A Unique Look at the Inside

Hey everyone! Sorry that it's taken so long for me to update the blog. Just to give you a brief update on what's been going on and the history of how it's happened:

Phi Psi, being one of the wealthiest Greek-lettered organization in the country and having wealthy and notable alumni such as President Woodrow Wilson, Jerry Yang (founder of Yahoo!) and NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg, can offer its undergraduate members several opportunities that other organizations can't. One such opportunity is called the American Leadership Academy. The program takes place at the Marbella Suites En La Playa hotel in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and is sponsored by Jerry Nelson, a member of our chapter at UCLA and the primary investor in starting up TicketMaster. The only thing you pay for to attend the program is your roundtrip airfare to Cabo; your hotel room and food is all paid for by Mr. Nelson and the Phi Kappa Psi Endowment Fund. In Cabo, you will meet brothers from all over the country, attend presentations and breakout sessions that will teach you more about yourself and how to help you in and out of the inter-fraternity world, and there's a great night life in town.

One thing you will also do in Cabo is meet staff from our national headquarters. I was so inspired by everything that went on in Cabo that I more or less decided what I wanted to do with my life. I want to work with student leaders, whether in a Greek setting, in a student government setting, or a youth group or nonprofit organization. It's what I've known since 7th grade through my involvement in the B'nai B'rith Youth Organization, it's what I'm good at, and it's what I enjoy; so why not make a living out of it? But anyway, so I met the now former Director of Expansion, Ron Ransom, who after talking to me suggested that I apply for a summer internship at our national headquarters in Indianapolis, IN. So I did. And I got it.

So, on June 8th, I left my cozy house in Bayside, Queens for a city that is halfway across the country, where I know absolutely no one and will be in unfamiliar surroundings (thankfully I have a GPS system for my car). 16 hours and 750 miles later, I arrived in the city of Indianapolis, where I currently am. After almost one month of working for HQ, I'm still trying to process everything that I've learned and trying to figure out how I can best use it to my advantage both in and outside of my chapter.

Unfortunately for you, my readers, I must get going. We were given the day off (it is 4th of July weekend) and I have a game of golf to be attending to. But, once again, I will leave you with this:

Do something that will benefit your community. Do something that will benefit you. Do something that will change your life forever. Leave your mark. Leave your legacy. Become an Oneonta Greek; it will be the best thing you've ever done.

And so, I would like to leave you with one last saying. Some know it as "Seize the Day" or "Carpe Diem," but to Phi Psi's around the world, it consists of four simple words: LIVE EVER, DIE NEVER!

Live Ever, Die Never

Hi everyone! My name is Zach Silver and I am a brother of the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity!

After signing up to be one of the Greek bloggers for the 2009-10 school year, I decided to see what past bloggers have done, which is to give a basic overview of their organization and the overall events of being a recognized Greek at SUNY Oneonta. I'm going to take a different approach. Though I will still include all the things that the past bloggers have done, I'm also going to include the little things to give you as much of an accurate representation of being a member of a Greek organization as possible. After all, the name of the blog is "A Day in the Life of a Phi Psi," so I'm going to update this blog as much as I possibly can to show how Greek life affects your everyday life and what it's all really about.

So let me give you a brief background on myself:

I'm a junior (I can't believe I'm turning 20 in less than two weeks) from Queens with a double major in Music Industry and Business Economics. I play several instruments and used to play lacrosse in high school. I am currently the Vice President of Internal Services for the Student Association after serving as a Senator last year.

I joined Phi Kappa Psi in the Spring 2008 semester as part of the Legendary Lambda new member class. Along with seven class brothers who I now consider my closest friends, I learned the history and traditions of my fraternity during the six-week-long process we call the new member program.

I understand that Greek life as a whole has a stigma of being just like the movie Animal House or the show Greek, but it is honestly nothing like that. It's not all partying. It's not all making your new members dress in drag and do humiliating things. In fact, it's nothing like that at all. Being in a fraternity has brought out the best in me. I do countless hours of community service, my grades are up, and it has brought out my true leadership potential. Coming into college, I never thought I would be as involved in the campus community as I am, let alone be on the executive board for a $1 million corporation who's sole purpose is to help students (check out the Student Association). If Greek life should have a stigma at all, it should be one of leaders doing all they can to help out their community. It should be one of having the brightest students. It should be one of accepting only the BEST.

Do something that will benefit your community. Do something that will benefit you. Do something that will change your life forever. Leave your mark. Leave your legacy. Become an Oneonta Greek; it will be the best thing you've ever done.

And so I would like to leave you with one last saying. Some know it as "Seize the Day" or "Carpe Diem," but to Phi Psi's around the world, it consists of four simple words: LIVE EVER, DIE NEVER!

Fraternally,

Zachary T. Silver...

Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity