As is tradition, June ushered in Cornell’s Reunion Weekend, when all university alumni can descend upon their alma mater to celebrate either an official class reunion or just to be part of scheduled reunion activities on campus. It also presents an opportunity for any returning Alpha Sigma Phi/Rockledge alumni brothers to pay a visit to the place they once called their home-away from-home. For the class of ’75, it was their 50th Reunion.
Months before the 2025 Reunion event, Rick Matthews ’75 and Glenn “Scottie” Corsini ’75 agreed they would like to return to Ithaca at reunion time, without registering for the university organized class activities. The intention was to simply see the campus as well as check out points of interest in the Ithaca
area while we reminisced about our days at Cornell. Of course, we prioritized a visit to “The Old Gal” and reached out to Jeff Snedecker ’78, a resident of Ithaca and the Iota Chapter adviser, to arrange for us to have access to the house.
It was quickly realized there may be other class of 1975 Alpha Sigma Phi alumni who might be interested in joining us for what would become a Rockledge Reunion weekend. After getting a positive response from a few brothers, efforts were made to seek out and contact any “long lost” brothers from the 1975 class. Additionally, the thought of creating an even better event, led to efforts to include Alpha Sig alumni from the class of 1972 through the class of 1978, representing the chapter membership instrumental in
initiating the class of 1975 as well as all the classes that became members before the class of 1975 graduated.
After discussing some ideas with the Iota Chapter’s corporation board, plans for the Rockledge Reunion began to become a reality. The house and its facilities were made available to use for the purposes of socializing and any planned functions. While the majority of attendees opted to reside at local hotels or in on-campus housing, the more adventurous among us chose to stay at the house in rooms designate for our use.
The live-in adviser for the house, Noah Bell, was available to assist us whenever possible. Even the fraternity’s chef, Devon, was willing to be available to advise and assist as we endeavored to provide food
and drinks for our group.
Carl Popolo ’78 took on the task of filling the house with tunes from the 1970s to help create a nostalgic atmosphere.
About 25 to 30 alumni (including a few spouses and traveling companions) joined us for all or some part of the weekend. While there was plenty of free time designated for everyone to explore the campus or pursue individual activities, spending time with one another to socialize was encouraged and the focus of our weekend planned functions. What better way to promote this than mealtimes. Food and drinks were always available. A communal meal was served every night in the dining room: a selection of Hot Truck items on Thursday, an Italian style feast prepared by a brother on Friday, and a catered dinner on Saturday. Additionally, we threw ourselves a predinner wine, beer, and “nibbles” reception on Saturday.
Over the course of the weekend, many memories were relived, including the legendary house parties of the early ’70s (see the Zoltan poster from 1974 below), canoe trips, late night pool games, all night study sessions in the dining room, late night ice time at Lyna Rink, meals prepared by Chef Ernie (including his “hockey pucks” aka veal parm), and for many of us many stories about our beloved houseman, Peter Susca. It was a truly nostalgic weekend and an opportunity to reconnect with many old friends while catching up on where life has taken us, as well as make many new memories.
We also had two opportunities to meet other alumni brothers. Many of them took time away from their class reunion activities on campus to pay a visit to Rockledge. Some of them also returned on Sunday to join our group along with others to attend a Sunday Brunch provided by the Iota Chapter’s Corporation
Board to show their appreciation of its alumni. The Sunday Brunch was planned, prepared, and presented by Rockledge’s chef Devon. Her culinary skills were on full display as she presented a fantastic and delicious variety of menu items.
Both Rick and Glenn felt that planning and organizing the Rockledge Reunion 2025 was a labor of love and a demonstration of their pride in being a member of Alpha Sigma Phi. They are fully aware their efforts were greatly appreciated.
They later shared: “We realize that some of you already make monetary donations on a regular basis, while others donate their time and energy by being involved in “work party” projects, making repairs and
improvements at the house. The rest of us now have an opportunity to contribute for the continuation of our fraternity into the future. We all have a connection to each other because of our connection to Alpha Sig. In some ways, Alpha Sig will always be a part of our lives.”
One of the alumni who attended our gathering said it best: “Once an Alpha Sig, always an Alpha Sig!” We hope you will be as generous as possible when making your donation, however, as stated by the current president of the Iota Chapter Corporation Board, “Any contribution, no matter the size, will make a meaningful difference.”
Our chapter house has faced several major challenges over the last six years, including COVID, a chapter restart, and a challenging fraternity atmosphere within the Cornell community. We hope you will consider donating generously to Alpha Sigma Phi, as we face significant financial challenges. We want to be here
for another 50 years and beyond.