Just like that, my freshman year is over! It sure has been a fun year, and it couldn’t have ended any better. On Monday April 20, I was elected as the new President for Delta Upsilon at Embry-Riddle. I was honored to be nominated and elected to this position. I know it will be a ton of hard work, but I am prepared to do anything necessary to make this colony succeed. I believe whole-heartedly in Delta Upsilon’s founding principles and their overall goal to “Build Better Men”. I take great pride in knowing my fraternity brothers have faith in me, and I am looking forward to doing a great job while creating a lot of amazing memories with them.
Along with taking finals this past week, I was also packing up and getting ready to head home. I had to do some major cleaning but I got it all done and was officially checked out of my dorm. It was a little sad to leave my room that I considered home since August. I left Daytona Beach early Tuesday and stopped in Nashville to spend the evening with my friend Brent and my cousin Susanna (in the picture in front of her dorm at Vanderbilt) who go to school there. Wednesday I made it back to Missouri where my family was excited to see me. The drive was long, but I truly love living in Florida and going to school at ERAU which makes the long travels worth it.
This past weekend my friends and I (and my car) made it to the beach one last time before we headed home for the summer. The weather in Daytona has been absolutely perfect (80’s and sunny). We spent all day under the warm sun and boogie boarding (because we aren’t skilled enough for real surfboards). I never get tired of the beach, and I already miss it being back in the land-locked state of Missouri. It has been in the 60’s and rainy since I have been home and I already miss Florida’s weather.
Yesterday I got more good news about the end of the semester: I received a 4.0 GPA for the spring of 2009. It’s so great to see all of your hard work paying off, and it was the perfect ending to the best semester ever. My classes and professors were a lot of fun this year, and it really showed. I truly believe if you are having fun in class you perform better, and my professors certainly made these last four months a lot of fun. From goofy stories about Malaysian tree shrews to dogs visiting class, it undoubtedly has been a wild spring.
I am looking forward to having a great summer. I have a lot planned including the Europe Study Abroad, my sister’s wedding, and a national Delta Upsilon conference in Albany, NY. I will also be working while at home to get some money for all of these activities. At the beginning of July I will begin writing a journal about my experience with Embry-Riddle abroad this summer, so check back in and see what I am up to on the other side of the pond. I hope you have an amazing May and June, and I will be back in July. Until then, please email me (meansm@erau.edu) with any questions about ERAU or college life in general and I would be more than happy to talk with you.
Until Next Time,
Mack
Last weekend was the Task Force One incentive dinner. We all met up and went to Sapporo Japanese Steakhouse. The food was very good, and we had a lot of fun spending time together off campus. I have met some really good friends through TFO this year and I am very glad I was part of the organization. I would recommend any first-year student to become a part of TFO as it is a great way to get involved on campus and meet a bunch of new friends. This week, TFO is having an unofficial meeting where we all bring food and hang out one last time as TFO-ers. I am looking forward to these last few hours our organization will spend as one.
On Easter, my BA201 group (MoKurity) decided to hang out and spend the holiday having fun. We went to lunch and spent time at the beach. I think it is so great that a random group of kids from BA201 have become such good friends. Even though our group project was completed a week ago, we still meet up and goof around. We genuinely have a great time when we are together, and I am sure we will continue hanging out even past this semester.
Delta Upsilon is continuing to grow and become more and more active. This past week we took part in a canned food drive put on by Theta Phi Alpha, one of the sororities on campus. DU brought in over 100 pounds of food and we placed second! Also on Saturday, we took part in the annual Oozeball (mud volleyball) tournament. Those of you who came to the Spring Preview probably noticed a bunch of crazy people rolling in the mud and water. I had so much fun playing, especially with my DU brothers. We won two games and lost two games, but we all got muddy and that’s what matters.
On Friday some of my friends and I went to support the AcaFellas at their end-of-year concert. The AcaFellas are the male a capella singing group here at Embry-Riddle. They do a very good job, and it seems like they have a lot of fun. Check out my video of one of their songs (Apologize) at: 
Hello everyone! I hope February finds you all well. Although I must say this all the time, my semester has been getting busier and busier. About two weeks ago, I was presented an opportunity to become a founding father for Delta Upsilon at Embry-Riddle. Delta Upsilon (DU) seemed to match my values and priorities, and I had to take advantage of this unique experience. The last two weeks have been packed with DU information sessions, recruitment events, and even a retreat. I have already made many new friends and learned a lot about what it means to be DU. This week, a slew of activities are planned, including the official colonization ceremony. I am excited to be a founding member of something I know will be great at ERAU.
Task Force One has been discussing and planning many things in our meetings. On Tuesday, we voted on an incentive activity as a reward for our hard work throughout the academic year. We have decided to go to a Japanese Steakhouse, followed by bowling, which I am really looking forward to. Also we have registered for the Relay for Life in late March. These activities will be here before I know it.
Last weekend, Derrick and I went to his grandparent’s house in Fort Myers for the long weekend. It was so much fun and we really enjoyed it!
It’s February already, it seems as if the year started yesterday. The past month has been a blast. The weather here in Daytona has dipped down way into freezing temperatures. It got so cold that students that fly early in the morning couldn’t go up because of ice. It has started to warm up a bit, it’s not too hot and it’s not freezing… which is good! The cold weather hasn’t stopped me and my friends from having fun. It also hasn’t stopped us from going to classes either! I had a few test so far in AS 221 and WX 201 and will have my mid-term for BA-201 on Wednesday. In AS 221 I got an 88% and in WX I got a 76%. In both classes I only have three tests for the semester so I am in good shape so far. I am looking forward to the midterm in BA 201 because I know the material and it’s a pretty big test because it’s only a midterm and final for that class. Wish me luck!
I am still on financial hold for flight until next week. I got a loan from Chase to help cover the expense to at least finish my private pilot license. Darryl and Kayla are making great progress with their training; I am so proud of them and am supporting them 100%. I did a landing clinic last week so I could catch up on my landings, and it went very well. Even though I had to land in a crosswind, I still was able to deal with them, keeping in mind it was my first time behind the yoke since December 11th last year! I will be taking my written next week so I can get that out the way.
As for clubs, I am active with TFO, First Generation and ERRSA. This weekend, ERRSA had another retreat [FARH]. There was a selected group of people that went and, from what I heard, it was a fun experience. My friend Derrick and I are pledges and founding fathers for a new fraternity on campus, Delta Upsilon! The fraternity is all about leadership and service, and focus mainly at building leaders and promoting diversity. We painted the spirit rock and campus and have a whole week of events planned. We already have 8 guys committed and need just a few more to make a colony. I am so excited about the fraternity and am happy to have this opportunity.
