The first Fraternity Friday profile of the new year is Jake Higgins, the current social chair of Phi Gamma Delta (FIJI). Jake is a sophomore at the University of Maine and he is working towards completing his Construction Engineering major.
In a lot of cases, many people don’t consider joining Greek life until someone introduces them to it and in this situation, Jake was no different. His friend, Mark, first introduced him to FIJI and after that initial introduction, he knew he had found his place on campus. There, he was able to find genuine people that reminded him of his hometown friends because this group of guys was diverse and not cookie-cutter. After meeting the brothers and being introduced to the fraternity’s values and purposes, he knew FIJI was his home.
Jake is originally from Georgetown, Massachusetts. When there, you can most likely find him on the boat in Newburyport and he describes himself as a huge fisherman due to always being on the boat. Although he is most known for being an outdoorsman, he does have a special place in his heart for another activity he enjoys, painting.
While Jake is at home in Massachusetts, he doesn’t forget to live by FIJI’s values. This is exemplified by an act of service he performs during the winter where he will shovel his neighbors’ porches to rid them of the snow accumulated during the winter months. This small act of kindness goes a long way because if the porches aren’t shoveled, the owner of that house will get fined by the town. With these being people from his community, Jake will try and do as many as he can to prevent his neighbors from facing unnecessary fines.
While that is a singular and small act of kindness, Jake will be given many more opportunities for larger philanthropic efforts when he comes back to UMaine in the fall semester. FIJI has multiple philanthropy events throughout the year, but Jake’s personal favorites are the ones held in the fall, Wicked for Wishes and the Solidarity Harvest. The first event, Wicked for Wishes is a combined event with Chi Omega where they put on a haunted house to raise money for Make-A-Wish around Halloween, due to both organizations having the same philanthropy. The second event, the Solidarity Harvest is an event where the brothers package Thanksgiving dinners that are donated around the greater Bangor area. Last November, they ended up preparing over 1,300 dinners and Jake loves this event because it’s so hands-on and has such a huge impact on the community.
Notably, each year there is a leadership event called FIJI Academy that takes place in St. Louis, Missouri where new officers gain knowledge and skills to equip them with the necessary training to best serve their chapter. Jake had the amazing opportunity to attend this event with 1,500 brothers who were from over 300 different chapters. There, he was able to connect with alumni and gain valuable knowledge from other chapters that he would be able to bring back with him to his own, upon his return. Even though they were from various chapters across the country, Jake was still able to feel the same bond of brotherhood and it only grew stronger spending time with others, not from his own chapter, who shared that same experience alongside him.
As I mentioned before, Jake’s current position is FIJI’s current social chair. Previously, he served as their public relations chair where he would run the chapters social media. After gaining experience in multiple roles, he’s hoping in the future to serve as his chapter’s scholarship chair or even the president. Both of these positions, especially that of scholarship chair, would allow him to hold not only himself but the others in the chapter accountable for their academics which is a big area of focus for Greek life organizations. Regardless of what position he is currently in or hopes to execute in the future, holding a position is important to Jake because he wants the chapter to continue on an upward track and feels as though these roles can allow him to help be a part of that in a very active and meaningful way.
In regards to his chapter’s values and motivations, Phi Gamma Delta lives by its five core values: friendship, service, morality, excellence, and knowledge. When I asked Jake which value spoke to him the most he responded that for him, the value that means the most is that of friendship because as Jake explained, in his chapter everyone has each others’ backs. The theme of friendship is also closely related to Jake’s favorite line of their creed “Not for college days alone.” This brotherhood isn’t just for four years of his life, he will always be welcomed long after he leaves the University because no matter what, the brotherhood will be there for him continuously throughout his life, whether it’s as a current member or as alumni in the future.
FIJI’s annual Norris Pig Dinner held on April 25th is a great example of chapter alumni coming back to celebrate their continuous brotherhood. This event is held so that the brothers have an opportunity to honor the chapter’s founders. It also serves as a tribute to Frank Norris who was a part of the Delta Xi Chapter at the University of California. Norris was a true embodiment of fraternity life who upheld FIJI’s values and it was his humor that created this annual event. The first dinner dates all the way back to 1893, making this a time-honored tradition amongst the past and current brothers of FIJI.
With Jake’s aid and guidance, I was able to dive into the rich brotherhood on our campus that is our chapter of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity. Thank you so much for everything that you do not only just your chapter but for our community!