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

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a She ' s got lots of brothers and sisters here that are getting a taste of it and getting excited about thinking about coming up here. Kelly Coplen yy As the ROTC Color Guard paused on the held, player Adam Otte srands with his hands oxer his heart, singing the national anthem on Family Day. Otte played on Family Day all four years, to a packed stadium- photo by Theresa Chu ' dim Universiry President Dean Huhhard awards the Family of the Year plaque to the Stephens family, during the halftime of the game. Ahhy Stcphcn nominated her family (i inm K hU Dm- jr ' S+uicfeK+ Jh cA-ic

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Chccrinu tor their member uuoK.a in iIk- ienijiln Rush prixzess, Tri-Sigm.i sisters giuher in front tit the Student Union. After the excitement died down, ) Toup photos were taken in front of the Pell Tower, i h.to f Mi Dye Ci 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. Sigma Kappa Sherry Bowen jy Alpha Kappa Lambda brothers, Ryan Hansel, Nick Smith and Dennis VanAusdal cheer on the Kansas City Royals at a home game. Rushcos attended the game with acti ' e members during Rush Week, ifcjio kn Tn-ivr Haws opening experience by Trevor Hayes When 1 thought ot Greek lite, 1 thought of the stereotypical drunken parties and guys taking advantage of intoxicated girls. My eyes were opened to a different world during Fall Rush 2003 after I went undercover as a pledge tor Tower. When I started Rush, I chose two open houses. One gave away free pizza and the other had sign- ups for a free Royals ' game, which proved the theory true. The way to a man ' s heart is food and sports. At my first stop Tuesday, after my tour of the house, a car drove by blaring its horn and a girl popped out of the sunroof with her shirt over her head. I thought to myself, ' My God, what have I got myself into, I ' ve only been here 10 minutes. ' We toured the house and talked about soda, giving girls soda and how much they like soda. 1 kept thinking to myself, ' You were right, you ' re not going to fit in, you ' re not a drinker, smoker or a womanizer. You don ' t belong here. Why did you even volunteer for this assignment? ' Soon, I found myself on the porch of the house, talking to a few guys about beer, girls and baseball. Then, I met the president, and we talked about high school. I felt myself loosening up a bit and didn ' t feel as tense as 1 was when I first arrived. The next night, 1 went to another house and took a friend, which helped me relax. They showed us around the house, with their sunken in dance floor and blacked out windows. 1 also saw a funnel connected to the gutter, so people could pee off the balcony instead of going down a floor to the bathroom. 1 met a few guys who 1 related to and ate a lot of free pizza, something 1 hadn ' t taken advantage of the night before. Overall, I had a much better time than expected. On the drive home, 1 found myself questioning my original opinions and thinking about joining. I ' d met people similar to myself. The next Monday, I went to a bonfire held by the first house. The county ' s burn ban kept the fire out, so we stood around and talked more about baseball and the Kansas City Royals game. They really seemed like my kind of guys. When I checked my voice mail Tuesday, I ' d received messages from both houses. They made sure I was okay and still interested. I was shocked that either house even called. 1 didn ' t think they cared. I was impressed. I had to be at the house at 4 p.m. for the game. When we got on the bus, I started talking to the president. He told me about ripping mailboxes out of yards, and I told him about my adventures with a sledgehammer in high school. 1 was being sucked in but in a good way. I debated the whole way to the game if I should become a pledge or keep my secret. At the game, they gave each of us two tickets so wc could get two Royals ' Believe! ' T-shirts. Then we went up to our seats. We cheered, talked baseball, ate peanuts and won both the game and Krispy Kreme doughnuts. It was a night full of brotherhood. On the trip home, I talked to the rush chairman. 1 told him I was undercover and hadn ' t considered jiiining, but that 1 had changed my mind. I thought I had shot my chances ot being able to join, but he told me he appreciated my honesty. I signed my bid, but missed the next meeting. When I got in touch with the guys, they said my bid didn ' t clear. We ' re really sorry dude, the president said. It is completely our bad. You ' re a cool guy and we are really sorry. Please feel free to rush again in the spring or next year. After the experience, I learned that Greek life wasn ' t what I ' d thought. There were drunken parties and womanizers out there, hut for the most part, these guys were like real brothers.

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FAMILY DAY Celebrating ami Bo Parents and siblings experience cainpus life. by Megan Heuer amilies flocked to campus on a warm fall day to sample Bearcat life. Family Day allowed parents and siblings a chance to see what college life became to their students. Parents built lofts in residence halls, made trips to Wal-Mart and toured campus before football tailgating began. Siblings joined brothers and sisters to enjoy time together. They ' re awesome, freshman Lindzy Croisant said. They don ' t get to see me very often now that I ' m here. So, 1 loved having them here. Croisant enjoyed her siblings on campus for a visit, and her parents thought the visit introduced the kids to what college would be like. She ' s got lots of brothers and sisters here that are getting a taste of it and getting excited about thinking about coming up here, Croisant ' s parent Kelly Coplen said. Families packed into the Sprint Bearcat Zone before the game against Central Missouri State Universif. Sept. 20. Hookslide, an a Capella group, serenaded the crowd as they lined up to eat chips and hot dogs. The group entertained the audience with oldies, pop and barbershop music. Hookslide pulled student LcsIk Griswold out of the ser ' ing line and sang to her. When he sang to me it made me feel like the center of attention, but it was embarrassing at the same time, Griswold said. The lady next to me said, ' Aren ' t I pretty too? ' Then, he started singing to borli of us. Campus organizations created an upbeat atmosphere with booths including balloon animaN and university gear. It ' s keeping everyone ' s spirits up for the game, Bearcat Sweetheart Jamie Roberts said. The Alumni Association named the Stephens family of Diagonal, Iowa Family of the Year. Parents Carleen and John Stephens graduated from the university and were active Greeks. They can tell us what it was like whenever they were here, daughter Abby Stephens said. Older siblings Alex and Abby attended the university and youngest brother Adam planned to graduate Diagonal Community High School in the spring and head to campus. The Stephens family spanned four different Greek organizations, which they said brought them together. Abby turned in the Family of the Year application because she believed her family was closely bonded. Her family was very excited when they found out they had won. The Stephens family received special attention on Family Day for wirvning the award. There were two ambassadors who made sure we had everything we needed, and they gave us free concessions at the game, Abby said. They treated us really nice Alpha Sigma Alpha sisters cheer tor the Bearcats as they play Central Missouri State Universirv. The sorority sat together to celebrate family jay and their 75th anniversary- phowin Theresa Chiodiru :3 »«fPM -o,: 3