Volume XX - Issue I - Fall 2024 Hi Brothers!
My name is Marissa Pe and I am so excited to serve as your 2024-2025 Alumni Relations Officer. I am a second year sociology major and Asian American Studies minor in the ever so wonderful flute section! Outside of band and Psi, I enjoy reading romance books and books written by Asian/Asian American authors, crafting keychains & phone charms, and enjoying delicious food with loved ones. Thank you to former ARO, Natalie Loftus for the help in getting everything back on track! I’m sorry that you have been without the quarterly newsletter for a while but fear not, they’re back! We have a backlog of articles from the past two years so please enjoy these missed experiences! AEA, Marissa Pe by Marissa Pe, ΓΓ Get to Know Marissa! (and Isabelle)
Hi alumni! I’m Marissa Pe, a first year sociology major and flute along with 24-25 Alumni Relations Officer! I’m part of the BBC fam, part of the Asian girl line, and part of the Gamma Gamma class! My favorite part of active meetings is how silly our officers are. The meeting is not boring but instead lively with laughter and conversations. I look forward to each meeting as I do not know what it will entail. Writing this during finals week after the end of active meetings for the year makes me look forward to next year’s meetings when there is a new round of candidates and new things to be excited for. I’ve had the pleasure to get to know more of my brothers but especially, Brother Isabelle Preston in our Gamma Gamma class. We got a lot closer during our candidacy period despite being part of the same section for 1 and a half quarters. Now, I do not even remember what life was like before I met her. (We actually started getting close during marching season I think and the candidacy period made us even closer! I remember this now because I was reading past band grams and I remembered we sat next to each other for a few bus rides) Now because we are around each other so much, Brother Pat Yu confused us for each other once. Imagine Becoming an Officer Before an Active My candidacy and active journey may look a little different compared to your usual candidate process and active initiation. I did not complete 3rd degree with the rest of my class. I was in the pit orchestra for Beauty and the Beast with Hooligan Theatre and it just so happened that our final show of the night aligned with the 3rd degree ceremony. I was majorly disappointed. I have huge FOMO but often try to lessen it by going to everything I can (I missed CA night...) BUT I did get a makeup degree with two other brothers of my class and some of our officers! How I Won Song of the Week 3 times in 1 year (or 2 quarters) I don’t know but Director of Music, Matthew Chavez, considered making a new rule to ban me from winning. It helps to know what appeals to the person picking the winner. For example, I know I love indie music, pop, and phonk but depending on the prompt of the week, say, “What’s your go to pick me up song”, someone could pick any song that appeals to what genre I like. I won with love. by wave to earth, Someone in the Crowd from La La Land, and Million Dollar Baby by Tommy Richman. This is my proudest achievement. love. by wave to earth’s prompt was “What’s your rainy day song”. I literally listened to this song in the music library on a rainy day and it made me yearn for love (I have been in a 3 year long relationship with my loving boyfriend who goes to U$C...) Someone in the Crowd was for the “What’s your favorite song from a musical” and La La Land is definitely my favorite movie and musical and movie musical (If there was ever an opportunity to perform it, I would do it). Million Dollar Baby was for “What is your favorite pick me up song”. Brother Matthew Graves and I have the same pick me up song so that is why I won! (Matt Graves and I both would have won if he wasn’t the one picking the winner) I feel like me picking songs in order to win song of the week sounds too serious but I love winning? Who doesn’t? Anyway it’s not like I don’t like these songs. I genuinely enjoy them but it so happens that the person picking songs ends up liking them too. Thank you for reading these short stories that I have experienced this year! - Marissa Pe by George Mooradian, ΓA As the Director of Band Activities for this academic year, I was tasked with running the
full-band events for the week of band camp. The one that needed the most logistical effort was, as always, ordering 40 pizzas from Costco to feed 200 hungry children. It all started at a preseason game against North Carolina Central University, where after a very warm, incredibly boring 56-7 blowout victory by the bru-wins, I sat on the bus and called Costco in Marina Del Rey to order 40 pizzas. Costco, of course, didn’t bat an eye at that order, because why would they? I was also rank leader for the Horn section this year, so the start time of Pizza Dinner fell just one hour after the end of our leadership camp the day before band camp. I was excused early from leadership camp, so I drove down to Costco prepared to fill my 2005 Mazda 3 as full of pizza as it possibly could be. After the brief shopping trip to obtain vegan and gluten free pizzas, I pulled my car up to the side of the Costco food court to load them up. After stacking them up in my trunk and both sides of my backseat, I sat back in my driver’s seat and prepared for the short trip back to westwood. Then the best possible thing happened on a day that the entire band was depending on me. My check engine light was on, and my car was leaking coolant in the Costco parking lot. So panic started. I quickly called everyone I knew in the band that had a car in Westwood, and thankfully, fellow brother Maia was able to swoop in and save the day. My car was able to roll back to Schoenberg, but she was able to buy the other incidentals, as well as all beverages for the band members, to make the dinner actually function. Then we got the pizza set up, everyone on the band ate, and there were still three whole pizzas leftover despite reducing the number by six from the previous year. Oh Well. AEA and remember to take your car in for service every 6-12 months, George Mooradian by Rachael Cohen, ΓA Take a moment to imagine the following scenario: It is a bright and sunny Sunday afternoon, on the tail end of a record-breaking Southern California heat wave. Band camp starts tomorrow and everyone is getting hyped. You and your wonderful EK counterpart make the long and treacherous (20-minute) journey to Costco. You walk up to the food court counter and say to the cashier, “Hi, I’m here to pick up an order for Rachael? I called this morning.” “Oh yeah we have that right here, just go around to the door on the side and we’ll bring it out,” replies the cashier. You and Kathy walk over to the side door. The door opens, and out rolls the most incredible sight you’ve ever seen: a flatbed cart of 46 ginormous Costco pizzas. Arranged into 6 uneven stacks, the scent of cheese and pepperoni radiates from the cart.Passersby look at your order in awe. You now have to load all of these pizzas into a relatively small car. This is just another day in the life of the Kappa Kappa Psi Director of Band Activities. As this year’s DOBA, I had a great time organizing the Solid Gold Sound’s annual band camp social events. My counterpart Kathy and I were definitely stressed out the entire time, but it was all very fun and one of the more rewarding experiences I’ve had at UCLA. Everything started slow and simple with the drum and guard breakfast Sunday morning; everyone seemed to enjoy their orange juice and Costco muffins. Things quickly ramped up in the evening as we delivered our 46 pizzas to Schoenberg. Despite our anxieties, Kathy and I were able to serve the pizza on time, along with vegan and gluten-free options we baked in my apartment. It was great seeing brothers and non-brothers alike after being away all summer, and to bring smiles to their faces with free dinner. The Diddy Riese Run and Ice Cream Social (two distinctly separate ice cream-based events) were full of laughter, conversation, new friends, and of course, excessive amounts of ice cream. While we did have to fend off a few non-band members around Covel Commons, overall everything went as well as we’d hoped. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to give back to the band I love so much and allow old and new members alike to start the season with happy memories. But the most memorable part of my tenure as DOBA will always be ordering a flatbed cart of 46 gigantic Costco pizzas. Volume XVII - Issue I - Spring 2022 Hello Brothers!
My name is George Mooradian and I am humbled to serve as your Alumni Relations officer for the 2022-2023 school year! A little bit about me, I am a sophomore Political Science major in our wonderful Horn section. I am very excited about this year for Psi, I believe we have great leadership, and I’m excited to be a member of the officer board. I hope to continue our virtual events, but also hopefully bring back our Joint Alumni Reunion in person this year. I also hope to expand our host of potential events, and be able to provide both our actives and our alums opportunities to interact, foster bonds, and connect. The following posts are the encore articles from the 2021-2022 academic year. Together with brother (and now Alumni) Angel Lopez, we are proud to represent these articles! The articles for Fall 2022 are currently being compiled to be published within with winter quarter! Additionally, here are the Officers for our 2022-2023 School Year: President: Ariel Fernandez Vice President of Membership: Fidel Negrete Sergeant-at-Arms: Brian Acevedo Director of Service: Emily Rusting Director of Music: Natalie Loftus Treasurer: Lauren Sanchez Brotherhood Relations Officer: Leigha Linder Director of Brotherhood/Sisterhood Relations: Aaron Martinez Director of Band Activities: Rachael Cohen Secretary: Cass Barraza Alumni Relations Officer: George Mooradian Historian: Matt Sanruk Webmaster: Johanna Bai AEA, George Mooradian and Angel Lopez by Alexis Arredondo, BΨ As candidates looked forward to becoming active members of Psi, they were asked to perform in the annual, honored tradition of Candidate/Active Night. During C/A Night, candidates were tasked with solving the names of five stations that featured Literature, Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, and Music. Each station included unique tasks which allowed candidates to determine each of the five arts while also incorporating the values our Chapter strives to uphold. Tasks varied from creative writing to creating art that encapsulated our pillars. This would also feature interpreting and appreciating music while providing the opportunity for candidates to individually express what they understood AEA to mean.
Once all the candidates had successfully completed their tasks and identified each station, as a group, they would talk about and explain their projects to Chapter. The groups read their haikus, presented their paintings, sculptures, Royce Hall models, and elaborated on what AEA meant to them. Receiving appreciation and gratitude from the actives, both candidates and actives would now travel to their next destination, McDonald’s. Following the presentations, candidates and actives participated in the nuggie challenge, a battle to determine who was the fastest and most skilled at eating chicken nuggets in the shortest amount of time. Everyone reached for glory and bragging rights, but only one person achieved them. With the need for speed and some ranch, Skyler Coleman was able to consume his 10-piece in the shortest amount of time, outdoing every other opponent and affirming spicy nugget superiority. Skyler has since then felt “empowered” over establishing his dominance at eating nuggies the fastest over the entirety of Chapter, waiting for a worthy opponent. Other participants challenged themselves to be the slowest at the nuggie challenge, with Anthony Huynh and Jose Muñoz being a near equal match. However, in the true fashion of their lineage, both demonstrated to be just as slow as the next, not able to finish two chicken nuggets before the winner was announced. Their dipping technique remains unmatched and borderline undetectable. Closing off C/A Night with mini-golf, candidates and actives would now compete with other members of their line in a series of courses that tested their technique. Monica Quevedo and Thong Dinh demonstrated to be adept at mini-golf, quickly hitting the golf ball into the hole with the fewest amount of strokes. Eventually, their skills prompted a battle between both of them, with Monica Quevedo prevailing and finishing an entire course right as Sherman Oaks Castle Park announced that it would be closing for the night. The golf ball that Jose Muñoz hit into the moat remains within its waters, hoping to one day be found. Overall, C/A provided candidates and actives a chance to further strengthen the mutual appreciation and value for Chapter and its values. Honoring the traditions of Chapter for C/A night, it had been two years since we had been able to participate in person. However, being able to do so proved to be extremely joyful and exciting, especially in personal regard! Thank you to our Sergeant-at-Arms, Natalie Wang, for her tireless work in coordinating C/A Night and all the Brothers who helped out! by Alannah Linden, BΨ Hello Encore Readers!
My name is Alannah Linden, a member of the beta omega class and the Wu-Tang family. It is my great pleasure to introduce all of you to my line, the owo/baby line! First is the youngest: Maia Holmes-Kueny. Maia is a first-year from Alameda, California. Maia’s major is anthropology, and she is a part of the tenor sax section in the band! Some of Maria's favorite foods include chocolate and tea, and her favorite movie and show is Forrest Gump and Monty Python’s Flying Circus, respectively. Maia’s favorite thing to do is hang out with friends, and a fun fact about her is that Christmas is her favorite holiday! Her favorite memory in psi is mini-golfing with Wu-Tanj during candidate/active night, just a few weeks ago. Maia is a very kind, funny person to be around and I'm proud to call her my little! Which brings me to... Me (Alannah Linden), a second year from San Bruno, California. My major is atmospheric and oceanic sciences / mathematics, and I am a part of the alto sax section! My favorite foods are smoothies and chocolate, and my favorite movie is Shrek 2. For fun, I go for walks, read (please don’t ask me my favorite book), and spend time with friends! A fun fact about me is that I can do a cartwheel, and my favorite memory in psi was going to IHOP after third degree and getting to meet some of our alumni. My wonderful big is Gina Talcott. Gina is a third year from Sacramento, California. She is a physics major and a part of the tenor sax section, like Maia! Gina’s favorite drinks are boba, coffee, and tea, and her favorite movies/shows are Kingsman/Brooklyn 99. Some of her favorite things to do include stare at walls, hang out with her friends, get coffee, boba, and tea, do puzzles, and stare at the ceiling. A fun fact about her is that she owns socks (and probably wears them), and her favorite memory in psi is during beta psi’s candidate event, when they played Tetris and Just Dance, then ran all the way from Schoenberg to Diddy Riese and took a group photo with a single bird. Gina is a very funny, enthusiastic person who puts her heart and soul into everything she does. Wu-Tanj and Psi are very lucky to have her as our amazing president! Last but certainly not least is Gabe Ramirez (Gina’s big): a fourth year from Downey, California. Gabe’s major is mathematics for teaching with a specialization in computing (wow!) and he is a part of BOOT. Gabe’s favorite foods are burritos and Dr. Pepper, and his favorite movie and show is Zootopia/Abbott Elementary. Gabe likes to play video games and adventure with friends, and a fun fact about him is that he’s excited to start teaching high school math in the fall! His favorite memory in psi is beach house his freshman year. Gabe is a very kind, hard-working person who is making us all proud by balancing his fourth year as an undergrad, marching band, and his first year in a master’s program at UCLA! And that is the owo/baby line! by Emily Rusting, ΓA Bright and early on the morning of May 21st, 2022, a collection of brothers and sisters began to gather in Bruin Plaza. Was it a new Brotherhood/Sisterhood ritual? No. Was it a spontaneous brunch run? Also no. Was it the annual meeting of the storied UCLA Lettuce Club? Unfortunately not. But it was still something really exciting--the Gamma Alpha class service project! After allowing a wake-up grace period, we piled into cars and traveled across town to World Harvest Food Bank to volunteer.
The food bank staff did not hesitate with delegating tasks to our eager brothers. Some of us worked in the produce section, loading carts with fresh fruits and vegetables for patrons. Others stocked sodas and snacks on the shelves in the lobby. Still others took on special tasks: Will McClean swept the floor spotless as we worked, Ariel Fernandez helped customers pack their cars, and Matt Sanruk found some tasty Obama-themed water. At the end of our two-hour timeslot, we gathered in the lobby for a photo of our brothers and sisters with Geoffrey and the food bank manager, Chela. Then we drove up the road a few blocks to Koreatown, where we enjoyed some sweet and savory egg sandwiches. By that point, the tiredness was starting to set in, so we headed back to campus to take some well-earned Saturday afternoon naps. As one of our first in-person activities since the beginning of the pandemic, this event not only re-established PsiEK’s presence in the broader LA community, but also allowed brothers and sisters a chance to further the bond they cultivated during Brotherhood/Sisterhood week, which ended just prior to the event. We were all excited to meaningfully serve the community while making new connections, strengthening old ones, and having fun. As a significant portion of our 2022-23 officer board, the Gamma Alpha class looks forward to planning more service, brotherhood, and full band activities in the coming academic year. Stay tuned! by George Mooradian, ΓA Hello Alumni! My name is George Mooradian, and I am a new active from the Gamma Alpha Class! This year’s candidate process was shaped by an interesting mix of online and in person experiences that also influenced every other aspect of student life in 2021-2022. The Gamma Alpha class began our candidate process fully online, with first degree and the first few candidate lessons taking place over zoom. As the Covid surge of Early 2022 began to die down, we were able to actually come together in person for the last half of candidate lessons, interviews, and both second and third degree. I feel like that’s enough overview because this literally happens every year; let’s get into the juicy stuff.
Candidate Lessons were interesting, especially in a hybrid format. Most people were able to attend Candidate lessons in person, so usually our room in Schobo was full, but there were always a few fellow candidates that tuned in over zoom. Our class discussions were helpful to get a full understanding of Psi’s values and practices, and helped us all get acquainted with one another. Many many people have told me that Gamma Alpha was much quieter in our candidate lessons than other classes have been in the past. When I say many, I mean literally everyone, the president, my big, my grandbig, my great grandbig, Kevin McKeown and even Kevin McKeown. If you don’t get that joke, you’re old and don’t know Santa Monica local politics, and that’s embarrassing. What was I talking about? Candidate Lessons, yes, let’s finish that up, they were fine. Interviews were easily my personal highlight of the candidate process. Although I think we all felt the stress of finding time for the 27 interviews we had to do (especially those who had only done 5 by the last two weeks), it was generally a great opportunity to make new connections. The hybrid format also made this part of the candidate process easier, as Zoom and FaceTime interviews were often more reliable to schedule than the in-person counterpart, especially for when we needed to get in touch with both alumni and a member from the Western District. A big thing I learned from this experience is that you should keep your interview with the President of Psi very short. This is because if you don’t you will interview them for 10 hours straight, which may seem great, but then you have to be friends with that person. Ew. Love ya Gina. Overall, I’m extremely glad I decided to join Kappa Kappa Psi. Even as a brand new active, I feel our community making me a more confident person, friend, and musician, even through the challenges that came with Covid. The fell clutch of circumstance that brought us together over zoom, socially distanced classrooms, and finally in-person degrees were not barriers to our class, but rather a shared perseverance, and the collective choice to continue a shared duty. Now, as peers with our fellow brothers and actives, the Gamma Alpha class continues to push forward, the masters of our fate, and the captains of our souls. by Gus Billing, BX 'The Lion Line is a loud and proud fixture within Psi composed of members that like milk. Active members are listed below:
● Gus Billing (ΒΧ) ● Matt Van de Mheen and Kylie Williams (ΒΨ) ● Brian Acevedo and Lauren Sanchez (ΒΩ) ● George Mooradian and Caitlyn Lo (ΓΑ) Where did the line name come from? Our line is named after a small plush lion named King Kerfuffle. This lion is passed down through the line, with small personal tokens being added by each member. King Kerfuffle wears a cape made by Sophia Inaba, holds a duct tape baton from Jade McVay, shows off a woven bruin bracelet from Sara Acosta, wears a crown from Gus Billing, and has a necklace from Brian Acevedo. New to the line with the addition of a second side of the family is Baby Screamy. Baby Screamy is the counterpart to King Kerfuffle. Baby Screamy’s fierce demeanor helps our line remind ourselves of our lines chosen animal representation. We Like Milk? We Like Milk. Gus Billing: ΒΧ, 4th year, Aerospace Engineering, Horn Gus is the oldest active member of Lion Line. His big is Sara Acosta and his little is Matt Van de Mheen. He’s an aerospace engineering major. Gus enjoys the service aspect of Psi, as well as the brotherhood. He likes milk, and thinks cereal is a soup. Matt Van de Mheen: ΒΨ, 3nd year, Electrical Engineering, Alto Sax Matt is also referred to as “VDM”, although he prefers Matt. His big is Gus Billing and his little is Brian Acevedo. His twin is Kylie Williams. He is an Electrical Engineering major. Matt loves the alto section due to the sense of community he feels with them. He likes milk, and thinks cereal is a soup. Kylie Williams: ΒΨ, 3nd year, Biochemistry, Tenor Sax Kylie is the eldest of the new branch in Lion Line, and the proud first owner of Baby Screamy. Her big is Sara Acosta, her little is Lauren Sanchez. Her twin is Matt Van De Mheen. Kylie enjoys the people in the band and their vibrant energy! Kylie decided to combine her love of Biology and Chemistry for her major. She likes milk, and does NOT thinks cereal is a soup. Brian Acevedo: ΒΩ, 3nd year, Physiological Science, BOOT Brian is a wonderful part of Lion Line, and recently picked up a new little! His big is Matt Van de Mheen, and his little is George Mooradian. His twin is Lauren Sanchez. He is a physiological science major and is pre-optometry. He enjoys the vibe and friendly disposition of the band and Psi.Brian likes milk and thinks cereal is a soup. Lauren Sanchez: ΒΩ, 3rd year, Physiological Science, Flute Lauren is a worthy owner of Baby Screamy, and recently passed Baby Screamy to her new little! Her big is Kylie Williams, and her little is Caitlyn Lo. Her twin is Brian Acevedo. Lauren is studying physiological sciences in order to go into medicine and healthcare. Lauren enjoys spending time with all the amazing people she has met in band and Psi. Lauren likes milk and thinks cereal is a soup. Caitlyn Lo: ΓΑ, 1st year, Biology, Tuba Caitlyn is the current owner of Baby Screamy. Her big is Lauren Sanchez. Her twin is George Mooradian. Caitlyn is studying Biology. Caitlyn enjoyed the candidate process and getting to meet people from multiple sections of the band. Caitlyn likes milk and thinks cereal is a soup. George Mooradian: ΓΑ, 1st year, Political Science, Horn George is the current owner of King Kerfuffle. His big is Brian Acevedo. His twin is Caitlyn Lo. George is studying Political Science. He has enjoyed the supportive community and interesting people that he has met. George likes milk and thinks cereal is a soup. I hope you enjoyed the introduction to the new Lion Line. If you have any questions at all please direct them to Matt Van De Mheen. He will be writing this article next year in order to keep you all updated on the going ons of chapter's #1 fans of milk, as writing this article has become a line tradition. If he does not write the article next year, please send him a sternly worded email. |
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