Adelphikos

Adelphikos
Founded	1913; 109 years ago (1913)[1] Grove City College
Type	Social
Affiliation	Independent
Scope	Local
Motto	Men of honor, men of courage[2]
Colors	Purple   Gold
Mascot	Wilbur the Cat
Headquarters	Grove City, PA USA
Website	Official website
[3]

The Adelphikos (αδελφικός) fraternity, formed in 1913,^[1] is a Grove City College (Grove City, Pennsylvania), social fraternity.

History[]

The fraternity was formed as an outgrowth of the two campus debate clubs, the Webster and the Shakespeare, where an intense rivalry inspired eight of the Webster men to invite two of their rivals to join in formation of the fraternity, putting an end to the strife. Adelphikos' name is a coined, Greek-derived word, whose definition is known by its members. From its beginning in 1913 when formed by 10 members of the student body, it has flourished on the campus uninterrupted for over ten successive decades.^[2] Adelphikos was the second official (recognized) fraternity on campus and the first group to use Greek letters directly in its name, vying in a friendly rivalry for "first" with another of the campus' 18 fraternities and sororities, the Pan Sophic.Neither group uses a common two- or three-letter Greek acronym. ^[3][1]

Tragedy[]

In 1974, seventeen Adelphikos pledges were walking back to campus from a fraternity event when a driver who had fallen asleep at the wheel plowed into them from behind. Four pledges - Thomas Morgan Elliott, John Curtin, Rudolph Mion, and Gary Gilliland - were killed.^[4] Today a memorial plaque to the four students sits on campus in front of Buhl Library. Although no alcohol was involved and the driver was deemed to be at fault, the incident triggered tightened control of fraternity practices and other student activities at the college. It remains one of the deadliest fraternity-related accidents in the United States.^[5][6]

Approximately 70 years after its founding, the fraternity experienced setbacks, struggling in the late 1970s in the aftermath of the pledge deaths, with members committing violations of campus rules which resulted in the loss of college recognition during the 1990s.^[2]

Re-establishment[]

Reemerging from this period in 2000, the fraternity was re-established as a Christian brotherhood.^[2]

Adelphikos is not affiliated with any national fraternal organization. It is an independent organization, like all other Grove City fraternities.^[7]

Notable alumni[]

• David M. Bailey, contemporary Christian musician
• Peter J. Boettke, economist at George Mason University, former president of the fraternity^[8]
• Matt Kibbe, President and Chief Community Officer of Free-The-People^{[9][non-primary source needed]} and Former CEO of FreedomWorks^{[10][irrelevant citation]}
• , notable agricultural economist who helped organize Purdue’s graduate school.^[11]
• Bob Glenn, an American baseball player and pioneer in the field of highway engineering.

See also[]

• List of social fraternities and sororities

References[]