Broventures of Sorts

Okay, I get it. I fell into some apathy myself and have not continued to post enough on this site. Yet, one could say that "bro-ventures" may have had something to do with it (Excuses).

Through my own experience in Beta Beta, I have noticed that brothers will drive hours for a chance to hang out and find their ways into derelict behavior together whether it is a graduation party (Summer is full of those little excuses to meet up with brothers), someone has rented out a beach house (Bad idea for an open invitation to an entire fraternity), or just a random weekend someone extends an invitation to . And in my own experience, I have noticed that invitations that include even the allusion to kegs will automatically attract at least 10 brothers to crash your house. Yet, one could not be happier to clean up Domino's off some walls, Champagne corks sprayed around rooms and empty cans of Natural Light strewn through every room.

Yet, Broventures seem to take on an even more interesting and more meaningful tone when they are guys that you cannot just walk to their apartment or dorm room, or even take the 5 minute drive to their house. These are the adventures that make this brotherhood so strong that 40-50 years down the road make each brother as close if not closer than they were when they attended U of R. The bond that never dies, AEKDB.

Brother Jay Wright submitted this story and picture of some of the 70's brothers bro-venture to Tampa:

"The 70’s were revisited in Tampa/St. Petersburg in January. Brothers Kevin Hutchinson, Steve Murphy, Jim Sutherland, Hil Beck, Rob Bruns, Chris Mullen, and Jay Wright spent a long weekend at the beach. The major surprise was that no one was arrested. The 70's brothers have instituted a series of misadventures aptly called “club meetings.” There have been meetings in the Richmond area, Norfolk and New York City and can be called at any time in any place. From the picture, you can tell that the group is not exclusive and welcomes new attendees at every event. Note Brothers Beck and Murphy in their Cuban shirts sampling prize cigars while in Ybor City inside Tampa. You are never too old to sample the good life."

Brothers Hil Beck and Steve Murphy

#28

Brother Greg Pannell '81 offers his version of the paddle signature list, circa 1978.  Compared to its' 1994 counterpart, this one offers a far simpler, cleaner look.  Just a numbered list of signatures. No strange prefixes, stains or holes. According to Greg:

When I was a pledge I made sure I took care of my list, I heard a lot of bad stories, and some of the things I had to do to earn those signatures made it that much more important.

Makes you wonder if any sigs were earned after hauling a keg onto the roof. Maybe signature #28.

'69

A great portrait of the chapter at the end of 1969.  Thanks to Rich Johnson for the picture and Truba Cooper for helping identify (most) everyone.  Anyone that can help fill in some of the blanks, post the names in the comments and I'll update.

Front Row (Left to Right):
1 – Harry McClaren
2 - Brian McCahill
3 - Rodney Hicks
4 - Page Bradford
5 - Eddie Godsey
6 - Mike Plant (?)
7 - Bev Holt
8 - Sam Graham
9 - ?
10 - John Lashon (?)
11 - Craig Poole

Middle Row (Left to Right):
1 - Tom Redfern
2 - Sam Atkinson
3 - Truba Cooper
4 - Mike Williams
5 - Dr. Mac
6 - Wayne Leake
7 - Sam Price
8 - Rob Nicol
9 - Charlie Cosby
10 - Cary Ralston
11 - Keith McGrath
12 - Donnie Ward
13 - Randy Walter
14 - Mike Vandeweghe

Back Row (Left to Right):
1 - ?
2 - Jack Moore
3 - Bill Wilson
4 - Walter Owings
5 - Preston Hicks
6 - Wayne Warren
7 - Mike Harrington
8 - R.C. Moore
9 - Ray Blackmore
10 - Andy Swinson
11 - ?
12 - Penn Pendleton
13 - Stan Gasiorowski
14 - Jack Cocke
15 - ?
16 - ?
17 - ?
18 - Rich Johnson
19 - Bob Barkley

A couple great shots of the lodge - inside and out - from around the same time.  Note the classy padded bench seats.  In the far corner is the wooden scrapbook put together by Brother Bradshaw earlier that year.

Who Wants a Moustache Ride?

Thanks to Brother Steve "Boo Boo" Murphy for submitting these two gems. I'll leave the analysis to anyone that wants to share their thoughts in the comments. I just don't think I can do justice. I'm just thankful these aren't in color. The neckties alone could give someone seizures.

Roof Party

This is the first installment of our occasional series highlighting Great Moments in the History of Beta Beta. This series will feature outstanding feats of idiocy engineering, chemistry, and political science from across our 110 year history.

Brother Drew Child '80 on the phenomenon known as a Roof Party:

The roof was sort of KZ pride rock where we could survey the entire Beta Beta empire, which at the time (1977 or so), we believed to be ours. From this vantage we kept a watchful eye on new fraternity row and heckled the KAs while they wasted time washing their cars and stuff. The versatile lodge furniture had 4 wooden legs and worked well straddling the roof peak, providing a level platform to sit and enjoy our favorite malt beverages. Getting the keg up on the roof presented yet another team building exercise for pledges and ensured anyone coming to the party would make it to the top if they wanted something to drink. Also, since the roof was technically outside the lodge, holiday rules were automatic. Several people passed out on the roof because of the dangerous combination of sun and suds. To my knowledge, no one fell from the roof and the fad quickly faded with inclement weather.

However, constantly moving the furniture onto the roof, often for the evening, did take its toll and precipitated another sketchy tradition of burning the furniture in the street in front of the lodge at the end of each year. Dave Redden and Charlie Tarrisdis were largely responsible for the toxic bonfire, which pardon the pun, was hotly contested by the brotherhood faced with once again buying new furniture in the fall. A large debate ensued about whether they should be joint Derelict(s) of the Week (a weekly honor for buffoonery) or assessed a fine.

A treasure trove of Brother Child's pictures circa 1978-84 is available here, along with some shots from last year's Homecoming (thus proving that most people did in fact survive roof parties).

The Beta Beta Record

The Beta Beta Record was a website built ahead of the chapter centennial in 1998. The site surveyed 100 years of chapter history, through words and images of the brothers that lived it. Though it's a little out of date 10 years later, it's still worth a scroll down memory lane.

Update. According to Brother Wayne Bradshaw '69, the above picture was taken by him, sometime in 1969, and shows Herbie Arnold '70 and Randy Walters '69.

Rodney Poole Profiled in UR Alumni Magazine

Brother Poole '69 was profiled in the Summer 2008 issue of the Richmond Alumni Magazine:

Rodney Poole performs an amazing balancing act. He is one of the foremost adoption attorneys in the nation. He also serves as senior vice president and general counsel of The Wilton Companies, a firm that owns and develops apartments, office buildings, industrial properties, and shopping centers in central Virginia.

“My time is supposed to be split 50/50,” he says. “I like to say that means 50 hours a week on each.”

Adoption law is personal for Poole, the father of two adopted children, a biological daughter, and a stepson. He inherited his passion for helping adoptive families from his late father, Travis, an attorney and former foster child who was dedicated to placing children in permanent homes. Poole grew up knowing he wanted to follow his father’s example. After graduating from the University of Virginia School of Law, he joined the elder Poole in establishing Poole & Poole in Richmond.

Approximately 3,000 cases later, he is a leader in the field. Poole is a past president of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys. He also served for nine years as liaison between the academy and the Association of Administrators of the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (AAICPC), helping to build relationships that make it easier to adopt children across state lines.

He is a recipient of the AAICPC’s Mitchell Wendell Jurist Award in recognition of “extraordinary accomplishment on behalf of children,” as well as the Angel in Adoption Award from the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute.

In 2002, Poole joined Henry L. Wilton and UR Trustee Rich Johnson, B’73, in the acquisition of The Wilton Companies. In five years, they have quadrupled the value of the company’s real estate portfolio.

Poole’s family, which includes wife Lauree and mother Helen, is actively involved with UR. Each year a deserving student benefits from an accounting scholarship the family has established in memory of Poole’s two late brothers, Travis Jr., B’73, and Craig, B’73.