Northwest Missouri State University - Tower Yearbook (Maryville, MO)

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Preparing soldiers for battle and teaching humanitarian assistance, Stephen Terry r.irt . .1 the U.S Army ' s Civil Affairs and Psyctmlogical Operation Commands Division. ' One thinM you can ' t teach is how to deal with the death of a fellow soldiei, Terry said. thuiv iuhniiwd fn Su ' p it ' ii Tim- Unless a person has lived through such horrific conditions, they ' ll probably never know how blessed we are as Americans. Alan Hargreaves ■ I Ma + ■

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COMING HOME Witnesses of the in Iraq Fraternity brotherhood remains strong while new ones form on the battlefield €€ All the decades of deceit and cruelty have now reached an end. Saddam Hussein, and his sons, must leave Iraq within 48 hours. Their refusal to do so will result in nulitary conflict, commenced at a time of our choosing. President George W. Bush announced the ultimatum to the world March 17, 2003 — a day when most students were celebrating St. Patrick ' s Day and enjoying spring break. However, bikinis and partying became the farthest thing from the minds oi three university students. Two hours after the promised deadline. Bush declared war on Iraq. A four-minute speech forever changed the lives oi Fred Weixeldorfer, Alan Hargreaves and Stephen Terry. While a fraternity in itself created a kinship, the Delta Chi brothers formed an additional bond as they left to serve in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Weixeldorfer left for training with the U.S. Army Jan. 16, 2003. Declaration day confirmed he would be stationed overseas. Weixeldorfer said he experienced the hardest day April 14 with the 3rd Infantry Division after entering Baghdad, Iraq. The 3rd (Infa ntry- Division) lost a lot of good men that day, Weixeldorfer said. It was terrible watching those men and myself go through what we did. I still can ' t believe it to this day. Weixeldorfer remained overseas as the first trimester of the 2003- 2004 .school year came and went. His biggest reward came with providing aide to Iraqis. Weixeldorfer felt most Americans did not understand the benefits of troops being there. Alan Hargreaves surprises FreJ WeLxeldnrlcr. mjiuhkJ in BjIuJ, Iraq, with a visit from A[ Udeid, Qatar. Leaving behind their hves at Northwest, Delta Chi fraternity brothers Hargreaves and Weixeldorfer fought in Operation Iraqi Freedom, photo s ibmiiied In ALin H,.TeTMvf by Amber Brazil Betsy Lee They don ' t see the tears in the Iraqis ' eyes when we deliver them food, water and so on, Weixeldorfer said. They don ' t see the little kids running up screaming ' USA, USA, USA ' . Times like these made the Middle East much easier to bare tor Weixeldorfer. And seeing a familiar face did not hurt either, as he reunited with Hargreaves during the summer in Balud, Iraq. Hargreaves spent March through August overseas with the Missouri Air National Guard — two months in Saudi Arabia and four in Qatar. He served on flights going into and out of Iraq as a crew chief mechanic. Once finding the location of Weixeldorfer, Hargreaves rode the next plane his crew flew toward Balud to surprise his fraternity brother. Hargreaves gathered treats of candy, beef jerky and cookies to take with him. He knew Weixeldorfer and his fellow troops had been eating Meals Ready to Eat the whole time and had not had real food in months. To me it was one of the most important days that 1 had during this whole conflict, Hargreaves said. 1 watched as fellow Army troops picked through the boxes we had brought Fred, with tears in their eyes, of what seemed to be a bountiful feast. Unless a person has lived through such horrific conditions, they ' ll probably never know how blessed we are as Americans. Every time Hargreaves and his St. Joseph, Mo., aircrew flew into Iraq, they would bring boxes of fruit and such to hand off to troops from all military branches. It takes a combination of everyone ' s efforts in order to accomplish mission objectives, Hargreaves said. 1 guarantee that the worst place in America is better than the best place over there. In preparation for the trying elements, the U.S. military made homeland efforts as well. Terry, a third fraternity brother and veteran in peacekeeping missions, trained U.S. troops for Iraq January through May 2005. Stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., Terry instructed soldiers in the Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Commands. The army did not send him to tight the war in Iraq because he had just returned from a yearlong stay in Kosovo. Terry prepared soldiers for combat, showed them how to survive in the desert terrain and taught humanitarian assistance. The biggest job in Iraq right now is winning the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people, Terry said. It ' s not about the guns. Though he did the training that sent American soldiers such as Weixeldorfer to the Middle East, Terry believed the job of rebuilding Iraq and winning over the citizens should not have been left to the United States alone. It ' s time to bring our boys home, step back and withdraw, Terry said. We should let other countries get involved, and let NATO and the United Nations do their job of rebuilding the country. They need to make it better than it was so we don ' t have to go back over there again. . J(i T SfoiJev, Ji e

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RUSH • Appreciate the Start of Sisterhood Many experience joys and pain of the sorority pledging process during Fall Rush 2003. by Jessica Schmidt ies and activities came together in Women with crossed fingers and open Bid Day invitations to see which tk started with Sororit - Tea in the Sororities participating m formal recruimnent performed a song and dance for the potential pledges. Sororit ' presidents spoke to them about what sororiry- life had to offer. The Sorority Tea helped clarify some things tor me, as to what the sororities here on campus do and such, freshmen Amanda Granger said. The next evening, the women met in the Union Ballroom to have their picture taken and questions addressed. When Friday approached, the potential pledges were assigned to Gamma Chi groups to attend the first recniitment parties. Forty Gamma Chi leaders, and three alternates from different sororities participated in the recruitment process. For the past two years, Sigma Kappa member Jill Awtry chose to be a Gamma Chi. I got to experience both sides of recruitment, Aw tr - said. My sophomore year, I went through it as an active member, and for the last two years I went through recmitment as a Gamma Chi. CH ' erall, I like being a Gamma Chi better, because 1 feel you really get to know the girls better, you get to see the real person. Gamma Chi ' s were not allowed to reveal which sorority they belonged to and had to seclude themselves by staying in a local hotel for the duration of recruitment week. Potential pledges realized the seriousness of recruitment the second day of parties. Sororities and p itential pledges had to drop one another Saturday night. Desiree Campbell and Li: Vamon rela. alter welcomins; thi- new pledges to their sorority on bid day. Campbell and Vamons ' sorority Sigma Kappa welcomed 20 pledges who joined 57 active members, photo by Wilj dye I think the worst part of recruitment is chixising who to drop, Sigma Kappa Sherry Bowen said. You feel that you don ' t get enough time to know the girls, and then you have to make a decision based on a first impression. The dropping process hit pledges the hardest. Dropped by five sororities on the first drop day, sororities dealt Granger the unexpected. 1 didn ' t expect to get dropped, Granger said. You go into it with the mindset that you will be dropping the sorority, not that they will be dropping you. It was hard for me to deal with the rejection. But it didn ' t change my perception overall about the Greek system here at Northwest. Granger had the option of continuing on with recruitment but chose to back out because she did not believe she could see herself as a member of the remaining sorority. For those that sur ' ived, the final and most formal party of recruitment week happened Monday night. After potential pledges attended one or two preference parties, rhey had to decide which sorority they wanted to pledge. Preference Night was my favorite night because it . iftimied my decision and made me feel closer to the girls, .■ lpha Sigma Alpha pledge Emily Andrews said. Bid Day concluded recruitment week. The women gathered in the union ballroom to await their invitations. For Phi Mu pledge, Maria Mendez, Bid Day was her favorite part of the week. It was really nerve-racking because 1 knew 1 wanted Phi Mu, Mendez said. When 1 opened my letter and saw that it was a Phi Mu invitation 1 started crying and ran outside and hugged girls that 1 had ne er talked to before. On Bid Day outside the union anxious sororities stood waiting with banners, signs, T-shirts, gifts and silly string. After opening invitations, new pledges were allowed to run outside and meet their new sisters. Gamma Chi ' s, anticipating their release, pounded on the windows and waved. After all the pledges were announced, the Gamma Chi leaders were finally freed and allowed to see their Msters once again. For the new pledges, they were ready to start making new friends and memories. Although Granger and others like her did not recei ' e a bid, there were hopes for next year. At this point I will probably go through recmitment again next year, Granger said. 1 have learned from my experiences, and 1 would do it again because I now know what to expect. fy Sftjicfewt fi e