What a fine party it was.
About 50 guys attended the fraternity reunion, most of whom I knew, but about 5 who joined after I graduated and did not know. We all attended what was then called Moorhead State College, now University of Minnesota Moorhead. Most of us are retired but a few diehards and late starters are still punching the clock. About half the group were in education, the rest a mixed bag of business management types, entrepeneurs, you name it. Tau Kappa Epsilon was the name, Greek letters TKE, it's members referred to as Tekes.
The fraternity had a major influence on our lives, enhanced our college experience immeasureably, and obviously, provided many lifelong friendships. Most of us came from small towns, many from farms, by and large a bunch of naive hayseeds going out into the big world. I suspect fraternity guys are widely considered to be a bunch of rich spoiled wastrels who do nothing but party their way through college, despoiling innocent young women along the way.
In our case, and I suspect, most others, the fraternity emphasized and enforced scholarship; several of the brothers said they wouldn't have made it through college without it. We were taught social skills, teamwork, loyalty, the value of community service; we developed leadership and organizational skills. The list of positives is long and varies from person to person.
Yes, we did have parties. I, of course, being as pure as the driven snow, never attended. If you believe that, contact me at once about a really good deal on a bridge.
This is the most elevating defense of fraternities I have heard. I was wondering if there would be a blog about this part of the trip, or if it would stay under wraps.
ReplyDeleteOf course, most of your description was about the youthful days: what's it like now when you rascals (worldly wise now) get together?