Back in November, the men from the chapter at the University of Texas-Dallas hosted its 5th Annual Brad Monks Memorial Golf Tournament, organized through their 501(c)3 charity, Rock The Campus, at the Courses of Watters Creek in Plano, Texas.
The annual golf tournament raised over $20,000. The chapter is donating $15,000 to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and the other $5,000 goes towards Rock The Campus. The organization’s goal goes towards the fight against blood cancer.
In 2005, Brother Carl Lutz ’04 wanted to memorialize his close friend and SAE brother, Brad Monks, who lost his life-long fight with lymphoma. Lutz and fellow members of the chapter set out to raise awareness, fundraise, and celebrate the memory of their friend through a rock concert.
The event’s success led to it becoming an annual on-campus activity at the university. By 2010, it was the inspiration behind its formation, becoming a 501(c)3 non-profit charity.
Today, Rock the Campus actively supports the mission of the North Texas chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. It raises awareness through their philanthropic efforts, working to celebrate Brad’s life and the growing number of others in the chapter’s circle of friends and family who these types of cancer have impacted.
The day included the golf tournament, food, prizes, raffle, and a sports memorabilia silent auction.
The chapter has been doing the event since 2016. The inaugural event had 27 players and 21 sponsors and donated over $4,500 in proceeds to the North Texas Chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, which represented nearly 80% of all proceeds from the event going directly to support our charity. It has only grown since then.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s 20 Under 40 Successful Alumni: 2021 List
All of these individuals were nominated and completed an application for consideration. Evaluators scored applicants on SAE involvement, professional achievements, community involvement, and leadership.
If you know a young alumnus deserving of recognition, please email foundation@sae.net. Individuals must be alumni members in good standing and under 40-years-old by March 31, 2022.
James Balandran (Texas-Dallas ’10)
James is the Chief Operating Officer for Vudu Consulting LP and has started several companies throughout his career. He also works with Rock the Campus, raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and partnered with Oklahoma Community Cares to distribute $200M in CARES Act funds. James remains involved in SAE and currently serves as the Province Sigma Archon.
Aaron Bernasconi (Fort Hays State ’10)
Recently, Aaron served as the Senior Advisor to Deputy United States Trade Representative Ambassador C.J. Mahoney. He played a role in negotiating the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which Congress passed in 2020 with bipartisan support. Fort Hays State University recognized Aaron as Young Alumni of the Year in 2020. He is active in the Kansas Delta Alumni Association and his church.
Ross Biestman (UC-Berkeley ’07)
Ross is the Chief Revenue Officer for ServiceTitan and an Executive in Residence for Bessemer Venture Partners. He previously served as Vice President of Sales for Lithium Technologies, which Vista Equity Partners acquired and co-founded Stealth HD, Inc., which Amazon acquired. Ross is a board member for the SAE California Beta Educational Institute and Cal Rugby Advisory Board.
Matthew Brooks (Loyola-Chicago ’06)
Matthew is the Global Sales Director for Enterprise DB. Previously he worked for IBM, most recently as a Strategic Clients Account Executive for IBM Data & AI and North America Sales Leader for Watson Data & AI Platform. He consistently exceeded his target goals, and IBM recognized his professional success as a member of their 100 Percent Club.
Austin Bury (Georgetown ’15)
Austin is a Security Consultant for Torch Technologies providing support for Department of Defense initiatives. He previously served four years in the United States Marine Corps and attained the rank of Captain. As a Marine, Austin completed several certifications and in 2020 received the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal for his achievements as part of an intelligence team in support of Operation Inherent Resolve.
Brendan Calamito (Florida Southern ’16)
Brendan is a Senior Manager of Credit Risk for Fidelity Investments specializing in hedge funds and is a CFA Charterholder. Brendan serves his community as Treasurer and Board Member of Community Learning Center. He remains involved in SAE as Chapter Advisor for Massachusetts Beta-Alpha and Vice President of the Florida Gamma Alumni Association.
Logan Davidson (Texas Tech ’17)
Logan is a Legislative Director for the Texas House of Representatives. Throughout his career, he has volunteered and worked for several campaigns and state representatives. Over the past year, Logan worked to ensure proper staffing at various food banks throughout Texas with Powered by the People. Logan has also focused on registering and engaging voters with several organizations.
Darren Deoraj (Hartford ’12)
Darren is the Director of the Department of Urology for Mount Sinai Beth Israel. The American College of Healthcare Executives gave him the 2018 Early Career Healthcare Executive Regent’s Award. He is active in several professional organizations, including as Secretary for Healthcare Leaders of New York. He is Chapter Advisor and Alumni Advisory Board Member for Connecticut Lambda.
Chester Donnally III, MD (Southern Methodist ’09)
Chester recently completed his fellowship at Rothman Orthopaedic Institute and is a surgeon for Texas Spine Consultants, specializing in minimally invasive and complex spine surgery. He has been published over 50 times in professional journals, contributed to several book chapters, presented to colleagues on various topics at professional conferences, and is a member of several professional associations.
Patrick Fredricks Assistant Director of Admission
Patrick Fredricks (Central Michigan ’10)
Patrick is the Assistant Director of Admissions for Fort Lewis College, where he created an award-winning online orientation. He is on the school’s COVID-19 Leadership Team as the Campus Life Chair and has completed certifications and training focusing on mental health and diversity topics. He remains active with SAE by serving as a faculty member for many educational programs.
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Alexander Fusaro (Hartford ’16)
Alex is a Digital Consultant for eBizSelect.net. He was recognized as Newsday’s Media Person of the Year in 2019 and received the University of Hartford’s Presidential Leadership Award in 2016. He is a member of Huntington’s Young Professionals Committee. Alex recently volunteered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island, delivering holiday meals and gifts to local families.
John Rivers III (Centre ’11)
John is an Agency Fit Consultant for LEAP Group. In 2020 LEAP received several awards for work where he was directly involved. He also received several professional recognitions, including making Louisville Business First’s Forty Under 40 list. John supports several nonprofit organizations in his community and remains active in SAE as President of the Louisville Area Alumni Association.
Trey Rome (Southern Methodist ’08)
Trey is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Home Tax Solutions, the largest property tax loan originator in Texas. Under Trey’s leadership, Home Tax Solutions has received several awards and accolades, and he made Dallas Business Journal’s Forty Under 40 list in 2020. Additionally, Trey and Home Tax Solutions support several non-profit organizations throughout the year.
Dylan Silva (Long Island ’18)
Dylan is an Officer, Program Oversight Specialist for Bank of America, and is active in several professional organizations. Dylan is also an advocate for the Be Nice Foundation, spreading awareness about the importance of mental health. He remains involved with SAE as the Alumni Advisor for Michigan Gamma and the Chapter Advisor for South Carolina Nu.
Nathan Tallman (Central Michigan ’07)
Nathan is Vice President of Metro Wire & Cable, and his contributions have earned Metro Wire regular industry recognition. Additionally, he has received several individual recognitions, including making DBusiness Magazine’s Thirty Under 30 list in 2019. Nathan supports his community as a leader on several boards and stays active in SAE as President of the Michigan Delta-Omega Alumni Association.
Tyler Thompson (Virginia Commonwealth ’13)
Tyler is a volunteer firefighter for the Citizens’ Hose Company. He serves as Captain for the Kent County Special Operations Team and Team Leader of the Kent County Water Rescue Team. Additionally, Tyler is involved in various community service projects as a Freemason and serves as President of the Smyrna Police Athletic League.
Preston Van Buren, DO (Puget Sound ’13)
Commander Van Buren is a General Medical Officer for the United States Navy, currently posted in Japan. He is published in various medical journals and regularly presents on orthopedic procedures, programs, and management. Preston is also an advocate for the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Program, which assists victims with resources from the U.S. Navy.
Brian Vasquez (Iowa ’10)
Brian is Vice President of Par Logistics, Inc., growing the company from $5M in revenue to over $35M in just eight years. Brian is also the Founder and President of Landshark Realty, LLC. He is devoted to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, serving as a Wish Grantor and board member for the Make-A-Wish annual Walk for Wishes event.
Shawn Wood (UC-Davis ’06)
Shawn is the President of Student Movers, Inc., which is Pro Mover Certified by the American Moving & Storage Association. He is also a graduate of AMSA’s Leadership School. Shawn is active in his community as President of Kiwanis Huntington Beach and board member for Kindervision and Huntington Beach Woman of the Year. He also supports several community organizations.
April was National Volunteer Month and to celebrate, collegiate chapters from around the Realm held True Gentleman Days of Service.
A TG Day of Service is any service project a group of brothers puts on or participates in. All collegiate chapters and colonies, alumni associations, and any other groups of brothers are encouraged to give back to their community by volunteering and performing community service year-round.
Below, we highlight some of the great service projects our brothers participated in last month.
Penn State-Harrisburg granted students a wellness day to give them a break from classes on April 7. Brothers at Pennsylvania Psi Eta decided to turn this wellness day into a TG Service day and spent a three-hour-long hike at Hawk Rock in Duncannon, PA cleaning the trails. Each of the fourteen participants was responsible for filling a bag of trash while wearing gloves to ensure nothing came back with them from the trails. This event allowed everyone to relax from their academics and enjoy the great outdoors, while also giving back as a group. This was the first event after their last initiation of the spring semester, which allowed all the newer brothers to bond even more and understand how important community service is to SAE.
Brothers at Fort Hays State, Kansas Delta woke up early in the morning on Saturday, April 17 to volunteer at the Arc of Central Plains thrift store, which supports local participation in the Ellis County Special Olympics. There they spent 4 hours sorting incoming items, tagging, and pricing clothing and putting the clothing out on the racks for display and purchase. They also connected with other volunteers of the organization, positively engaged with them, and spread awareness of the fraternity and SAE’s goals.
On April 18, a group of 20 brothers at Rollins College, Florida Omicron collected trash and other waste that had polluted Lake Virginia in Winter Park, FL. Brothers picked up a total of 53 pounds of trash over three hours.
Fifteen brothers at Texas-Dallas, Texas Chi helped pack over 20,000 meals on April 20 for starving kids in poverty-stricken countries with the organization Feed My Starving Children. With their efforts and the other volunteers, the brothers helped feed 20 kids for an entire year, making sure they went to bed with full bellies.
Has your chapter or alumni association recently held a True Gentleman Day of Service? Tell us about it here. Not sure where to start with planning your next TG Day of Service? Check out SAE’s resources, including event ideas, a planning guide, and tools for tracking and reporting your event, here.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon depends on your generosity to elevate our members’ experience to the highest levels—learning how to become True Gentlemen and taking that knowledge out into the world. We want to highlight just one of our many donors who support this organization.
James Balandrán is the 2021 March to the Madness MVP, making the single largest donation during this year’s tournament. He is a Pearl Level donor and an Archon Level donor of the 2020-2021 Archon Circle. James supports the SAE Foundation to ensure that the organization can continue to give future generations the amazing experience that membership has to offer. Recently he started the Fleur-de-lis Fund, a scholarship to benefit underrepresented brothers in the Fraternity. To contribute to the fund, please click here. Read more about James below and click here for more information about the SAE Foundation.
What is your favorite SAE memory?
One of my favorite memories is attending Leadership School after my freshman year. It was the first time I got to experience that ΣAE is larger than just my chapter. I met Brothers from around the Realm, grew as a leader, and reaffirmed that my decision to join SAE was something that would impact the rest of my life.
What offices did you hold?
As an undergraduate, I held multiple positions, including Eminent Deputy Archon, Member Educator, and IFC President. Nationally, I served as co-chairman of the Convention Ritual Committee and Leadership School Ambassador. After graduation, I continued my involvement with ΣAE. For the past six years, I have served as Province Sigma Archon. As an alum, I have also held many other roles, including Deputy Chairman of the Council of Province Archons, Liaison to the ΣAE Financial & Housing Corporation, Chapter Adviser, and Alumni Association President. I have also served on multiple national committees, including the Permanent Committee on the Ritual and a facilitator for the DeVotie Ritual Institute and many other educational programs.
Why do you give to SAE?
I give both to the ΣAE Foundation and my time as a volunteer to make sure that Brothers today have the same opportunities to attend educational programs, meet other Brothers and grow as a True Gentleman that I did. I give to ensure that the ΣAE Foundation can continue to give out scholarships to as many deserving Brothers as possible. Lastly, I give to make sure that the next generation of Brothers can join ΣAE and experience the immeasurable things it has to offer.
What have you done professionally?
When I was a Sophomore, I interviewed for a position at a technology consulting company. During the interview with the CEO, I found out that he was an ΣAE from another chapter. After 11 years, I left that firm and started my own company. I currently serve as Managing Partner of a technology consulting company and an Esports Training Academy, where we use technology to make companies, coaches, and players the best they can be.
What advice do you have for undergraduates?
Take every chance you get to create experiences, hold officer positions in your chapter, attend national events, and apply for an internship in your field of study. Every experience, especially those outside of your comfort zone, will help you grow and shape your future self. As long as you use the True Gentleman as a guide, you will succeed.
Membership is for life. Your membership doesn’t end with your undergraduate experience. As you graduate, stay engaged with your Fraternity by joining an Alumni Association or volunteering. The alumni experience in ΣAE will allow you to continue making connections and give back to the organization that gave us so much.
The Sigma Alpha Epsilon Foundation is pleased to announce a new national scholarship fund, The Fleur-de-lis Fund.
With the goal to increase access to Sigma Alpha Epsilon, the Fleur-de-lis Fund establishes a scholarship to benefit underrepresented brothers in the Fraternity. Province Sigma Archon, James Balandrán (Texas-Dallas ‘10), was one of the many that saw an unfulfilled need to support inclusivity within SAE, inspiring the start of this fund, which intends to lessen the financial burden of fraternity membership.
James said, “As the largest Fraternity, SAE has brothers from many diverse backgrounds. First-generation college students, non-traditional students, students on scholarship; these are a few examples of members we are looking to support with scholarships from this fund. We also wanted to create a vessel where we can assist members when tragedy strikes, like when Hurricane Harvey hit Houston in 2018. Removing barriers to be a fraternity man is our ultimate goal.”
James is an avid supporter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon through volunteering and monetary support of the Foundation. As someone who never considered joining a fraternity himself, he was struck by the True Gentleman’s message, which convinced him to join his roommates as a member. James says of this fund’s mission, “We want to make sure that we are being inclusive and providing for the needs of our members in every way possible. The fund’s mission is congruent with the Fraternity’s mission of advancing the highest standards of friendship, scholarship, leadership, and service for our members throughout life.”
Why the name Fleur-de-lis Fund? James gives all the credit to Province Nu-Epsilon Archon, Chris Slott, who spent a lot of time researching the fleur-de-lis and its meaning. The fleur-de-lis symbolizes SAE’s unity through honor; the three petals of the flower, representing our membership, are equal and united by a common heart, our ritual, uniting us. The fleur-de-lis represents this scholarship because all brothers are equal and unified by our organization’s ideals, no matter their background.
The advisory board for the Fleur-de-lis Fund is also unique in that it consists of a diverse group of members and nonmembers who understand the value that Greek life can have on an individual’s college experience and life regardless of their background. When asked to recall his favorite SAE memory, James said it’s hard to pick just one and that he values the ongoing relationships he’s made as an undergraduate and alumnus. In the end, it is the mission and hope of this fund to allow more individuals to experience all that fraternity life has to offer and share similar memories and experiences.
To make a donation, please click here and select Fleur-de-lis Fund from the dropdown menu. Thank you to the donors below for being the first to contribute to this fund.
- James Xavier Balandran (Texas-Dallas ’10)
- Nickolas Brown (Sonoma State ’13)
- Michael James Corelli (Northern Illinois ’01)
- Austin John Evans, Esq. (Wisconsin-Madison ’05)
- Curtis R. Frasier (Arizona State ’77)
- Christopher Wayne Hancock (Indiana State ’96)
- Damon Bret Hirschensohn (Sonoma State ’98)
- Ethan Zachary Lipsker (San Jose State ’19)
- Jesus Manuel Maldonado
- Steven D Mitchell (Indiana ’83)
- Richard Brian Shanahan (Fort Hays State ’03)
- Christopher Ashley Slott (North Florida ’08)
- Shay Michael Stewart (Sonoma State ’96)
- Martin R. Vindiola (Sonoma State ’13)