Draft:Lambda Pi Fraternity
| Lambda Pi | |
|---|---|
| ΛΠ | |
 | |
| Founded | 1944 California State University Chico |
| Type | Social |
| Affiliation | Independent |
| Status | Inactive |
| Scope | Local |
| Motto | Loyalty Prevails |
| Pillars | Brotherhood, Enlightenment, Loyalty, Scholarship |
| Colors | Kelly Green and Skeeter White |
| Philanthropy | Legacy Scholarships, CSUC Seufferlien Sales School |
| Chapters | 1 collegiate (inactive), 1 alumni (active) |
| Members | 1,000 lifetime |
| Nickname | The Pi's |
| Website | https://lambda-pi.org/ |
Lamba Pi (ΛΠ ) was a social fraternity at California State University, Chico in Chico, California. It was established in 1945. The undergraduate chapter went inactive in 2004; however, its alumni association remains active.
History
[edit]Lambda Pi was formed on the campus of Chico State University in the fall of 1944 by Harry Estes, Wayne Gaskill, Don Greene, and Delbert Raby.[1][2] These four men were pledging the only fraternity on campus at the time and decided to leave and form a new fraternity because they objected to the required public initiation of pledges on campus. Eight other men joined them to form Lambda Pi: Ed Chew, Bill Fisk, Harry Humes, Jack Turner, Bob Herbert, Vic Brownell, Marty Wood, and Dick Hinton.
During ‘Hell Week’ while their former fraternity was initiating their pledges publicly on campus, Lambda Pi pledges wore a coat and tie on campus with a Lambda Pi name badge and all initiation activities occurred off campus. This action gave Lambda Pi a positive image and was the main catalyst for its rapid growth and acceptance on campus.
A constitution for the new fraternity was drawn up and presented to Dr. Aymer Jay Hamilton, then president of the college. The original advisor was Dr. Hal Draper. The first president of Lambda Pi was Don Greene.
Also in the fall of 1999, Lambda Pi received non-profit status and began funding scholarships for Chico State students beginning in the fall of 2000.[2]
In the early 2000s, the fraternity began to experience problems: society, the “University” and the Chico community’s attitude had changed towards “Greeks”– all impacting and changing the experience of being Greek at CSU, Chico. Consequently, the active group notified the alumni association members would no longer live in its chapter house in 2004. At the May 2007 annual meeting of the alumni association, the members present voted overwhelmingly to dissolve the active group. However, the Lambda Pi Alumni Association continues to be active.[2]
Symbols
[edit]The motto of Lambda Pi is "Loyalty Prevails". The fraternity's core values or pillars are Brotherhood/Sisterhood, Enlightenment, Loyalty, and Scholarship.[2]
Its colors are Kelly Green and Skeeter White. Its nickname is The Pi's.
Houses
[edit]Since Lambda Pi's beginning, it has had four chapter houses.
Oak Park House
[edit]This was the first official house of Lambda Pi. The fraternity's members built the house in starting in 1960 using alumni money and land.[3] The outside framework is designed after the letters Lambda and Pi. It slept forty members in dormitory style.[3] This house was equipped with a pool, recreation room, industrial kitchen, walk-in refrigerator, and sat on two acres. This 10,000-square-foot building was the most modern fraternity house on the West Coast when it was finished. The fraternity resided there for five years, from 1962 to 1967. The main reason for leaving was the fact that the actives did not want to live dormitory style.
Sacramento House
[edit]This house was bought in 1968 by actives. The members pooled their dues money and put it on the stock market. A good bit of luck produced enough money for a down payment on an American Colonial house at 1133 Sacramento Avenue. This house sat on two acres and had seven bedrooms, a circular driveway, and a crud room upstairs. The house burned down under mysterious circumstances on May 5, 1975.
Third & Ivy House
[edit]Third & Ivy House was built in 1902 by the White family and is a registered historical landmark known as the “White House”. It is a Dutch Colonial style house, sitting on a quarter of an acre, with six bedrooms and two baths. This house was bought in 1975 for $48,000. The down payment came from insurance money from the Sacramento house fire. The house was sold in the fall of 1999 for $130,000 after it was found abandoned by the active group. The profit from the house was later used to help purchase the Cedar Street House.
Cedar Street House
[edit]A reinvigorated alumni group established in the fall of 1999 took the $130,000 profit from the Third & Ivy house sale and raised another $70,000 through alumni donations to purchase a new house at 432 Cedar. Located near the corner of 5th and Cedar on the same side of the railroad tracks as the Oasis, the house was painted appropriately green and white and dedicated in 2000 as the Lambda Pi Fraternity House.
The active group rented the house from the alumni association and received a great deal of support from alumni. A special note of thanks to the alums who donated significant monies to purchase the house and gave personal time to support the active group and new house.
In the 2000s, the active group notified the alumni association members would no longer live in the house due to declining membership. After the closure of the college chapter, the alumni association turned the house into a non-fraternity student rental property. Since 2007, the house has been a rental property producing a positive cash flow for the aέssociation.
Notable members
[edit]- Danny Chauncy, member of the band 38 Special
- Don Young, 26 Term Alaska Congressmen
References
[edit]- ^ "Delbert Raby | Lambda Pi Fraternity". Retrieved 2024-10-27.
- ^ a b c d "Lambda Pi Alumni Association B.E.L.S Scholarship | Wildcat Scholarships". California State University, Chico. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
- ^ a b "Do-It-Yourself Project Lambda Pi Building on Fraternity House". Chico Enterprise-Record. June 8, 1960. p. 17. Retrieved December 29, 2024 – via Facebook.