Page 1 - Cla Delta Spotlight - Winter 2009-10

Cal Delta Spotlight USC House Corporation of Phi Delta Theta | Winter 2010 | University of Southern California Alumni Offce | P.O. Box 80828, Atlanta, Georgia 30366 | www.phideltatheta-caldelta.com Chapter Eternal: Pierre Cossette Chapter House ierre Cossette, the avuncular old-school talent agent, Funding Update Pmanager, music mogul and Broadway producer often called the father of the Grammy Awards telecast for persuading nervous TV executives to put “longhairs with high heels and makeup” on By: Stephen Scully ‘81 a live national broadcast in 1971, died Friday. He was 85. Cossette, who had suffered in recent years with congestive ince my last update we have heart failure, died at Barrie Memorial Hospital in Montreal, not Smade substantial progress on far from his family’s summer home in St. Anicet. the conclusion of the construction Pierre Maurice Joseph Cossette was born Dec. 15, 1923, in related requirements of the Valleyfeld, Quebec, to Oswald and Annette Gendron Cossette, Chapter House, setting the stage but he lived most of his life in Southern California after his family, including his older to put the permanent fnancing sister, Lise, moved to Altadena when he was 5. His father had hoped to fnd fame and in place. As I am sure all of you fortune in the shade of Hollywood, but instead could only fnd work as a gas station know, the banking environment attendant. today continues to be very Pierre, however, showed a knack for procuring talent, securing comedian Red challenging and working through the ebbs and fows Skelton to perform at his high school. of the banks has been interesting to say the least. During World War II, he joined the Army and served with an engineering battalion As I write this today we have concluded all of that built prisoner-of-war camps, often preceding Allied troops as they moved through the construction payments to Oltmans Construction Germany. His unit was charged with removing the bodies of German soldiers who had and have been cleaning up the odd needs of the been killed. house to allow it run. Through the tremendous “All of them were about our age,” he told The Times in 2005. “We would have to effort that Bob Alleborn and Jeff Pierson have pick the bodies up by the heels and throw them on the truck.” That led to a phrase he contributed, we have navigated the challenging Cossette, continued on page 4 requirements of the City of Los Angeles and are very close to concluding everything we need for our Letter from Chapter President permanent occupancy permit. For those of you that have dealt with the City of Los Angeles, I believe t has been quite you can understand what I am saying here. It has Ithe semester at Phi been one issue after another but due to Bob and Delta Theta at USC. Jeff’s tenacious effort, we are prevailing! We’re all moved The next month or two will be spent frming up in and comfortable the permanent fnancing and documentation of our in our brand new mortgage through our main partner – City National chapter house, and Bank. As I mentioned earlier it will require the true it truly has been a “Phi Delt” brand of communicating that our world is blessing to have such strong and that our Alumni will continue to support a gorgeous place to this effort through their existing and future pledges. call home. Having I would like to impress upon all of you that the new house has been nothing but a Read what the chapter members think about the new we need you to continue to meet the timing of your positive for our chapter. It has increased house on page 2. pledge obligations and for those of you that have the sense of brotherhood in the house, of the house at a dinner event early in not pledged or have additional capacity, your help it has provided a central rally point for the semester. It was a fun night where is desperately needed. We must turn these pledges our members and it has overall taken our old and new Phis were able to enjoy each into cash and pay down our bank debt. In addition chapter to the next level. other’s company and share stories from we must increase the overall amount of pledges to The brothers of California Delta both past and present. support City National in providing us this mortgage have had many other highlights Two weeks later we volunteered as a which will insure that our house is owned by the throughout this fall semester outside of house at the annual Walk to Defeat ALS House Corporation for the next 100 years. just admiring our new castle of a house. event in Pasadena. We helped set up and Additionally I would like to personally thank We had the opportunity to recognize and pass out food and drinks to the walkers, all of you that have contributed. With you this honor those alumni who generously gave as well as going door to door in town project would have never reached the point where donations to help with the construction to see if businesses would contribute we are at today. President, continued on page 2