Lunch with Founding Father Gus Garcia: Round II As I sat back and listened to Founding Father Gus as he spoke to me between delicious bites of Versailles’ “Rabo Encendido”, I couldn’t help but ask myself two things: 1. Why haven’t I reached out and networked more with my fellow alumni brothers after I left my undergraduate chapter at the University of South Florida? 2. Is he really going to order a Flan and a Café after that epic meal? The answer to the first question is simple. My undergrad chapter was a safe haven for me. I knew all my chapter brothers well; we were a close knit group within Fraternity activities and outside of them. I could go to any one of my Brothers and ask for help finding a job or to study for a test, and then go out for a beer with them when Friday night rolled around. Once I graduated and decided to move back to my home town Miami, FL to pursue a career in Real Estate, I drastically FAILED to reach out to the same Fraternity that I had put so much time and effort into. Reaching out to the Alumni Association and local undergraduate chapters was paramount. I had forgotten my roots. And I would imagine, some of my own brothers, and other Latino Greeks, have made the same mistake I did. Almost 40 years worth of brothers of Lambda Theta Phi have pledged, crossed, graduated, and began their careers in all sorts of industries in cities all across the country. That’s a lot of brothers. They consist of Doctors, Lawyers, Bankers, Investors, Entrepreneurs, Real Estate Brokers, and on and on. Like Gus tells me at lunch, “As Latinos, our strength lies in our numbers; we just fail to utilize it correctly.” He is absolutely right. And all you have to do is ask. Thanks to him and my blood sister, Kristie Estevez (Kristie Estevez ; attorney in south Florida practicing in several areas, including real estate: 305-707-0602) it has occurred to me that, we, as alumni members of our respective Latino Greek Organizations need to get more involved with each other as we begin our careers in various fields and industries. And then, after that, we need to stay involved. We need to network not just with our own Alumni members, but with all Latinos from every organization so that we may move forward as one. We need to develop our relationships in business in order to develop our strength as the fastest growing minority group in the United States. Soon, Latinos will outnumber every other ethnicity in this country, and together, we cannot be stopped. “Do not wait for tomorrow what you can do right now at this very moment”- Agustin Garcia Oh, and life’s too short not to order the Flan!
Posted on: Fri, 24 Jan 2014 03:39:29 +0000
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