Hello Sigma Kai Brothers sweethearts and guests welcome to the first part of a four-part series recognizing military sigs hosted by Sigma Kai’s hosted by the sigma Kai fraternities alumni learning Consortium which pays tribute to the bonds of Brotherhood and military service I’m your host Kellen Brown I’m a
Recent graduate of depal University in Chicago and a member of the Lambda Omega chapter along with the 2023 International baler Award winner I commissioned into the army as an active duty military intelligence officer this past June and I’ll be stationed at Joint Base Lewis McCord Washington in the
Coming months today we have the privilege of hearing from a group of remarkable individuals who share a unique connection through their membership in the sigma Kai fraternity and their dedication to military service Sigma Kai has a rich history dating back to 1855 and has produced transformational leaders in various
Fields including the Armed Forces today we’re going to hear from some of these military sigmak Kai Brothers each with their own inspiring stories of Courage honor and the values instilled by the fraternity throughout today’s webinar we’ll explore their Journeys from the college campus to the front lines discussing the impact of their
Fraternity experience on their military careers and vice versa I’m joined today by three military sigs who served in our Armed Forces order of Constantine and semi Century Sig brother Sergeant First Class specialist 5 Len Hicks Georgia Southwestern 1971 led to local fraternity and later became a charter
Brother of the Ada Theta Chapter of Sigma Kai in 1971 he served in the US Army in Vietnam at Fort Bragg and in Germany as part of the army Security Agency working as a criticom operator and legal clerk after his time in the Army brother hook worked
In construction and real estate as a broker and appraiser he retired after 29 years with sovis Corp as a special asset officer brother Hick’s service to the fraternity should not go unmentioned he served as president of the house Corporation at Ada Theta for 25 years along with being a member of the gamma
New house Corporation and Advisory board he also supports our undergraduate Brothers as a member of The quer Faculty for Baler leadership training Workshop virtual Croc transformational leader workshop and officer Training Academy ritual peer and foundational leadership Mentor he is not the only Sigma Kai in his family both his son Chris and
Grandson Patrick are brothers welcome Brother Hicks thank you next up we have Lieutenant Colonel Benjamin Brandt United States Air Force retired Embry Riddle Daytona Beach 1998 during his time as an undergraduate he served the fraternity as fundraising chairman quer and proconsul before going on to serve as vice president of the Embry Riddle
Into fraternity Council before his graduation brother Brandt was commissioned into the United States Air Force Through ROTC where he secured a pilot training slot he spent a year on casual status where he led a flight of 60 enlisted troops in the flight line maintenance of KC 135s ec135 and CT 43s
Unfortunately he was medically disqualified at his final flight physical Brant was then reassigned and became an engineer at Hill Air Force Base in 2008 he separated from active duty and became an aviation systems engineer with a mitt Rec Corporation and transitioned to the Air Force Reserves to support the E3 Airborne warning and
Control system awax air aircraft program in 2016 he transitioned from supporting the E3 program to support the secretary of the Air Force for Acquisitions Global power director at the Pentagon where he retired as a lieutenant colonel on October 1st 2023 congratulations on your retirement brother brt thank you
Go and lastly we have military service runs in the family of significant Sig technical Sergeant Mark E Dunning Handover 1983 the legacy of a World War I veteran and the son of a World War II veteran Dunning started his military service in the US Army Reserve before
Transitioning to the US Air Force where he deployed in support of operation Desert Storm during his deployment he served as a tactical information broadcast system operator and helped enforce the UN sanctions against Iraq following his tour brother Dunning served abroad in Korea before returning Stateside to the Washington DC area in
1999 technical Sergeant Dunning and his team responded to the attack on the Pentagon on September 11 2001 and prepared an alternate Intelligence Center in case the Pentagon alert Center had to evacuate at his retirement Dunning was awarded the defense meritorious service mble medal after 24 years of military
Service he reconnected with Sigma Kai in 2013 30 years after his college graduation since 2017 he has served as the warden for the Benjamin Patt rle Memorial monument and was named a significant Sig in 2019 welcome brothers and thank you so much for being here thank you
Brother all right so we’re going to get our conversation started uh I wanted to start with you brother Hicks and this is kind of a broad question but uh I wanted to ask how did your Sigma Kai experience Inspire and impact your military service in 1966 when I became a Greek of
Sigma Delta Epsilon which later on became Sigma Kai to Theta in 1971 I learned a word called Brotherhood that I had not known before then I had friends in high school but I never really had a Brotherhood I bonded very quickly with a group of young men who had similar
Interest and that was to be better and to strive to be better and I think that that helped me when I went in the service because it threw me in a Melting Pot of a lot of different people with different thoughts different actions and if I had not had the grounding of the
Brotherhood from the fraternity I might not have done as well in the military as I did even though in the branch that I was in we did not make a lot of friends we did not have a lot of friends uh you still worked with people and you had a
Special bond that even today is still there thanks so much Len we’re GNA move on next to brother brand uh same question how did your Sigma Kai experience Inspire and impact your military service admit that I actually have to agree with Brother Hicks um I actually
Went to Amry riddle knew I was going to get an RC scholarship and I was focused on the academics and doing as well as I could in college uh joining a fraternity was a furing for my mind so um I was actually introduced to Sigma Kai through
A brother um about I played a club across with and um took me to the house met some of the brothers um um you know saw the brotherhood like brother hooks had talked about uh but as I learned more through just the interactions the semester leading leading up to when I
Actually pledged and the rush and you know pledging um the values and virtues that were being taught I found to be valuable um I mean really and I I kind of still live by the the Mantra of different temperaments talents and convictions um because it it’s so true
Especially in the military where you just have people of different backgrounds and different abilities different passions and trying to find and align those passions to the job that has to get done um really Sigma Kai helped instill that in me I think I probably would have been a lot more
Naive and and uh single-minded if it wasn’t for Sigma Kai um if if it hadn’t been for that experience so it really you know I can’t say the uh you know experience inspired me to join the military but it was a great um you know going back to Sigma Kai being a
Leadership fraternity it really is it really teaches a a great amount of leadership and how to interact with people of all kinds of different walks of life absolutely I think it’s so interesting how so many of us have shared experiences in terms of if I was
The same way when I first started I was worried about academics I never planned on joining a fraternity and so uh and I think nowadays I look and I’m like you know being a part of the chapter I was in and and the Brotherhood itself was is
Still a critical part of getting used to being in the military and it’s kind of really given me a leg up I feel like and helped so much so absolutely uh and so we’re gonna move on to brother Dunning uh the same question brother Kellen congratulations on your International B for award and
Thank you for having me here tonight as you know many of Sigma Kaya’s Founders served during the Civil War their stories of military service and sacrific and inspired me and had a profound impact on my military career founder run seriously wounded at the Battle of Shiloh and founder cwell
Imprisoned are a few notable examples Kai chapter’s founder Samuel Perry Dillan also served during its Civil War and was seriously wounded which resulted in the paralysis of his right arm I wanted to serve honorably like them and if I needed to sacrifice so be it all honored to their
Names absolutely thanks brother Dunning for your response oh all right so we’re g to move on to our next question here uh we have how do the leadership skills you gained in the military translate to your current roles within the fraternity and how has your fraternity experience enhanced your leadership abilities
Overall kind of a two-part question there uh we’re going to start with brother Brant uh great question Kellen and it’s it really flows both ways um some of the experiences I had um going through the various professional military education schools that the air force uh sends us
Through um actually I was a county adviser for uh a colony that was established at Bentley University back in 2012 and was established as the as a chapter in 2013 um and one of the the key things was really knowing when to fight and when to step back and and take a pause
Um the the colony was challenged with a Greek adviser who was not particularly helpful and they were frustrated put it I’ll put it that way and sat down with them uh through some having attended the ltw uh just that summer before uh as their colony adviser sat down with them
And did a strategic planning session to come up with a how how do we get a a strong foothold at Bentley University and you know really kind of turned the ship around for the for the chapter there and they by the end of their first year uh being installed they
Were the largest and the strongest uh Greek organization on Bentley University just because they you know had a plan they wanted to emphasize Sigma Kai values and and they were bought into that plan so kudos to those gentlemen for you know taking the Reigns and and getting the work done be couldn’t be
There with them every day but they they really uh yeah like I said had that passion and they they saw a goal and they wanted to reach it so um really kind I you know not quite sure if I answered both of the questions there in that one example but that was
Uh a very um prominent memory in my mind as to you know when sort of the leadership skills learned on both sides of the fence uh both in the fraternity and the military came into play and uh you know as far as helping me I you know
Kind of answered that in the first question just being able to recognize that people are going to be performing different and trying to align them to their passions and typically if you do that they tend to you know create their own success and you don’t have to uh
Push them or or beat on them too hard to get the job done absolutely I think that’s s such a powerful example of you know really relates to exactly what we’re getting at here so thank you for sharing that about Bentley uh and next we’re going to move on uh to brother
Dunning um as brother Ben pointed out the military is a very big on professional military education um time management and organization skills I think were the plus skills um for for me however I don’t always do them well um my volunteer roles uh within the fraternity keeps me engaged and involved with the
Fraternity um I leave by example of you know volunteering and by giving to the sigai foundation or supporting the undergraduate Brothers philanthropy events uh we can’t do the programs um we do without the the funding absolutely yeah of course I think I don’t always do the best with
Time management either but the military has definitely helped so I get where you’re coming from uh and lastly we’ll go to brother hix yes I think it’s something that probably all of us on here can relate to military taught me uh patience uh that is one thing for sure
That I came out of military with with patients also learned a lot about myself as far as the virtues that we practice today Fidelity and courage and wisdom and these the different things that we are striving to live by each day and I think how it has helped me with the
Fraternity as a volunte here is is first of all there’s no way that you can guide or lead somebody unless you show them a path and I think that as a volunteer one of the things I strive to do is show to the undergrads that there is a way there is
A way to live by virtues there is a way to make have the courage to make the decisions that you as undergraduates need to make every day and I think that and and and the leadership chain of command that we had in the military helped me a lot as far as
Working with chapter advisors and Grand praters and headquarters staff and the undergrads and and chapter advisory groups because sometimes it gets so confusing of what you want to say and how you want to go but you want to make sure that you go about it in the right
Path so I think a blend of the military and the structure that the military gave me has helped me give some type of structure to my volunteer service for the undergraduates absolutely and I think that structure also kind of plays a key role in giving a sense of purpose and I
Think you know we get that from the military but especially from the fraternity as well and I think that’s really what you’re coming from uh we’re going to move on to our third question here uh we’ve got based on your unique perspectives um what advice would you offer for emerging leaders Within maai
Undergraduates whether they be pursuing military careers or not either way um we’re going to start again with brother Dunning live live your life according to the ritual 60 68th Grand Cil uh Mike Greensburg perspective on our ritual is the greatest leadership book ever written I definitely agree with that
Assessment absolutely me as well uh we’re going to move to brother hex Mark I can’t agree with you more about the ritual book I mean it is definitely it is a pathway for all of us to be better and I think the things that we have had come out lately about we
Expect more of a sigma Kai I think is something that we need to do and it makes re makes me reflect on and I hope that each each undergraduate each alumni has a copy of the man in the glass as it posted I have it on the posted right
Above my desk here and live by that every day I think even though it does not mention our virtues it embodies the principles all of all of our virtues and the other thing is to understand that being a sigma Kai is a lifelong commitment it’s not a fouryear college
Commitment it’s not a fouryear enlistment commitment uh even retiring from the military it’s longer than all of that it’s a lifelong and then someday we’ll all meet in chapter Eternal of course that’s so insightful thank you brother Hicks uh and lastly we’re gonna move on to brother
Bran yeah I I actually you know didn’t mean for this to all become about the ritual but I’ll be honest with you I mean I when I stepped out of the fraternity in 98 when I graduated um I didn’t really step back in until 2012 when I became a colony adviser I was
Asked by Julio verella who was the Grand prador or he was Grand Prader when uh he was a chapter adviser of emry riddle but then became the grand Prader of the South fla Province um he approached me because he was the chair of the ritual or not the ritual
But the um expansion committee their headquarters um and it it forced me to get back into it and and the ritual and and you know it really kind of brought back a lot of very positive memories and emotions um you can’t can’t say it enough that it itself has a lot of
Values that we should be living dayto day whether we’re alumni or brothers um and it really is a a lifetime commitment um you know that’s that’s not something to be taken light way and I I can’t agree more with than I Brother Hicks and brother dunning’s expression of
That I really can’t add anymore so thank you brother absolutely thanks brother Brent uh and so for our last question for the night um kind of General uh but what message do you have to share with other brothers who have served already on this Veterans Day and
We’re going to start with Brother Hicks first as we move towards Veterans Day I’m reminded of something I do volunteer work with red cross and I was sent as part of a team when we were deploying troops to Iraq and Saudi Arabia and in a different
World in course I served in Vietnam so it was a different time and that’s okay because we change with time but I found myself talking to the families and then I would turn and talk to the soldiers deploying and to our veterans that we’ve
Got out there or if you’re going to be a veteran I I want you to think about something as a veteran when I was serving there was something to do I had a mission I had a task I knew when to get up I knew when to go to bed I I knew
What I was supposed to do but the family waiting on me at home I truly felt and I still do today that they had the hardest job of all because their mission was undefined their task daily was never the same so as a veteran on this Veterans
Day when people thank me for my service if they’re a member of a family of a serviceman I thank them because I truly feel that they had the hardest task I couldn’t agree more thank you so much Brother Hicks uh next we’re going to move on to brother
Brt yeah thanks Ken uh first and foremost I mean there’s just three of us here there’s a lot of Sigma Kai veterans and um I’m very honored to represent them as part of this panel tonight and um you know I guess the message I would I would take away is
If don’t don’t discount anything that you did um I know some of the world situation going on now uh can be very frustrating for some veterans um you know there there is a bigger purpose and you know for the time that they serve they they made a difference
And just to go forward with that um I know there’s probably some brother veterans who are maybe struggling with various um mental disorders and and even physical disorders from their service um I’m very fortunate and that I did not have to suffer any of those um
And I don’t I don’t take that white we so I want to thank them and and let them know that there are brothers out there uh there are strong arms around you and uh to just keep on you know fighting a good fight and you know stay with us and
Continue to reach out as as necessary and uh that that goes for anybody really that might be having a hard time so thank you thank you so much for that brother brand and lastly we have brother Dunning first I would like to thank you for your service as brother Ben uh pointed out
Second I thank God that my war was short and I wasn’t on the front lines but I understand the physical and mental stress that recent Wars and conflicts has caused to our service members please reach out if you need help and our dealing with mental health issues Sigma
Has the Reach Out app that has a lot of great resources there I love you brother enjoy your day you earned it in h sign fces thank you so much for your words brother Dunning Brothers I want to thank you for your participation in today’s webinar so much this was such a great
Conversation you all are an inspiration and we are thankful so much for your service this brings us to the end of the first installment of recognizing military sigs signature speaker series event hosted by the sigmak kai fraternities alumni learning Consortium we hope you’ve been inspired as I am by
The incredible stories and insights shared by our military Sigma Kai Brothers before we go we’d like to express our gratitude to these extraordinary individuals for their dedication to both their fraternity and their military service if you’ve enjoyed this event please click the share button to share this signature speakers event
With your friends and fellow sigmak Kai Brothers as well as anyone who values stories of leadership sacrifice and the enduring power of our Brotherhood remember remember the bonds formed through Sigma Kai are not just for four years but for a lifetime and they continue to shape the lives of of our
Brothers in remarkable ways join us for part two of this four-part series on Tuesday November 14th at 8 o’clock pm EST for a live stream called the Next Generation military Sig where I’ll be joined by Joseph Cruz University of Texas Kingsville 2024 giovan Triano Western Connecticut 2024 and Colonel Walter
Cooner United States Air Force retired 1974 during this interview we will meet with current undergraduates and recent alumni about their decision to commit to military service and on Monday November 20th at 8 o’clock P PM EST we will be joined by Brother Andrew crosson Western Illinois 1995 for transformational leadership and
Action a conversation with General Merill a mCP United States Air Force retired San Diego State 1957 during his military career he achieved the rank of a four-star general and chief of staff to the United United States Air Force this will be an interview you will not want to miss
Finally mark your calendars for our final part of this series brothers and arms military leaders panel on Wednesday November 29th at 8 o’clock pm EST where we’re joined by Commander Steve Larsson Iowa State 1975 US Navy retired Major General George lampy Pittsburgh state 1965 Brigadier General Michael agilar
USMC retired Cal State Long Beach 1972 and Brigadier General James J Bur United States Air Force retired Ferman 1989 these military sigs work their way up and are among the highest ranked Sigma Kai Brothers in the military you will not want to miss this thank you again so
Much for joining us and happy Veterans Day
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