At the Alumni Awards Dinner Saturday evening at the 58th Grand Chapter Conclave, brothers and friends gathered to mark the conclusion of another successful Conclave and celebrate the best in our Fraternity. Five longtime volunteers were honored with the Order of the Golden Heart, SigEp’s highest alumni honor, in recognition of their many contributions over 30 or more years of service to the Fraternity.
Click the plus sign to read the Order of the Golden Heart presentation scripts for each recipient.
All of you here tonight have a reason you traveled to San Antonio. We each have a reason that SigEp became part of our lives. For you, brother, there are many reasons why you love SigEp. But Conclave is a significant part of your lifelong commitment to our brotherhood.
For you and me and so many others, Conclave was where our imaginations were first captured by the power of SigEp. The brotherhood and camaraderie shine from every corner and we get a chance to walk the halls with SigEp heroes. When you attended Conclave for the first time it was as an undergraduate, the delegate for your home chapter. There you were with titans of SigEp who inspired you to see that your fraternity was bigger than the four walls of your local chapter house.
Your chapter won its first Buchanan Cup and a short time later your experience began as an alumnus. SigEp and service were in your blood. Within 5 years you were supporting more than 7 chapters. In each case, brothers identify you as the backbone of their chapter support. One brother remarked that the term “key volunteer” was created in reference to you. In only a few years your impact had swept across an entire metropolitan area. Struggling chapters were given new life, brand new groups were earning charters and high potential chapters were earning Buchanan Cups under your guiding hand. Every SigEp in the region knew they could rely on you, my brother.
Your influence spilled out beyond service to local chapters. The Founders Day gatherings you led, drawing 100 alumni each year, became legendary in your area…for all SigEps. You’ve attended and led at dozens of Carlsons. You were a founding member of the NUTS! McAuliffe Society…a loyal group of SigEp donors that you hold dear, and has created a massive impact for our undergraduates under your continued leadership.
We each have a reason. A reason for joining, for giving, for volunteering. Brother, for countless SigEps YOU are THE REASON. You are the reason they gave generously of their time and money. You are the reason they took on a challenge they didn’t think they could overcome and you are the reason they SUCCEEDED.
The son of immigrants, you live by these words held dear by your family: “I shall pass through this world but once. Any good thing that I can do or any kindness that I can show to any human being, let me do it now, for I shall not pass this way again.”
Brother, we can tell you now with confidence that the kindnesses you’ve shown are too many to count. In many ways it all began here in San Antonio, right across the street…the place where, 38 years ago, you attended your first Conclave and met your SigEp Heroes: Wally Dowd, Frank Ruck, and Truman Sanderson.
And it is here, dear brother, where more young men will tell the story of when they met their SigEp hero. Tonight, we honor you with the Order of the Golden Heart, Brother Paul Litcher.
For you and me and so many others, Conclave was where our imaginations were first captured by the power of SigEp. The brotherhood and camaraderie shine from every corner and we get a chance to walk the halls with SigEp heroes. When you attended Conclave for the first time it was as an undergraduate, the delegate for your home chapter. There you were with titans of SigEp who inspired you to see that your fraternity was bigger than the four walls of your local chapter house.
Your chapter won its first Buchanan Cup and a short time later your experience began as an alumnus. SigEp and service were in your blood. Within 5 years you were supporting more than 7 chapters. In each case, brothers identify you as the backbone of their chapter support. One brother remarked that the term “key volunteer” was created in reference to you. In only a few years your impact had swept across an entire metropolitan area. Struggling chapters were given new life, brand new groups were earning charters and high potential chapters were earning Buchanan Cups under your guiding hand. Every SigEp in the region knew they could rely on you, my brother.
Your influence spilled out beyond service to local chapters. The Founders Day gatherings you led, drawing 100 alumni each year, became legendary in your area…for all SigEps. You’ve attended and led at dozens of Carlsons. You were a founding member of the NUTS! McAuliffe Society…a loyal group of SigEp donors that you hold dear, and has created a massive impact for our undergraduates under your continued leadership.
We each have a reason. A reason for joining, for giving, for volunteering. Brother, for countless SigEps YOU are THE REASON. You are the reason they gave generously of their time and money. You are the reason they took on a challenge they didn’t think they could overcome and you are the reason they SUCCEEDED.
The son of immigrants, you live by these words held dear by your family: “I shall pass through this world but once. Any good thing that I can do or any kindness that I can show to any human being, let me do it now, for I shall not pass this way again.”
Brother, we can tell you now with confidence that the kindnesses you’ve shown are too many to count. In many ways it all began here in San Antonio, right across the street…the place where, 38 years ago, you attended your first Conclave and met your SigEp Heroes: Wally Dowd, Frank Ruck, and Truman Sanderson.
And it is here, dear brother, where more young men will tell the story of when they met their SigEp hero. Tonight, we honor you with the Order of the Golden Heart, Brother Paul Litcher.
Those who know you well say that commitment is the theme of your life. As a SigEp alumnus, you’ve served many roles on your home chapter’s AVC and made an indelible mark on generations of brothers.
You joined the AVC soon after graduation and served as its president. You had to step away from the role when you left the area to take advantage of a great career opportunity, but SigEp remained close to your heart. When you returned, you found your beloved chapter was experiencing difficult times. So you committed. Once again, you stepped in to offer your guidance. It’s not a stretch to say the chapter wouldn’t exist today if it weren’t for your dedication.
But you didn’t just want to save the chapter — you pushed it to do more, and to be better. Your leadership ushered in a period of four consecutive Buchanan Cups in the 1990s and early 2000s. Some of the credit for this excellence must go to you because of your selfless encouragement and mentorship. Because of your commitment, my brother.
Every day, brothers are impacted by your dedication to their fraternity experience. They feel it when they walk into their home. When the chapter moved to its current facility, you oversaw a campaign that raised more than $200,000 to support that move. And you haven’t stopped. As AVC treasurer, you’re leading a $3 million campaign to build a new, state-of-the-art facility.
You’ve now served as faculty fellow for more than a decade and continue to challenge, mentor and inspire our brothers to be their best. You’ve connected brothers to university resources, created mentorship opportunities, and ensured the success of Balanced Man Scholarship dinners, newsletters, alumni outings and homecoming events. And you’re in the process of setting up a foundation that will support the chapter’s educational programming.
It’s clear my brother. You’re committed to a lifelong experience of brotherhood.
The love you have for SigEp is entwined with your love for your alma mater. Your family’s association with the university spans more than eight decades, and you’ve served much of your professional life as a professor and staff member. Through your roles in advancement and alumni engagement, you’ve conducted major fundraising campaigns for the university and have played a role in increasing the school’s national profile. In recognition of your many contributions to the university, you were named a distinguished alumnus.
Your fellow AVC members estimated it would take more than a dozen volunteers to accomplish everything you do in a year. What you’ve accomplished is impressive, but what inspires us, is how you do it - with a heart full of brotherly love.
It’s now our turn to thank you for your dedication to SigEp. Brother Don Park of Indiana Gamma at Ball State, it is our honor to present you with the Order of the Golden Heart.
You joined the AVC soon after graduation and served as its president. You had to step away from the role when you left the area to take advantage of a great career opportunity, but SigEp remained close to your heart. When you returned, you found your beloved chapter was experiencing difficult times. So you committed. Once again, you stepped in to offer your guidance. It’s not a stretch to say the chapter wouldn’t exist today if it weren’t for your dedication.
But you didn’t just want to save the chapter — you pushed it to do more, and to be better. Your leadership ushered in a period of four consecutive Buchanan Cups in the 1990s and early 2000s. Some of the credit for this excellence must go to you because of your selfless encouragement and mentorship. Because of your commitment, my brother.
Every day, brothers are impacted by your dedication to their fraternity experience. They feel it when they walk into their home. When the chapter moved to its current facility, you oversaw a campaign that raised more than $200,000 to support that move. And you haven’t stopped. As AVC treasurer, you’re leading a $3 million campaign to build a new, state-of-the-art facility.
You’ve now served as faculty fellow for more than a decade and continue to challenge, mentor and inspire our brothers to be their best. You’ve connected brothers to university resources, created mentorship opportunities, and ensured the success of Balanced Man Scholarship dinners, newsletters, alumni outings and homecoming events. And you’re in the process of setting up a foundation that will support the chapter’s educational programming.
It’s clear my brother. You’re committed to a lifelong experience of brotherhood.
The love you have for SigEp is entwined with your love for your alma mater. Your family’s association with the university spans more than eight decades, and you’ve served much of your professional life as a professor and staff member. Through your roles in advancement and alumni engagement, you’ve conducted major fundraising campaigns for the university and have played a role in increasing the school’s national profile. In recognition of your many contributions to the university, you were named a distinguished alumnus.
Your fellow AVC members estimated it would take more than a dozen volunteers to accomplish everything you do in a year. What you’ve accomplished is impressive, but what inspires us, is how you do it - with a heart full of brotherly love.
It’s now our turn to thank you for your dedication to SigEp. Brother Don Park of Indiana Gamma at Ball State, it is our honor to present you with the Order of the Golden Heart.
One brother was selected to join the Order this Conclave, but tragically, just over a month ago, he was given two weeks to live. The doctors said he would not make it to Conclave. Upon hearing the news, his brothers rallied around him and were able to tell him of his induction into the Order of the Golden Heart just five days before he passed.
Tonight we are here to announce Brother Earl Rainwater, Tennessee ’60, as a member of the Order of the Golden Heart.
Earl was a faithful servant of Sigma Phi Epsilon before many of us were born. His lifetime of service made an immeasurable impact on thousands of brothers who have been initiated into the brotherhood of Tennessee Alpha. Since his time as chapter president in the late 50s, he cared about SigEp. He voted to remove racial restrictions on Fraternity membership at the 1959 Conclave in Washington.
He served as Tennessee Alpha’s chapter counselor in the 60s. He helped the chapter build its home back then, and renovate it again in 2012. After serving as a district governor, in 1968, he began the role where he’d serve the longest: in faithfulness and humility as treasurer. For so many years, it was the Rainwater brothers, Earl and Burl, who made everything happen for Tennessee Alpha. He was part of the fraternity’s inaugural group of Distinguished Alumnus recipients in 1978 and in 2017 received the Exemplary Service Award.
Five days before he passed, Earl’s Tennessee Alpha brothers shared the news with him.
The fraternity’s highest honor has been bestowed on fewer than 200 brothers in our entire history. And today we add Earl’s name among these giants of Tennessee Alpha: Charles Allred, Benjamin Hobson Frayser, Bryce Giesler and his brother Burl Rainwater.
Tonight we are here to announce Brother Earl Rainwater, Tennessee ’60, as a member of the Order of the Golden Heart.
Earl was a faithful servant of Sigma Phi Epsilon before many of us were born. His lifetime of service made an immeasurable impact on thousands of brothers who have been initiated into the brotherhood of Tennessee Alpha. Since his time as chapter president in the late 50s, he cared about SigEp. He voted to remove racial restrictions on Fraternity membership at the 1959 Conclave in Washington.
He served as Tennessee Alpha’s chapter counselor in the 60s. He helped the chapter build its home back then, and renovate it again in 2012. After serving as a district governor, in 1968, he began the role where he’d serve the longest: in faithfulness and humility as treasurer. For so many years, it was the Rainwater brothers, Earl and Burl, who made everything happen for Tennessee Alpha. He was part of the fraternity’s inaugural group of Distinguished Alumnus recipients in 1978 and in 2017 received the Exemplary Service Award.
Five days before he passed, Earl’s Tennessee Alpha brothers shared the news with him.
The fraternity’s highest honor has been bestowed on fewer than 200 brothers in our entire history. And today we add Earl’s name among these giants of Tennessee Alpha: Charles Allred, Benjamin Hobson Frayser, Bryce Giesler and his brother Burl Rainwater.
You don’t ask to be thanked. When you see a need, you fill it. You bring your time, your talents and your expertise in the service of others. You, my brother, are an uncommon man.
Those who choose to invest significant time in their home chapter are worthy of our thanks. But you started your volunteering career with a chapter that wasn’t your own — because you believe in helping. You stepped in on the AVC and helped a nearby group of brothers succeed, because you wanted to make a difference. Your service led to a better SigEp experience for a decade’s worth of young men who came into the chapter, and you left a tangible impact by helping the chapter secure a house.
You’re known as a quiet visionary. In recent years, you’ve been at the forefront of many of the forward-looking initiatives of the Fraternity. When you see a problem, you take action. You step in.
You began your involvement at the national level as a district governor. It was there that you saw, through firsthand experience in your profession, that college men simply don’t graduate with the skills that employers want. So you helped. Again. You connected alumni with undergraduate brothers in the area. You committed to Life After College. You knew that the power of our brotherhood could set up young men for success…long before SigEp’s national Career Coaching effort launched.
You’re generous in your own right. But you know that you can have a greater impact by inspiring others to give. You were a founding member of the Board of Governors. You were a founder of the NUTS McAuliffe Society. You do it not for the recognition, but to serve.
You are known as a great listener. When an undergraduate asks you for help, you never say no. You care about people and SigEp is blessed that you’ve devoted your life to caring for our people.
Because you care, you know that you can make a greater impact with a clear-eyed vision. You know that equipping SigEp’s volunteer leaders can change our chapters, and you know that the men coming out of our chapters, can change the world. So you’ve thrown your strategic mind into serving our volunteers.
It’s because of your leadership that SigEp has expanded our efforts to listen to our volunteers on the ground. You’d never take credit for this, but it’s because of you that thousands of volunteers have had a direct voice in their own experience. You know how to hear those voices and use feedback to refine our strategy. You’ve spent countless hours listening, thinking, setting a vision and putting it into action.
It’s because of your vision that SigEp has invested in deeper educational opportunities, to serve and steward our greatest asset — our volunteers.
Your dear friend Past Grand President Phil Cox said “Behind every great SigEp chapter is a dedicated group of volunteers.” You, my brother, are the one standing behind SigEp’s volunteers.
You NEVER ask for the spotlight — but we are here to give it to you tonight. Brother Wendell Rakosky, it is our honor to present you with the Order of the Golden Heart.
Those who choose to invest significant time in their home chapter are worthy of our thanks. But you started your volunteering career with a chapter that wasn’t your own — because you believe in helping. You stepped in on the AVC and helped a nearby group of brothers succeed, because you wanted to make a difference. Your service led to a better SigEp experience for a decade’s worth of young men who came into the chapter, and you left a tangible impact by helping the chapter secure a house.
You’re known as a quiet visionary. In recent years, you’ve been at the forefront of many of the forward-looking initiatives of the Fraternity. When you see a problem, you take action. You step in.
You began your involvement at the national level as a district governor. It was there that you saw, through firsthand experience in your profession, that college men simply don’t graduate with the skills that employers want. So you helped. Again. You connected alumni with undergraduate brothers in the area. You committed to Life After College. You knew that the power of our brotherhood could set up young men for success…long before SigEp’s national Career Coaching effort launched.
You’re generous in your own right. But you know that you can have a greater impact by inspiring others to give. You were a founding member of the Board of Governors. You were a founder of the NUTS McAuliffe Society. You do it not for the recognition, but to serve.
You are known as a great listener. When an undergraduate asks you for help, you never say no. You care about people and SigEp is blessed that you’ve devoted your life to caring for our people.
Because you care, you know that you can make a greater impact with a clear-eyed vision. You know that equipping SigEp’s volunteer leaders can change our chapters, and you know that the men coming out of our chapters, can change the world. So you’ve thrown your strategic mind into serving our volunteers.
It’s because of your leadership that SigEp has expanded our efforts to listen to our volunteers on the ground. You’d never take credit for this, but it’s because of you that thousands of volunteers have had a direct voice in their own experience. You know how to hear those voices and use feedback to refine our strategy. You’ve spent countless hours listening, thinking, setting a vision and putting it into action.
It’s because of your vision that SigEp has invested in deeper educational opportunities, to serve and steward our greatest asset — our volunteers.
Your dear friend Past Grand President Phil Cox said “Behind every great SigEp chapter is a dedicated group of volunteers.” You, my brother, are the one standing behind SigEp’s volunteers.
You NEVER ask for the spotlight — but we are here to give it to you tonight. Brother Wendell Rakosky, it is our honor to present you with the Order of the Golden Heart.
The principles of Sigma Phi Epsilon espouse the highest ideals. They require us to do difficult things: uphold virtue when it’s not popular, remain diligent amidst distractions and extend brotherly love when challenged by adversity.
You, my brother, are no stranger to adversity. During grad school, you endured the loss of several close family members. At a time when you felt your life might fall apart, it was members of your chosen family — Sigma Phi Epsilon — who held you together. Brotherly love saved you, and taking care of our brothers — as they took care of you — is the principle that guides your involvement as a volunteer.
After completing law school, you began volunteering with your home chapter. Why did you help? Because of brotherly love. As treasurer of the AVC, you put that group on the path to financial health. With this newfound stability, the AVC was well positioned to carry out the long-held dream of building a new chapter house, and you were the perfect person to lead that charge. You not only organized a major fundraising effort for the chapter’s new home, but also oversaw construction of the facility that has served as a source of comfort and connection to brothers for many years. Your thoughtful and astute oversight resulted in a cherished facility that brothers can call home year after year.
You followed up your 12 years as treasurer with an impactful decade as AVC president. During this time, you continued to wholeheartedly support the chapter and AVC through new policies that improved operations. In recognition of all that you accomplished, you were presented with the Distinguished Alumnus Award.
You’ve brought your whole self to help. You’ve generously shared your legal expertise to advise brothers on risk management. Thanks to you, undergraduates in your chapter have a healthy awareness of the importance of consent, as well as the dangers of alcohol and drugs. You’re not just passionate about equipping our brothers with the tools to succeed in life, you also love celebrating the milestones in their lives. Of all the things you look forward to each year, attending a dinner with the chapter’s seniors tops the list. You put the undergraduates, and the experiences that will elevate their college experience, first. For your dedication you received the Exemplary Service Award several years ago.
You’ve established a special connection with another chapter across the country. What started out as a mentoring relationship blossomed into something much deeper after you began advising a chapter that was struggling with programming. Without hesitation, you traveled 1,500 miles to meet with chapter leaders and volunteers and help them craft a plan. To the total astonishment of those brothers, you personally paid down their debt, which had grown to several thousand dollars. Today, you serve as the chapter’s mentor for finance, and their Balanced Man Scholarship is named in your honor. That’s just what you do. You care about your brothers…everywhere.
Your gift and passion for leadership couldn’t be contained at the local level. You currently serve as a district governor and have facilitated at leadership events. A longtime Board of Governors donor, you’ve rallied your chapter as a captain on Founders Day for years. And now you’re a leader in the NUTS McAuliffe Society, rallying that relentless group of brothers in even deeper support of our Fraternity experience.
You emphasize the importance of teamwork and building relationships for a lifetime. You believe that SigEp should be a family that loves and protects each other. That our chapters should be a place of refuge and safety for our brothers. Because when life’s challenges come you know that SigEp is prepared to be a safe haven just as much as a light on a hill.
It goes without saying that the principles of Sigma Phi Epsilon run deep with you. Dear brother, you have inspired so many SigEps to overcome adversity, achieve great things and love one another in the process. You are the very picture of Virtue, Diligence and Brotherly Love and tonight, we bestow the Order of the Golden Heart upon you, Brother Dale Werts.
You, my brother, are no stranger to adversity. During grad school, you endured the loss of several close family members. At a time when you felt your life might fall apart, it was members of your chosen family — Sigma Phi Epsilon — who held you together. Brotherly love saved you, and taking care of our brothers — as they took care of you — is the principle that guides your involvement as a volunteer.
After completing law school, you began volunteering with your home chapter. Why did you help? Because of brotherly love. As treasurer of the AVC, you put that group on the path to financial health. With this newfound stability, the AVC was well positioned to carry out the long-held dream of building a new chapter house, and you were the perfect person to lead that charge. You not only organized a major fundraising effort for the chapter’s new home, but also oversaw construction of the facility that has served as a source of comfort and connection to brothers for many years. Your thoughtful and astute oversight resulted in a cherished facility that brothers can call home year after year.
You followed up your 12 years as treasurer with an impactful decade as AVC president. During this time, you continued to wholeheartedly support the chapter and AVC through new policies that improved operations. In recognition of all that you accomplished, you were presented with the Distinguished Alumnus Award.
You’ve brought your whole self to help. You’ve generously shared your legal expertise to advise brothers on risk management. Thanks to you, undergraduates in your chapter have a healthy awareness of the importance of consent, as well as the dangers of alcohol and drugs. You’re not just passionate about equipping our brothers with the tools to succeed in life, you also love celebrating the milestones in their lives. Of all the things you look forward to each year, attending a dinner with the chapter’s seniors tops the list. You put the undergraduates, and the experiences that will elevate their college experience, first. For your dedication you received the Exemplary Service Award several years ago.
You’ve established a special connection with another chapter across the country. What started out as a mentoring relationship blossomed into something much deeper after you began advising a chapter that was struggling with programming. Without hesitation, you traveled 1,500 miles to meet with chapter leaders and volunteers and help them craft a plan. To the total astonishment of those brothers, you personally paid down their debt, which had grown to several thousand dollars. Today, you serve as the chapter’s mentor for finance, and their Balanced Man Scholarship is named in your honor. That’s just what you do. You care about your brothers…everywhere.
Your gift and passion for leadership couldn’t be contained at the local level. You currently serve as a district governor and have facilitated at leadership events. A longtime Board of Governors donor, you’ve rallied your chapter as a captain on Founders Day for years. And now you’re a leader in the NUTS McAuliffe Society, rallying that relentless group of brothers in even deeper support of our Fraternity experience.
You emphasize the importance of teamwork and building relationships for a lifetime. You believe that SigEp should be a family that loves and protects each other. That our chapters should be a place of refuge and safety for our brothers. Because when life’s challenges come you know that SigEp is prepared to be a safe haven just as much as a light on a hill.
It goes without saying that the principles of Sigma Phi Epsilon run deep with you. Dear brother, you have inspired so many SigEps to overcome adversity, achieve great things and love one another in the process. You are the very picture of Virtue, Diligence and Brotherly Love and tonight, we bestow the Order of the Golden Heart upon you, Brother Dale Werts.
Click here to see photographs of each presentation.
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