A LABOR OF LOVE

By HQ Staff

Bob Griffith Colgate ’70, and his chapter brothers from long-closed New York Epsilon, celebrated a 50-year milestone in May 2025.

In tandem with the university’s class of 1975 reunion, NY Epsilon seized the opportunity to gather, including classes from 1957 to 1978 in their festivities.

Don Kraics ’72 helped organize the event, which included arranging a dinner, golfing, and rental housing for 75 brothers. “The best part was working together with Bob on the entire production,” Kraics said. “It was so much fun.”

A Chapter House Journey

A huge piece of the brotherhood was their residence; a chapter house once lauded as the standard-bearer for Fraternity Row. In planning this reunion, Griffith undertook a true labor of love, chronicling the history of the structures that Phi Psis called home. He spent countless hours, making use of university resources, to compile a 28-page booklet called “A Chapter House Journey” to distribute at the gathering.

The reunion was the deadline for the book, but the impetus behind it was the realization that with progress comes change. The growth and development on Colgate’s campus will cause the house, located in the middle of a flood plain, to eventually be razed.

Father of the Row

Griffith’s research even piqued the interest of Professor of Art and Architectural History, Robert McVaugh. “First, he dug deeper into the architectural significance of our 1914 chapter house and the subsequent changes made in the late 1960s. Then posters were created, labeled ‘Father of the Row,’ and exhibited as part of the Colgate Archives,” Griffith said.

The closing text of the poster states: “Though never getting recognition for the achievement, Phi Kappa Psi’s original house … set many of the architectural parameters within which the Row would blossom over the next twenty years. Other houses would don different stylistic shells, but their essential forms would echo Phi Kappa Psi.”

Memorable Weekend

Memorializing the house was part of the three-day reunion celebration. Griffith provided members with an amazing keepsake: the history of Phi Psi at Colgate. The booklet also will become part of the university’s digital archive special collection and the archive at Phi Psi’s national headquarters.

As part of the presentation, there was a display at the university library of historic items exclusive to Phi Psi. “The university archives team helped me put together the exhibit,” Griffith said. “One item in particular was the original, signed charter from the installation of NY Epsilon in April 1887.”

The highlight of the weekend for Bill Barnaskas ’70 was the Friday luncheon. “That was when Bob presented the history of the chapter,” Barnaskas said. Attendees followed along in the book with rapt attention.

Brother Kraics had a different takeaway from the banquet on the first evening, noting: “The oldest member from the class of 1960 told us he was unsure if he wanted to come, but Bob Griffith told him he would be surrounded by 90 brothers who had all shared the same life experience. Very powerful.”

That brother, who is 89 years old, ended up joining the reunion.

In Griffith’s Words

From the closing of the chapter history booklet:

These houses have served as fraternity chapters, an infirmary, military barracks in two wars as well as surviving a devastating fire in the 1940s, a subsequent restoration, and a dramatic remodel in the 1960s.

New York Epsilon was one of the top 10 chapters in the country. During its 95-year history, almost 1,600 brothers passed through their doors — who served the community, the university, excelled in athletics, fought in wars, and achieved notoriety in business, law, and academics.

The Phi Psi Chapter House had served as our “home away from home.” In good times and bad, the “House” was a constant. It was a place that was very much a part of our learning and social experiences at Colgate and enabled us to build friendships and bonds like no other environment on campus could!

Six Generations in Attendance

The reunion itself brought members from as far away as Hawaii. Nearly one-third of living alumni were in attendance. “It was met with joyous enthusiasm,” Griffith beamed. There were six generations of presidents there, ranging in age from 70 to 89. One of them even had his grandson drive him from Long Island to attend.

“This was a great opportunity to see guys I hadn’t seen in 50 years. It demonstrated that you can make lifelong friendships from being a Phi Psi,” Barnaskas reflected.

Hamilton, New York, is home to more than 150 historic buildings. Some of those are on Colgate’s campus, and Griffith described the chapter house on Broad Street in its 1914 original state as a classic stucco structure reflecting its era and the area in a stately way. “Too bad someone in the 1960s decided to make it look like something out of ‘The Jetsons,’” Griffith quipped.

Attendees embarked on a walking tour including the original site of the 1887 charter, the first 1892 chapter house as well as the Broad Street house.

Committed to Giving Back

While together, the brothers decided to support underprivileged children in the Chenango Valley at Christmastime with donations and toys. “Our chapter is establishing a legacy with the Mid York Interfaith Holiday Project. We are resurrecting a holiday tradition from 1972 where Bob Griffith played Santa and handed out toys to the children of Hamilton,” Kraics explained.

Reliving a bit of their past seemed to ignite the passion for one of Phi Psi’s keystone purposes: giving back. And as it happened, another labor of love for the noble men emerged almost immediately after the reunion. Steeped in architectural history and bound by lifelong friendships, their legacy lives on … and on.

Click here to read Brother Griffith’s “A Chapter House Journey”

Phi Psi Spirit Illuminates Night of Lights

The village of Hamilton, New York hosted the annual Night of Lights celebration on Friday, Dec. 6, 2025. Reliving the past, Santa Claus arrived on a fire truck, with Griffith as the jolly man himself. Phi Psis dressed in blinking, glow-in-dark elves’ hats helped Santa distribute toys. “The look of wonder on those children’s faces as Santa rode into town has been etched in my memory for 50 years, and it this year was just the same. I’m so happy to experience it again and will do it for as long as I’m able,” Griffith/Santa said. 

“The Fraternity, through a generous donation by Michael Albarelli Jr. ’72, supplied toys for 150 children,” Griffith explained. “Night of Lights was a natural participation for Phi Psi because, way back when, the Fraternity used to give a Christmas party to support underprivileged children.” 

Inspired by the longstanding investment Colgate has in the community and fueled by the spirit of Phi Psi, these brothers/elves will be spreading cheer for years to come.