A site for and about the Alumni of Pi Kappa Alpha of Iowa State
MANY OF US arrived in Ames as green freshmen. A whole new chapter of life - full of blank pages. Moving into the Pike House changed, well, everything.
Instantly, we had a huge group of friends and brothers who not only showed us how great college life could be, but were a huge influence for us to develop into men of integrity, who value moral character and hold high expectations for ourselves.
FACs, Dream Girls, Pledge Class antics, Rush Week, Varieties, Veisha Floats, Intramural Sports, Pike Formal...
We all have great stories of our time at the Pike house - friendships formed, lessons learned, crazy things we did. This is the place to share yours. HERE>
1960s
A"Woodsie"is a"Woodsie"!
High Street
Best music in the house was a reel to reel tape recorder
Music from "Hair"
Trini Lopez at the Armory
Miss Legs
Serenading Sororities
First kiss under the Campanile
Getting "Lavaliered"
Getting "Pinned"
Pledge Skips
Hong Kong Flu
"Yell Like Hell"
Somehow we found a fire engine for sale in Minnesota and we wanted it! There was some spirited discussion at the chapter meeting as the more conservative members made the point that it was a frivolous expense and would be costly to maintain. Fortunately, those of us who were crazy prevailed and... READ MORE>
The 1960 pledge walkout: Our pledge class decided to quitely, and with no warning, leave Ames and go to Chicago! The weather was typical Midwest stuff and we had a real blizzard! There was four or five of us in the car and sometimes it was everyone pushing except the driver. I had chains on my old Mercury... READ MORE>
Throughout the year - 1968- the Pikes have been active! The got a homecoming display worked up in time for the judges to award it second place. And, even though it didn't make sweepstakes, Pikes and Tri-Delts put in a lot of time on their skit that depicted the psychedelic world of Alice in Wonderland, an errie and... READ MORE>
1970s
When we pledged Pike in 1971, it was during a real transition between traditional values (as pledges, we wore ties to class!) and bucking those values (vietnam protests, streaking, long hair, hippies, drugs.) Yet, the culture at the Pike house was always about being the best on campus in everything we did- academics, Veisha, Varieties, sports and social. The older brothers were real leaders and pushed us to contribute to our reputation as the best fraternity at ISU.
The Four Sequins. Four-part harmony in sexy 70s jumpsuits! Alpha Phi’s one of a kind quartet! Led by Jon Haut as the guy who actually knew how to read music, these four Pikes, Don Johnson, Gene White, Jack Kennison and Jon Haut were a hit at Varieties '73! READ MORE>
9 brave Pikes battle white-out blizzard to get to class! (Okay, the liquor store.) Of course classes were all cancelled, so like any great group of Pikes we started to party! I mean it was May and it was snowing so hard you could not see to drive. Well we ran out of beer so we decided... READ MORE>
Our '72 pledge class project was, ahem, a real Triumph. After a late night of intense studying, we decided Brother Highberger's Triumph Spitfire would fit perfectly in the beautiful new fire pit we had built in the backyard as our pledge class project. At 1568 lbs. it was no problem... READ MORE>
In 1974, with the beautiful and talented Pi Phi's, our Varieties Sweepstakes winner was "This is the answer for you!" - a spoof about the introduction of a new wonder product, and it's influence on people. This is the Alpha Phi Varieties and Tom Norris Story. READ MORE>
My nestling Great horned owl Creech lived in the 2nd-floor rack room and at night would hop from bed to bed inspecting each snoring man closely. A pledge brother awoke to find the big owlet standing on his chest staring into his face. All the guys in the house had been... READ MORE>
Drill Team beauty takes ride in Pike bathtub. (not what it sounds like.) The Bathtub. Yes that is what some of the Brothers called Gene White’s 1956 Jaguar XK140 Roadster, which he got as a graduation present from his folks in Waterloo. Driving that car around campus was... READ MORE>
So, when we were sophomores, we had this great idea that we should go to the Playboy Club in Kansas City, MO for the Pike Spring Formal. We and our dates set out in a caravan of 5 rented Winnebagos, going through the 90 most dangerous miles of highway... READ MORE>
1980s
The 80s ushered in new music, new fashions (yikes) and most important, new Brothers at the Pike House. Everything was different and everything was the same. The Cure. Prince. Tears for Fears. And suddenly you could text a Kappa for a date.
COVID-79. Forty years before Covid-19, a different pandemic swept through 2112 Lincoln Way. It was December 1979, Iowa State had just switched from quarters to semesters and Finals Week was about to start. Most of the house gathered in the dining room for our final formal Sunday dinner of the term. Ruth, our cook, had prepared her famous oven-fried chicken. READ MORE>
Some great, hilarious, or inspiring story of lessons learned at the Pike House during the 80s goes here. READ MORE>
And here. READ MORE>
90s
1990s. Studying hard and listening to Nirvanna, Metallica and Hootie and the Blowfish. Watching the first season of the Simpsons and finding out this little thing called Google was pretty handy for homework. Life at the Pike house was da bomb!
(Sorry.) As always, strong friendships and bonds helped guys navigate through academics, social and changing times.
We took home the House of the Year award as a result of the just completed renovation project at 2112. This was at the 2000 Pike International Convention in Atlanta - the first time we attended a conference since re-colonizing (fall 1997) and getting our charter (spring 1999). READ MORE>
About 5am I was running around the house with a giant pot and soup ladle (along with Steve Ehlers) waking people up to go to the Tip Top. As you can imagine, this wasn't well received on a Saturday morning - especially by the one football player living.. READ MORE>
2 0 0 0 s
Wow, Y2K missed us!
So life is awesome at 2112 Lincoln Way. Our most diverse pledge class ever hits the ground running. Life is totally different at ISU. And totally the same. Pikes win intramural swimming and basketball. Let your Pike flag fly.
A new millenium. New stories. Old themes. Bring it. READ MORE>
2010 and counting
The decade started out great enough. Like a good 1st quarter in a Cyclone football game. Got a pep talk at halftime, then things went South. Called a needed time out. Now, get ready for a monster comeback.
During the Spring Semester of 2020, the Alpha Phi Chapter elected to resign their charter and go silent. This followed sanctions placed on the chapter by the university due to behavioral and academic issues. The Alpha Phi Alumni Advisory Board, Alumni Association and Housing Corporation have worked closely with Iowa State University to secure an agreement for a return to campus.
Alpha Phi is BACK! On Saturday morning, November 11, 2023, under the guidance of International President Chris Peterson, Regional President Mark Spotanski, and Alpha Phi alumni, the Alpha Phi Chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha at Iowa State University was officially rechartered. The page has been turned, a new chapter begins, and a brotherhood started in 1913 continues in phi phi kappa alpha. Read all about it PIKES. THE NEXT GENERATION >