fiancé Haley Evans all singing The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi.  Dusty and Haley will be married this November.

John Ballinger Wins 2019 EX International Award

On April 25, 2019 Sigma Chi International informed the Sigma Chi Alumni Chapter of Fresno that John Ballinger, president of the Fresno House Corporation, has been awarded the William T. Bringham Best House Corporation Officer Award. This award is given to only one (1) Sigma Chi brother in all of North America each year. This makes our Fresno alumni chapter #1 to have solar and we have the #1 House Corporation, both in all of North America. What can we be #1 for next? You will know this year.

John Ballinger 65-S

First presented in 1974, the William T. Bringham Best House Corporation Officer Award is named for Order of Constantine Sig and Significant Sig William T. Bringham, ILLINOIS WESLEYAN 1946, Sigma Chi’s executive secretary from 1954–1989. This award is given to the house corporation officer who has demonstrated outstanding loyalty to Sigma Chi through personal leadership, time and effort.

The House Corporation is of vital importance to both our undergraduate chapter and our alumni chapter. This is an opportune time to thank John and the rest of his board for their tireless efforts in preserving the Chapter House in pristine condition so that our undergraduate brothers are able to have the best possible fraternity experience. The other board members are Darin Tockey 88-S (treasurer), Jerry Waters 62-F (secretary), Rick Nelson 65-S, Grant Petersen 84-F, Mark Springer 09-F, Steve Coleman 78-F and Titus Moore 09-S.

2019 Fresno EX Wine Tasting Was a Fabulous Event That Raised Over $15,000!

The 5th annual Fresno EX wine tasting was held on April 28. For the second year the wine tasting was held in Debbie and Dave Reuland’s (69-F) backyard located in Fresno’s Old Fig Garden. The total attendees were 82. Besides being a fun social event tasting great wines selected by T.A. Heckel (82-F), we use this opportunity to raise funds for the Fresno EX endowment. This year we raised $15,375 which brings the total of our several endowments to $720.706.

Debbie and Dave Reuland’s beautiful backyard

The endowments are held by the Fresno State Alumni Association and generate monies annually that are used for scholarships for our undergraduate brothers at Fresno State. For the fall 2019/spring 2020 school year we will award at total of $28,000, fourteen scholarships of $2,000 each. The scholarships reduce the cost of living in the house from $625/month to $400/month, more than a 1/3 reduction.

Most of the brothers who attended were from the Fresno area, but several drove a long way to enjoy this opportunity to get re-engaged. Steve Bachand (79-F) came from Pleasanton, Dave Berry (90-S) from Rocklin, Ken Blom (66-S) from Clio, Jon Hollenbeck (79-F) from San Francisco, Buck Levis (60-F) from Cambria and Rob Millard (79-F) came from Fair Oaks.

Brother Tom Downing (62-F) used the event to pre-market his new Smart Clip invention.
The silent auction alone raised $10,400 for the Fresno EX Endowment.

Craig School of Business Dedicates Trading Room to EX Alum

Brother Steve Heinrichs, Order of Constantine and Significant Sig, contributed immensely while serving on the CSUF Foundation Board of Governors. It was Steve who convinced the board to invest in the Craig School of Business by moving $1 million from the foundation to the Student Managed Investment Fund. Students, including former EX consul, Michael Hahn, learn the investment business in real time with real money. Ultimately the foundation gave the students another $1 million, and their fund has now grown to over $3.5 million.

On December 13, 2018, the trading room was dedicated to Steve. Several EX alumni and undergraduates attended the ceremony as did Steve’s wife, Dorothy, and other members of their family.

The Making of a Solar System Summer of 2018

On Tuesday, June 19, 2018 the project began with the support structure.   By the end of the week the solar panels were being installed.  It was finished on August 9 when PG&E made the changeover.  The system had to sit idle for several weeks while PG&E scheduled their field inspection.  Finally it was hooked up to the grid on August 20.

The system should serve the chapter house for thirty years.  The  135 panels  will produce a maximum of 42 kilowatts per hour, and provide some covered parking and patio shading.  It was designed to produce enough electrical energy to save 97% of the $17,700 electrical cost per year.  Factoring in electrical cost rises during the thirty years, the House Corporation will have a cash flow that is five times the installed cost.  This will provide the House Corporation funds for amenities and maintenance that will help give the undergraduate brothers the best possible fraternity experience.  The solar system was donated by Fresno Sigma Chi alumni.

The Sigma Chi chapter house at Fresno State is the first “Sig House” in North America to have a solar installation that is sized to offset most of its energy costs.  It  is the only one out of 244 chapters.  But there is more!  The Sigma Chi Foundation has told us that ours is “the first Greek-letter campus housing to have solar efficient energy.”  If you add up all of the fraternities and sororities in North America, this is a feat for which Epsilon Eta should be proud.