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Donation from a Distance
A chance overseas meeting with a Sigma Nu brother eventually motivated Matthew Yates (North Texas) to make his first-ever contribution to the Sigma Nu Educational Foundation. Yates reconnected with a chapter brother, U.S. Marine Jeff Park, while both were stationed at the Al Asad Airbase in Iraq’s AnBar province. A short time later, Yates was promoted to a position in Afghanistan and left Al Asad, but the two kept in touch via email. Park encouraged Yates to contact Michael Mills at the Foundation, and as a result Yates made a significant first-time gift through the Foundation’s website.
Though his contact with Mills and Park prompted the donation, Yates says that Sigma Nu’s influence on his
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Matthew Yates
(North Texas)
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life was truly the reason for his gift. "Sigma Nu helped me to grow as a person; therefore I feel it’s my obligation to help Sigma Nu grow in any way I can. It’s important to me to give to organizations that I believe are worthy causes," he shares. But he’s quick to add that giving to Sigma Nu is different from giving to charity. "I believe that if you are in a position to give, then you should give to an organization that means something to you. As members of Sigma Nu, it’s more than that. It is every brother’s duty and responsibility to help support the organization that gave us so much," he explains.
Prior to college, Yates was in the Army. During his time on active duty, he was selected to serve as an Airborne Ranger in the elite Alpha Company of the 3rd Ranger Battalion/75th Ranger Regiment. He attests that his experience with this elite group trained him to recognize "winners." Following that tour of duty, Yates enrolled at UNT and was introduced to the Sigma Nus. He was impressed with the caliber of men he met there, which inspired his decision to join.
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| Since he began college after serving in the Army, Yates was older than most of the brothers when he joined the chapter. Despite the age difference he says he had instant respect for them. "I could tell right away that I would learn something from those guys. They were winners," he says. "I was fortunate to have a spot beside those men, and I was honored to be a Sigma Nu at UNT." True to his assessment, they were named a Rock Chapter in 1999, distinguishing Zeta Omicron in all areas of chapter excellence.
Yates describes Sigma Nu as "the tool that rounded me out as a person and helped me become a complete man." While he came to college with strong leadership skills andvaluable |
military experience under his belt, he describes himself as "mean, tough, unforgiving, and unable to show weakness," qualities encouraged by his military training. He believes today that Sigma Nu helped soften the rough edges and develop him professionally. "Sigma Nu showed me that it was okay to care about someone," he recalls. "It opened my eyes to see that different people have different strengths and weaknesses. It broadened my mind with respect to people," he shares.
He says being in the Fraternity was like having a large family, and he valued the opportunities to observe and learn from the experiences of others. "Sigma Nu was my home in college," he says. "It was one place I could go any time, day or night, and feel completely at home. I didn’t have to be anyone but myself. I could let down my guard," he recalls. He also values the leadership skills that were strengthened in him when younger brothers began to seek him out in their own leadership development. "Being in a fraternity is a gradual growing process," he states. "You not only learn from your experience, but you have hundreds of other experiences happening all around you to learn from as well," he explains.
Still overseas, Yates works today as the Executive Officer/New Business Development Director responsible for the Afghanistan division of the Special Operations Consulting - Security Management Group, Inc. He is involved in every aspect of new business development and works hand-in-hand with operation officers to provide international security solutions to their clients.
Even across the miles, he remains close with many of his fraternity brothers and stays connected to the UNT alumni association through his brothers that are still in the area. He relishes some of his fondest memories of college: creating award-winning homecoming floats, capturing intramural championship titles, and organizing highly successful recruitment events that gave the rest of the fraternities on campus a run for their money. Although life goes on after college, the relationships he made are irreplaceable, the networking benefits are unsurpassed, and his love for Sigma Nu endures. "Those guys were some of the best men that I have ever met. I love my Fraternity, and I don’t hesitate to help out whenever I can," he shares.
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