Chances are as rush week approaches, you already know if you are going to join a greek organization. But this column is for those people who are on the precipice and don’t know if they want to take the plunge. I’m here saying with supreme confidence if you have any idea that it might be for you, take a closer look. I think you may be surprised.

The beauty of the greek scene on our campus is there is something for everyone. If you envisioned yourself as Bluto from ‘Animal House’ during your college years, there are plenty of houses that will help you do that. If community service is your thing, there are houses for that. If you want drama kids, meatheads, wholesome kids, wild ‘Rufio’ kids or studious braniacs, it’s all out there.

Most friends at college are either made in your major or on your freshmen floor. In a greek organization you have friends from a variety of different majors and freshmen floors. You have different ages, races, regions of the country and interests. And with that you will become friends with people you never thought you would even talk to. Because of my fraternity I have friends that are guitar heroes in rock bands and friends that sit around all day, relaxed and play ‘Guitar Hero’ all day.

In addition to all the new friendships you form, Greek life also supplies something better to do than sit around and play M.A.S.H. Everybody knows you get parties (Jell-O parties, jungle parties, foam parties) the works. But you also get access to philanthropies that have a level of intensity far greater than intramurals. You have easier access to community service events you never would have before.

And while the parties, tournaments, community service and pride is great, the main reason you should join a fraternity is the friends. Through the pledging process you are working with a group of people. It’s similar to a team-based activity. Remember that feeling you had in high school of being on a sports team, writing for the newspaper or working on a play. It’s like that, but it’s for the duration of college and longer.

The argument is often made that participants in greek organizations are paying for their friends. However, many organizations in which people create close bonds with other members costs a little bit of cheddar. You paid for your high school sports uniform, paid to live in your dorm and you paid to come to college. Life costs money.

I believe the friends you make in college come in waves. I’m not boys with all of my ‘friends’ from freshmen year. That wave came, hit the coast and receded. But the friends I have in fraternity are not wave friends, they are beach friends, no waves are pulling them away. Sure, perhaps the beach will lose a little bit of sand with time, but it’s always there.

When I’m old and my kid asks me what college was like, hopefully I’ll smile at him and say, ‘You know what, college was best time of my life. I learned a lot, lived through the insanity of a Jell-O party, made friends with those people we vacation with and did a whole lot more I’ll tell you when you’re older. It was everything I thought it should be.’

Tim Goessling is a senior television, radio and film major and a member of Sigma Alpha Mu Fraternity. His columns appear weekly on Thursdays. He can be reached at tpgoessl@syr.edu.

Published on January 30, 2008 at 12:00 pm