The Beta Nus

2010 Beta Nu Hall of Fame Inductees

The Cincinnati Chapter of Beta Theta Pi is blessed

with one of the largest and most involved alumni bases of any fraternity at UC. Each year, the chapter recognizes an alumnus who has made a lasting impact on the fraternity. 2010 was truly a historic year for Beta Nu in terms of alumni support, so the chapter inducted two brothers into the Hall of Fame.

G. Riley Griffiths, Cincin-nati ’67, graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a degree in metallurgical en-gineering. Upon graduation, Griffiths served as an Engineer at General Electric in the Jet Aircraft Engine Division. In 1970, he got into the furniture business and opened Riley’s Furniture in Middletown, Ohio. Forty years later, it’s now a $6 million business with nearly 40 employees in Monroe, Ohio. Riley’s Furniture is gaining profit-ability and competitive advantage by taking advantage of best practices in asset utilization, technology and developing a talented work force. Griffiths is pres-ently on the Board of Directors of one of the nation’s largest buying groups, Furniture First. Joining the Furniture First Buying Group was a key decision in 1995, because it provided cooperative buying strength and contact with similar non-competing retailers. Furniture First Buying Group holds meetings at mem-bers’ facilities and conducts a peer review of the entire operation.

Griffiths is married to Carolyn Jane (Juergens), who graduated from UC’s College of Nursing in 1967. The couple recently celebrated their 50th Valentines Day together. They have three daughters and one son, six grandchildren with two more on the way. Griffiths can be con-

Jim Heathcote, Cincinnati ’56Riley Griffiths, Cincinnati ’67

tacted at (513) 594-9998 (cell) or riley@rileysfurniture.com.

Brother Griffiths was inducted into the Beta Nu Alumni Hall of Fame in recog-nition of his generous contributions to the chapter. Last year he donated brand new furniture for three rooms in the Beta House. He stated, “It has been an honor working with the young men at Beta Nu. It was very humbling to be honored by them.”

Jim Heathcote, Cincinnati ’56, gradu-ated from the University of Cincinnati with a bachelor’s degree in history. While at UC, he was an Air Force ROTC cadet, and was commissioned upon gradua-

Beta theta Pi Fraternity • Beta nu ChaPter • university oF CinCinnati • sPring 2011

continued on page 5

tion. After pilot training, he was selected to go into the B-47 aircraft unit, which was a brand new medium bomber. He moved to Idaho, where he was stationed for seven years. He began as a co-pilot, was then promoted to aircraft command-er, and finally was an instructor until 1964. At that point he was selected for training for the new B-52 bomber and was assigned to Wright Patterson Air Force Base, where he was a flight instructor for five years.

In 1969 he went to Vietnam for the war. After serving, he was promoted to Lieutenant

Colonel, and was selected to attend the British War College; this was a special opportunity and a great honor, as he was the only American selected to attend. He was eventually stationed in Germany as deputy base commander. Simultaneously, he received a master’s degree in counsel-ing. While in Germany he was promoted to full Colonel and was reassigned to England as base commander at the RAF (Royal Air Force) Upper Heyford Station. In 1978, he returned to his alma mater and became Professor of Air Science at the University of Cincinnati. There, he

• In the fall quarter, Beta Theta Pi had a chapter GPA of 3.156 – 4th out of 21 fraternities.

• Members of our chapter completed 484 service hours during fall quarter.• The fall pledge class had an average GPA of 3.43 and its members are already

involved in over 16 campus organizations.• The Beta Nu Chapter partnered with Rallycats for Homecoming in the fall

quarter and came in 2nd place in the float competition.  This is the second year that Beta has placed in the top 3 – we won first place in 2009.

Good News About Beta Theta Pi

2

Beta Nu Chapter OfficersPresident James Balough, Cincinnati ’11Vice President Justin Behymer, Cincinnati ’12Treasurer Myron Dixon, Cincinnati ’13Recruitment Chairman Bryan Dickman, Cincinnati ’13Alumni Relations Chairman Mark simon, Cincinnati ’12Recording Secretary Ben Combs, Cincinnati ’12Inter-Greek Chairman Mike Rodmaker, Cincinnati ’12Social Chairman Phil Dinovo, Cincinnati ’13Pledge Educator Cody Moore, Cincinnati ’12Risk Manager sean Francsis, Cincinnati ’14Chorister sam huheey, Cincinnati ’14Intramural Chairman Jordan Fussnecker, Cincinnati ’11Scholarship Chairman Corey horan, Cincinnati ’14House Manager Ed Laage, Cincinnati ’13Ritual Chairman Donny Bittala, Cincinnati ’12Sergeant-at-Arms John Memory, Cincinnati ’14Technology Chairman steve hegele, Cincinnati ’11Historian Tyler Waddle, Cincinnati ’12Philanthropy Chairman Phil Riazzi, Cincinnati ’14Kitchen Manager seth Jennings, Cincinnati ’14

Bryan Dickman, Cincinnati ’13; Phil Dinovo, Cincinnati ’13; Dylan Addis, Cincin-nati ’14; James Balough, Cincinnati ’11; Justin Be-hymer, Cincinnati ’12; David Schmidt, South Florida ’92 (General Secretary); Myron Dixon, Cincinnati ’13; Cody Moore, Cincinnati ’12; Mike Rodmaker, Cincinnati ’12; Ben Combs, Cincinnati ’12; Mark Simon, Cincinnati ’12; Donny Bittala, Cincinnati ’12 and Mike Paul, Cincinnati ’72 (Chapter Counselor). James Balough and David Schmidt are holding the chapter’s North Central Leadership Development Award.

Betas from around the country met in Washington, D.C. for the General Conven-tion last summer. The Cincinnati Chapter took home the following awards:

• Francis H. Sisson Award – presented to outstanding chapters based on chapter excellence. Beta Nu was one of 22 chap-ters (out of 126) to receive this award.

• Charles Henry Hardin Leadership Development Award – presented to those chapters which best exemplify commitment to participation in leader-ship experiences, expounding upon the leadership displayed by Founder Hardin. The Cincinnati chapter sent 30 people to leadership opportunities hosted by the Beta Theta Pi Fraternity and the North-

Beta Nu Brings Home Numerous Awards

Beta Nu Dominates the Intramural WorldBy Joe Mayer, Cincinnati ’13

Beta Nu Brothers celebrating a win in flag football. The team went undefeated in the regular season and came in second place overall in the fall quarter.

Beta Nu has excelled in the intramural world at the University of Cincinnati during the past three quarters. Reigning undefeated through the regular season, the softball team reached the champi-onship game and were runners-up in the Greek league falling to Sigma Phi Epsilon last Spring Quarter. The mixture of left and right-handed hitters, along with the excellent pitching by Bryan Zivich, Cincin-nati ’11, allowed the Beta men to have a tremendous softball season.

Each year, there is tremendous excitement for the football sea-

son, and the past season proved to be a good one. After a high energy win against the men of Alpha Tau Omega, Beta won its semi-final game in the pouring rain to move on to the finals against the reigning champs, Sigma Chi. In a back and forth game that came down to the wire, the Beta men were barely outscored and received second place.

Fall Quarter was also the first season that Beta Nu fielded an intramural volleyball team. With signature wins against Sigma Chi and Delta Tau Delta, Beta went 3-1 through their premier season on the volleyball court. Mov-ing to Winter Quarter, not only did Beta Nu participate in the fraternity league of basketball, but we also teamed up with Chi Omega to cre-ate a co-ed team. Both teams moved deep into their respective playoff brackets after having winning seasons.

American Interfraternity Conference (NIC).

During the 2010 Spring Quarter, the Univer-sity of Cincinnati Greek Life Excellence Awards Ceremony recognized Beta Theta Pi with the following awards:

• Gold Chapter Award – Recognizes exceptional chapter programming and policy compliance

• Second Runner-up Premier Chapter Award – 3rd place out of 21 fraternities on UC’s campus

To add to the success of the chapter, Beta Nu received the North Central Leadership Devel-opment Award at the 2011 Keystone Regional Leadership Conference.

continued on page 3

3

Two Beta Nu Alumni Serve on University of Cincinnati Governance Boards

Thomas Cassady, Cincinnati ’76, was ap-pointed to the University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees in 2010 by the Governor of Ohio (term runs from 2010-2019). Tom is regional presi-dent and CEO of USI Insurance of the Midwest region, which includes Cincinnati, Chicago, St. Louis, Cleveland, Louisville and Columbus. He is a 1976 graduate of the University of Cincinnati, where he majored in history. He is extremely active in the Cincin-nati community and serves on numer-ous boards. Within the Beta realm, he has held offices as General Fraternity vice president (1988-89) and General Secretary (1989-92). He is also General Fraternity insurance commissioner, a position that he has held since 1986. He is currently a member of the Beta Nu Build-ing Company. Tom was presented with the Francis Wayland Shepardson Award during a celebration banquet of the Beta Nu chapter at the University of Cincin-nati in 2005. He and his wife, Karen, are parents of two Cincinnati Beta sons, Thomas (Dan) ’00 and Todd ’03, and two daughters, Betsy and Jenny.

Steve Wilson, Cincinnati ’66, was named Chairman of the University of Cincin-nati Foundation Board of Trustees last year. Steve is a member of the College of Business Dean’s Advi-sory Board and former president of University of Cincinnati Athletic Team Scholarships (UCATS). He earned an economics degree from UC in 1966, an MBA in 1968 and an honorary doctorate in Commercial Science in 2006. He is the retired president and CEO of VNU Advisory Services. VNU, now The Nielson Company, is the world’s largest provider of marketing information and research. Wilson was the second assistant Administrative Secretary to ever serve the General Fraternity in 1970. He is cur-rently a member of the Beta Nu Building Company and served as President from the early 1990s through 2006.

Thomas Cassady, Cincinnati ’76

Steve Wilson, Cincinnati ’66

Pictured (L to R): John Memory, Cincinnati ’14; Richard Lugar, Denison ’54; and Mark Simon, Cincinnati ’12. Beta Nu brothers had the honor of meeting U.S. Senator Richard Lugar at the 171st General Convention. In addition, Brothers Memory and Phil Dinovo, Cincinnati ’14 (not pictured) got the amazing opportunity to be initiated into the fraternity at Convention.

Looking forward to Spring Quarter, Beta Nu is going to be very busy when it comes to intramurals. The softball team is looking to dominate again, and Beta is teaming up with the ladies of Kappa Al-pha Theta to form a co-ed softball team. Intramural soccer will also occur, with not only the usual men’s team but also a co-ed team with the ladies of Delta Delta Delta. Lastly, Beta will be participating in dodgeball, the newest intramural sport. Through it all, Beta Nu will be very active this quarter in the University of Cincin-nati sports world!

Beta Nu Dominates Intramural Worldcontinued from page 2

Alumni Relations, Mark Simon, Cincinnati ’12

On behalf of the active chapter, I would like to invite all alumni to visit the Beta House at any time.  Join us for dinner Monday through Thursday at 6:00 p.m. (5:30 p.m. on Tuesday); attend a weekly chapter meeting on Tuesdays at 6:00 pm or just stop by to say “hi” and connect with some new brothers.  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at (614) 354-5503 or msimon88@gmail.com.

For the latest news and photos from the Cincinnati Betas, please visit our brand new chapter website at www.ucbeta.org.

4

Drew McKenzie, Cincinnati ’05, Wins Jeffrey Hurwitz Young Alumni Outstanding Achievement Award

Drew McKenzie, Cin-cinnati ’05, was recently announced as winning the Jeffrey Hurwitz Young Alumni Out-standing Achievement Award. The award is presented to a UC gradu-ate (35 years or younger) on the basis of significant professional achievement in his or her field of endeav-or and continued service and involvement with the University and community.

Award recipient McKenzie, who re-mains in Cincinnati, served as President of the Class of 2005. McKenzie is active with the Greek Alumni Affairs Coun-cil, the Beta Nu Building Company and serves as the president of the Diogenes Club. Universities know that engaged stu-dents typically become lifelong engaged alumni. It is also known that students

Drew McKenzie, Cincinnati ’05

who participate in the Greek system tend to have a stronger affinity with their school as alumni. Based on these facts, UC is fortunate to have Drew McKenzie as a passionate and active young alumnus.

Professionally, McKenzie has risen rap-idly in the digital communications field, developing and executing interactive mar-keting strategies, cultivating new busi-ness, and leveraging emerging technology to his clients’ benefit. He also spent four years as a volunteer advance representa-tive for The White House, coordinating presidential visits. He has augmented his professional work with varied community service, always in leadership positions.

Wanted: Beta RelicsIf you have any composites, or

you know of someone who does, please return them to the house so we can hang them on the walls.  If they are in bad shape, we will make a concerted effort to repair them. We are also looking for old photo-graphs and portraits to enhance the chapter’s historical archives.

The Beta Nu chapter won the Pike Firetruck pull in 2010. Brothers pictured here are (L to R): Back Row - Josh Vi-relli, Cincinnati ’15; James Balough, Cincinnati ’11; David Schmutte, Cincinnati ’14; Forrest Beahrs, Cincinnati ’14; Phil Dinovo, Cincinnati ’13; Ryan Johnson, Cincinnati ’11; Billy Clifton, Cincinnati ’11; Bryan Zivich, Cincinnati ’11; Brandon Mowrey, Cincinnati ’11; Kyle Mueller, Cincinnati ’13 and Phil Riazzi, Cincinnati ’14.Front Row - Tom Coulter, Cincinnati ’13; Mike Barlow, Cincinnati ’13 and Jonathan Jurcenko, Cincinnati ’14.

President’s ReportThe Cincinnati Betas have been

through many “ups and downs” since the reorganization in 2000, but as you are reading this copy of The Beta Nus, our chapter is in the midst of what is argu-ably the biggest upswing in over a decade. Over the past year we have experienced unprecedented success in recruitment, with our chapter size growing to 56 active brothers. Currently, 35 brothers live in the house; that number is expected to rise to over 45 by the fall.

We now have two co-chapter coun-selors, Mike Paul, Cincinnati ’72, and Jordan Brewer, Cincinnati ’10. A new house mother and cook, Tina Eastlake, began helping out the Betas in the fall quarter. Tina has played a pivotal role in the chapter since she began last Septem-ber, bringing actives together four times a week for a delicious meal and genuine brotherhood. Also, we have returned to our roots as “the singing fraternity” thanks to Brother Sam Huheey, Cincin-nati ’14, who restarted the Beta Chorus, which meets on Thursdays and draws upwards of twelve brothers each week for an evening of song and fellowship. Con-siderable advancements in intramurals and on-campus involvement have greatly enhanced the image of the fraternity. Let there be no mistake: Beta Theta Pi is a leader in the UC Greek community.

Many factors have contributed to our recent success, but the General Fraterni-ty’s nationally recognized leadership op-portunities have made the biggest impact. Last year, Beta sent 30 members (57% of the chapter in 2010) to leadership oppor-tunities—eight brothers to the Wooden Institute for Men of Principle, ten chapter officers to the Keystone Regional Devel-opment Conference and twelve brothers to Leadership College at the 2010 General Convention in Washington, D.C. Major funding for these experiences comes from alumni contributions to the Beta Nu Endowment. With your support, significant improvements have been made to Beta’s leadership operations, essentially transforming the chapter. As Beta Nu continues to grow, alumni support will be essential to maintain the positive momen-tum.

Yours in _kai_,James Balough, Cincinnati ’11

jamesbalough@gmail.com

5

Beta Nu Advisors

Co-Chapter Counselor Mike Paul, Cincinnati ’72

Co-Chapter Counselor Jordan Brewer, Cincinnati ’10

Financial Bryan Luff, Oklahoma ’08

Risk Management tom Cassady, Cincinnati ’76

Pledge Education Dave Campbell, Virginia Tech ’07

Recruitment Jerome Parm, II, Cincinnati ’08

Faculty Dick Friedman, Cincinnati ’63

Philanthropy tom Carleton, Cincinnati ’90

Scholarship Jim Heathcote, Cincinnati ’56

Leadership Consultant John Reineke, Central Michigan ’09

District Chief Matt Welty, Miami ’06

Beta Nu brothers raised over $1,850 at the 2011 Beta Theta Ball.

4th Annual Beta Theta Ball Raised Money for Literacy Center West and CASA

In collaboration with Kappa Alpha Theta, Beta held their 4th Annual Beta Theta Ball Dodgeball Tournament on Sunday March 6, 2011. The event raised over $1,850 for Literacy Center West and CASA.

Founded by an alumnus of both the Univer-sity of Cincinnati and Beta Theta Pi, Literacy Center West (LCW) is a non-profit organiza-tion located in East Price Hill. Literacy Center West provides ongoing literacy instruction, G.E.D. preparation and job placement assis-tance to young adults, usually with criminal backgrounds, who can’t afford it. The programs that are offered at LCW are open to all, regard-less of race, gender and age.

CASA is also a non-profit organization and positively impacts the lives of abused and

neglected foster children in the community by providing trained advocates who speak on be-half of the children in court. The volunteers act as liaisons not only between children and the court system, but also between the children and their school, their parents and their families. The CASA program can help displaced children find the security they need to grow and reach their full potential.

Beta Theta Ball was full of excitement as teams came together and participated in either a men’s team bracket or a co-ed team bracket. Everyone had a blast as dodgeballs flew, prizes were raffled off, people danced to music and the Best Dressed Team was recognized.

was in charge of the Air Force ROTC program until he retired in 1982. He eventually became the Director of Brown County Counseling, a position he held for nine years until he re-tired at age 65. After his “second retirement” he bought a motor-home and a Mazda Miata convertible.

Beta Nu Hall of Fame Inducteescontinued from page 1

Heathcote has been married for 55 years to his wife, Betty. They have four kids, two sons and two daughters. When he isn’t traveling in his RV, he volunteers at the local veterans home, one of only two state-sponsored facilities in Ohio. He is also active in his church.

Brother Heathcote was inducted into the Beta Nu Alumni Hall of Fame in recognition of his years of service to the fraternity, most re-cently as the Scholarship Advisor, and his piv-otal role in the Tangeman Library Campaign.

Communication support and assistance provided by:

OmegaFi800.276.6342omegafi.com

6

Beta Nu ChapterBeta Theta Pi (#1601)PO Box 2187Columbus, GA 31902-2187

help us keep our alumni records up-to-date! edit your member profile online at www.betanualumni.com, or clip this form, place it in a stamped envelope and send to: Beta theta Pi #1601 P.o. Box 2187, Columbus, ga 31902.

Name __________________________________________________

Roll Number ______________________________________________

Address _________________________________________________

______________________________________________________

City/State/Zip _____________________________________________

Phone __________________________________________________

E-mail _________________________________________________

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

The Beta Nu Brothers after the fall initiation. The chapter currently has 56 members.

SAVE THE DATE: It’s official - University of Cincinnati Homecoming 2011 is set for October 15, 2011!

The game vs. Louisville will be at Paul Brown Stadium, but all other events surrounding Homecoming weekend will be on campus. The chapter plans to host the annual Beta Alumni Homecoming event at the chapter house. Visit www.betanualumni.com for the latest details.

Visit www.betanualumni.comVisit www.betanualumni.com, the official Beta Nu chapter and alumni website to:

• Learn more about the chapter

• Search for alumni

• Update your address, phone number and e-mail address

• Find out about upcoming events

• Post noteworthy accomplish-ments (a new baby, a recent marriage, a recent promotion, etc.)

ΒΘΠ