Alpha Tau Omega
Xi Chapter
Alumni Newsletter
Monday, April 14th, 2025



Brought to you by PC ‘25




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Table of Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................. 3
Alumni Weekend 2025................................................................................................................................. 3
Ruski Tournament........................................................................................................................................4
Social News................................................................................................................................................... 4
Alumni Updates..........................................................................................................................................10
Chapter Updates.........................................................................................................................................10
Gift Acknowledgment................................................................................................................................ 11
Philanthropy............................................................................................................................................... 11
Brother of the Month................................................................................................................................. 11
Visitation Link............................................................................................................................................ 12



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https://www.eventcreate.com/e/ato2025springmerchdrop


Introduction
Welcome to the third installment of our newsletter! As always, this is an iterative
process, so please continue to share your thoughts with us. First off, a huge shout
out to the alumni who came to Alumni Weekend and enjoyed our kegs, shrimp, and
hundrocupski racks. An important factor in building chapter relations with our
alumni is consistent, beer-filled events, so we truly thank you for attending. We
understand the difficulties the transitory nature of college and fraternity life poses
in establishing long-term and consistent relationships, and to counteract this trend,
we are proud to announce a new strategy - designated representatives from each
PC. We are still working on the details, but if you are interested, please reach out.
Responsibilities will be kept to an absolute minimum. Additionally, we have made
considerable progress on our 501c3 company, and are in the early stages of
forming a board of trustees. If you are interested in joining the board or providing
us with important legal advice, do not hesitate to reach out. To minimize turnover
rate and maximize leadership, we are aiming for a 50/50 split between alumni and
current members for the board. Responsibilities will be kept to just attending a few
meetings per year, and voting on any bylaw/structural changes we may implement.

In more sober news, we are currently $26,238.65 in debt to ATO Nationals.
97% of our debt comes from prior members of the brotherhood stacking up fines
for various reasons (not attending national meetings, missing chapter dues, etc).
Nationals have threatened to close our chapter if we don’t pay down a significant
portion by the end of the year, since we apparently have had this debt for a long
time. To help with fundraising and make donations feel meaningful, we have
created a Patreon Page and a website with our merch that our alumni chair,
Kavishka, designed to help with fundraising. Prices include shipping costs. Or, if
it's easier, Venmoing our treasurer @puck008 is always an option. Our entire debt
must be paid off by the end of 2025, so we really need your help in keeping our
chapter thriving. More information can be found in our fundraising section.





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PC Highlight of the Month

For this newsletter, we wanted to highlight our storied history as an ATO chapter.
We are officially the longest running fraternity not just at Duke University, but in
the entire country. Below is one our very first PCs, the PC of 1873. As mentioned
at the beginning of the year, we want to feature alumni in our newsletter, so we
have been reaching out to alumni from as far back as the early 1960s. One of them
sent us this picture, which we thought was incredible - none of us expected any
pictures to remain from before the 1900s, much less the second PC ever to pledge
Duke ATO. Unfortunately, we do not know much about this PC, but if you have
any older PC pictures/stories, please share them with us.

PC of 1873 - The second PC of Alpha Tau Omega at Duke University






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Brother of the Month

The Alpha Tau Omega fraternity takes much pride in celebrating the ideals of what
makes America great: freedom, domestic beer, and military service. We have four
brothers and one pledge who are midshipmen and cadets in the Navy, Air Force and
Army ROTC programs, a path many of our alumni have taken as well. Recently, active
brother and Midshipman Charlie ‘Chudee’ Truesdale found this snippet of an article on
the walls of Trent Hall, the ROTC building.

We would like to recognize William Henderson ‘64 as our
brother of the month. Second Lieutenant William T.
Henderson was awarded the Silver Star for his gallantry
during a reconnaissance mission near Da Nang, Vietnam,
where he led a small group under heavy enemy fire,
rescued a wounded comrade, and reorganized his scattered
platoon while repeatedly exposing himself to danger. His
fearless leadership enabled the successful evacuation of his
men and the infliction of significant losses on the enemy,
exemplifying the highest traditions of the Marine Corps.
We thank Lt. Henderson for his valiant service to our
nation and we are proud to have him as a member of our
brotherhood. If you have any information about William or
have a story you would like to share, please reach out. VTL



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Alumni Weekend 2025

If there was an unofficial theme this alumni weekend, everyone you ask will tell
you it was Ruski. From Brick racks, to hundred cupski, to even more brick racks,
Ruski ruled the day. Although we hate to admit it, the alumni usually came out on
top, although we managed to reach two overtimes. In addition to Ruski, we had a
great shrimp boil filled with football, die, and lots of alumni stories. We heard
stories about swimming in the dining hall sludge river, slipping and sliding during
Christmas, and terrorizing rival UNC fraternities. During the shrimp boil, the
alumni were able to meet our new class of pledges, and multiple generous alumni
participated in our auction to help lower our debt. The weekend was resolved with
a Duke-Alabama watch party and a trip to Shooters. We thoroughly enjoyed seeing
everyone and are looking forward to our next event, which will be a newly
introduced football-themed Alumni weekend. Stay tuned!



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Chapter Updates

We are currently working with alumni to establish ourselves as both a 501c3 and a
501c7. While we are still working on creating a 501c3, we are proud to announce
that we have successfully created our 501c7 and have received approval from
nationals to create our 501c3. With the 501c3 and the corresponding tax deductible
donations, we are hoping to raise enough money to acquire a permanent home for
our XI chapter. Without Duke University affiliation and chapter houses, the ATO
brothers have become forced to live in residences spread out throughout Durham,
which has significantly impacted the bond between brothers. If you are interested
in serving on the board or helping us with fundraising, then please let us know.

Fundraising
As a part of our mission to establish a strategic plan for our chapter, we have
introduced a Patreon page that will allow alumni and other interested parties to
make donations. This page will serve as our main donation page until the time we
can establish a more streamlined and permanent solution. The Patreon page allows
us to “sell” perks such as having the pledges make Ruski tables with your chosen
design, an honorary Ruski commissionership, kegs for parties, or sponsorships for
specific themed events. More perks will be added, so be sure to check out our
Patreon page and help us keep ATO thriving



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Ruski Tournament

If you had watched the early rounds of March Madness, you would have been
extremely underwhelmed. No Cinderella stories, no crazy comebacks, just chalk all
the way through. While we unfortunately can not control NIL and the SEC, we can
certainly provide you with prime-time athletes, furious comebacks, and an upset
for the ages in our annual ATO Ruski Tournament. This might go down as one of
the greatest starts to the tournament the game has ever seen. Strap in.
Before we begin, a correction to the last newsletter is in order. While Ruski was
popularized in 2007 by the class of 2008, it was actually started by the class of
2006. Casey Chafkin, Randy Yamada, Stephen “The Whale” Verdeyen and Dan



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Fritchman were the first brothers to debut this legendary game, despite controversy
and vocal opposition from brothers erroneously believing the game would limit the
fraternity's appeal to women. To those brothers, we kindly ask you to look at our
away formal pictures, for not only do they feature brothers racking, but their dates
as well. Although, we will admit that as of last year, the fraternity voted to
officially ban Ruski before and during mixers to limit beer drinking around our
beautiful sorority women. Balance has been restored.
The favorites in the tournament right now are Evan Abramov and Grant Williams,
as both are the only players shooting above 40%
Cinderella Story

Crippled? No problem. British? Eh, we still think that's a problem, but
Brother Pierre Gathy, who broke his knee while running in Mardi Gras (yes you
read that right - he broke it just running) managed to overcome both hindrances as
he and Brother Anson Mies knocked out the 1 seed, Brother Connor Flannery and
Shaan Patel. The top seeded seniors were looking to cap off their Duke University
experience with a deep run, but unfortunately, England had something to say.
While leaning on crutches, the cheeky old geezer managed to hit not just a Tri
(when you land a ball in between 3 cups) but the last cup as well. Better luck next
time CFlan and Sha- oh wait, there won’t be a next time. Oops
A solo OT Rack…victory?

There was big talk surrounding shitty pledge Akash Mishra and Brother
Kavishka Bartlett. As the only brown squad in the tournament, India was looking
to stay hot after an incredible comeback performance in Pod Play - facing the
stoners, Brother Charlie King and Max Creditor, in a win-or-go-home match,
Akash hit a redemption shot to send the game crashing into OT. Kavishka, already
late for his sorority formal, took off and left Akash to fend for himself. Backed into
a corner and down 1-4, Akash decided enough is enough and hit the next 4/6 shots.
Not only did Akash have to drink all of the beers himself, but when shooting for
Kavishka, he had to shoot with his non-dominant left hand. It was truly a legendary



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performance. Unfortunately, in the sweet 16, washed senior Brother Ryan Selig
decided to shoot 70% and end the brown boys race to the final. The game only
lasted ten rounds, as Ryan Seligs teammate, Jack Feldstein, also shot 35%. All in
all, it was a great offensive game, as Kavishka and Akash also both also shot 40%.
A What on a What? After What Now?

Did we just hear that correctly? Did these sequence of events just happen?
Someone told me Brother Jack Feldstein hit the last cup blindfolded, which Brother
Will Creamer took personally as he proceeded to hit a TRI on the very next shot,
which yes, was a redemption shot. Oh, and he decided to also hit his next shot as
well, so that's 4 cups in 2 shots. In redemption. If you thought Purdue losing in the
first round last year was improbable, well, what do you say to this?
Brazil? Or Brazil?
The loudest Ruski match ever seen pitted Brazilian Brother Gabriel Hamoui
and Dallas Brother Camden Reeves against the Brazilian squad of Gabriel
Blumeshein and Ariel Lowenthal. The entire playlist consisted of What Does the
Fox Say, which according to Brother Ariel, is endless screaming at the top of one's
lungs. Rumor has it security even showed up to ask if someone was dying and an
ambulance was required. We know this can not be true, because following the
incident, the rack proceeded to become even louder, and of course our
down-to-Earth rational Brazilian brothers would never increase the noise after such
an event…
Passing of the torch
Junior Brothers Naman Kulkarni and Liam Byrnes took down senior
Brothers Kyle Petit and Zach Schneider in a wild Wilko showdown. They have yet
to sleep one night in Wilko, their future home for senior year, but that did not seem
to matter as they annihilated Kyle Petit and Zach Schneider despite the supposed
senior “home field advantage.”




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Social News
This Friday, April 18th, marks the grand return of our legendary Carolina Cup. …
The main event? A wild horse race featuring two (very hammered) Taus galloping
it out in full horse costumes, with the crowd going absolutely feral.
Even better, we’re leveling up this year with an icy snow cone machine, rumors of
a bounce house, and enough keg stands to quench the thirst of a village (shoutout
to alumni for sponsoring). This is the Cup. This is the moment. Let the madness
begin. Unfortunately, our debt is our number one priority and has taken a huge
chunk of change out of our budget, so if you are interested in helping us pull off
this event please reach out. We will be forever grateful. We are also looking for
sponsorships for our parties, so if you have one or know of one, do not hesitate to
contact us.
Away Formal

This year found the Taus and their gorgeous dates at a Mountain retreat in
Asheville, North Carolina. More than 160 brothers and dates came along for the
journey, forcing us to rent not one, not two, not even three, but four separate
cabins. Although the Saturday Duke vs Houston watch party ended in tragic
fashion, we were able to remain upbeat as we woke up early Sunday morning for a
mountain hike. The depressed Ruski games following the defeat also helped. One
might see Ruski games and away formal in the same sentence and have a heart
attack, but we are proud to say our dates are Taus through and through, and they
joined in our glorious game. In fact, we regret to say, they beat us. Brother Luke
Brandon, who was playing on the dates side, had a legacy game. Apparently,
Brother Brando just needs a woman to impress in order to hit his shots.




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Left: Brothers Everett Schroder, Kavishka Bartlett, and Matias Ganderias racking against
Brother Luke Brando and their dates Kiera Friedman and Ana Stanisavljevic
Freshmen Sammy Katz, Akash Minshra and All 40 juniors and their dates showed up to the
Brother Matt Schreder, Matias Ganderias, and Junior house Duke watch party
Kavishka Bartlett



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The Junior PC at Away Formal
And, in other news, freshman Giacomo Pugliese was forced to watch helplessly as a bear
broke into his car, stole his backpack, and fled the scene. Or actually, Giacomo did more than
just watch - after the bear ‘left’ he locked his car door, only to watch helplessly again as a bear
cub, which he had locked inside, forced his car door open and took off into the woods. In
honor of this, Merch Chair Kavishka Bartlett designed the Away Formal merch as follows:


The local Asheville bear, seen here holding freshmen Giacomo’s backpack



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Older Highlights:

The Taus skiing in Vail, Colorado for spring break. Many shooters were drank, many skis were
lost, and Hot Dog the Movie was watched (we are still awaiting Hot Dog 2)

The Taus managed to get on stage after requesting “Free Bird”



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Taus repeatedly jumping off rocks somewhere for no apparent reason


The Taus getting their faces on Guinness while at the Guinness factory in Dublin, Ireland



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Brother Jack Feldstein buying brothers beer after losing in our Fantasy Basketball League

The Taus cheering for their PC Brothers on the Football team



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Gift Acknowledgment
Thank you to everybody who donated over alumni weekend. Your generous
contributions helped raise 3K towards our debt.
Thank you to:
Justin Chae ‘20
Kevin Coward ‘20
Brian Moy ‘10
Connor Kozin ‘15
Max Altman ‘10
David Lue ‘10
Scott Ings ‘10
Martin Cela
Jordan Cook
Alex Wilson
Cullen Sinclair ‘10

Another special shoutout to Jason Zhang ‘23, Michael Mandl ‘12, Brandon Lee
‘24, and John Clarke ‘18 for sponsoring the March Madness Watch Party.


And finally, shout out Graham Barton ‘24 and Brandon Lee ‘24 for sponsoring
kegs.

Due to our chapter debt and recent disaffiliation from Duke, keeping the fraternity
operating without exorbitant individual dues is increasingly difficult. Every
donation however big or small is greatly appreciated and needed.




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https://www.supportdukehealth.org/site/TR/Angels/AngelsAmongUs?team_id=31303&pg=team&fr_id=2621


Philanthropy
The brothers have started a new philanthropy initiative this spring with the Duke
Angels Among Us 5k & Walk for Hope. This annual event will take place on April
26, raising money for the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke. Every
donation goes towards funding critical research and studies to help provide better
outcomes for brain tumor patients. As of today, we have 22 (and counting) pledges
& brothers signed up, and have raised almost $1,500. However, we still have a lot
of work to do to reach our fundraising goal of $5,000 (and more), so any help we
could get would be greatly appreciated. We hope to continue with this initiative in
the future, so having a strong showing/fundraising effort in our first year is critical.
Use this link below to donate - you can donate to our team page or to specific
brothers, whatever you prefer: Team ATO Angels Among Us 5k/Walk for HOPE
And for any alumni in the Durham area, we encourage you to sign up and show out
for a great cause!


Thank you to all who participated in the March Madness challenge, together we
raised over $2,000 for brain cancer research. This year's winner was Kevin Coward
‘20 and Bo Aldridge ‘25 at 32nd. We hope to make this a recurring event.




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mailto:kavishkabartlett@gmail.com


mailto:atoxichapter1872@gmail.com


Alumni Updates
We would like to extend our heartfelt congratulations to Will Norris ‘24 on graduating
from the U.S. Army’s Ranger School. With a notoriously high dropout rate of over 50%,
Ranger School is one of the most grueling training programs in the military—both
physically and mentally. Will’s ability to persevere through such a demanding course is a
testament to his grit, determination, and leadership. His accomplishment reflects the kind
of strength and resilience we strive to embody as a brotherhood, and we are incredibly
proud to celebrate this milestone with him.

Visitation Links
If you are unable to make it for this year’s Alumni Weekend but will be visiting
Durham on another day, we would love to connect and provide you with rides,
beers, logistical support, or a simple kickback with the brothers. Please fill out this
form to tell us the dates you are visiting and we will remind you of your glory days
in Durham.

For any other comments or questions, please feel free to reach out to:
Kavishka Bartlett – Alumni Chair
714-913-0812
kavishkabartlett@gmail.com
atoxichapter1872@gmail.com

Or come visit us at Brick
910 N Gregson St., Durham, North Carolina 27701

Thank you for reading!


Virtue, Truth, Love
The Alumni Committee



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