“I really enjoyed my time living at 1705 Hill. I loved the family rhythm and the shared purpose of having co-conspirators available at any given time…who knew what hijinks might be cooked up.
If it weren’t for Jim Slawson ’82, who invited me over to rush, the academic funk I had fallen into and the social isolation I felt at the time might have defeated me. If it weren’t for the patient and generous tutoring I received from Nelson Orozco ’80, Greg Roda ’83, Dan Springer ’81 and several others, I would not have been able to confound the efforts of those bastards who would throw me off campus for academic noncompliance. The support and positive reinforcement of “House” living motivated me to repeatedly avoid expulsion, and along the way I met most of the coolest guys I now know.
I remember the epic snowball fight that occurred across Hill Street on a weeknight when many guys were off studying, but every man available poured out of the house to enter pitched battle against the obviously subhuman Sigma Nu. At least we outlasted the Sigma Nu, who have since been driven off. Jim Fuger ’82 was at ground zero for that conflict. I remember the wisdom and down-home values of John Russell—”This ain’t no hotel.” He addressed us periodically on topics of clean living and orderly housekeeping. I’m proud just to have known him and lucky enough to have had him as a friend and mentor. I remember Greg Roda, Tim Luker ’82, Jim Fuger, Steve Hook ’82 and Mark Dunning ’84 consecrating a Suzuki 380 to the dirt behind the house. The burial occurred right under the window of “Closet” where I was studying at the time. I think tequila was involved. In short, my experience at Delta Chi was the beginning of the best times of my life.”
-Scott Walls, ’83
