In which Shawn becomes an expatriate

Saturday, September 22, 2007

Dear Brothers.

I shared this news with Rick a couple of weeks ago, but I wanted to wait until things were in motion to make a public announcement.

My company is starting a business newspaper in Manchester, England, in December. I have accepted an offer to be an editor there. The company and I are in the midst of getting my paperwork clearance from the United Kingdom, but it looks like I'll be leaving Oct. 15.

It has been a dream of mine for years to be able to live in the United Kingdom. And being able to help start a newspaper from inception is an opportunity I can't pass up.

The reality of how big of a decision I've made is becoming more clear by the day as I sort through my belongings to figure out what I'll ship to the UK, what I'll put in storage, what I'll give away and what I'll throw out.

It also is brought into sharper focus every time I tell my varied groups of friends.

It has been almost two years since I started regularly returning to Marietta and became a more-involved alumnus, both with the Undergrads and with my fellow Alumni through this blog. I cannot put into words what the experiences I have had these past two years have meant to me.

I'm now going to be an ocean and five time zones away, so my involvement will have to be scaled back and my visits to Marietta will become less frequent.

Since Homecoming this year is after my tentative departure date, I won't be there this year. I am especially saddened by that as it is 15th reunion.

But I will be back for Homecoming next year for the 40th, even if I have to swim back across the Atlantic.

I will continue to do what I can to help with the blog, but I'm going to have to back away from the writing projects that I wanted to do for the 40th. I'm sure you all understand that such undertakings are made impossible by virtue of living on a different continent.

So this post doesn't sound so sad, let me say that I've been walking around with a perpetual smile on my face. I'm so excited about this next chapter in my life. I'm looking foward to the new people I'll meet and the places I will visit.

I am very happy and I hope you all, my Brothers, will share in this happiness.

Cheers!

Shawn "Spotted Dick is a dessert?" Selby'92

DTD at MC #51

Monday, September 03, 2007

Good morning everyone,

I have been a bit lax recently about writing this, but I just got back from vacation in Florida. While I was there, I got to visit with Al Morrison and his wife Patti. They are doing well, everyone is in good health and working hard. They are in the process of remodeling thier house so it was a bit of a mess, but you can see how nice it will be when it is finished. I really had a nice visit Al, hope to see you two again soon.

Here are a couple of dates for you all to mark down. Homecoming for this year is coming soon, October 19th thru the 21st. Make plans to come back to Marietta now. And we have a firm date for our 40th in 2008, October 24th thru the 26th, only 422 days from now. I hope to see everyone that year.

The school year has begun so the Marietta Delts are hard at work making sure they have another successful year. They have to be, since I haven't heard from anyone yet this fall. Good luck on a great year guys! If any alum happens to be going thru Marietta, be sure to stop by the house and say hello. The undergrads really do like to have the opportunity to visit with those of us who came first, and I can vouch for the fact that they are really a good group. So stop by and say hello.

While reading WMOA radio online, I got the following piece of news concerning Matt Dole, I suspect that it means that he has moved to Columbus. Congratulations Matt! Keep us informed as to how you are doing.


Ohio Political Blogger Takes New Post
Posted on: 08/16/2007
By Callie Lyons
A well-known, local political blogger has a new job.
Communications Counsel of Ohio announced this week that the Columbus- based public relations firm has added Matt Dole to the staff. Dole was formerly the publisher of LincolnLogsBlog.com, the only blog to be consistently ranked in the top ten most influential Ohio political blogs. Dole has significant experience helping businesses and political candidates. He's worked on more than 30 campaigns over the last ten years.
Dole is a 2001 graduate of Marietta College. He calls his new position the "opportunity of a lifetime".

I got the following letter from Winona Porath, the wife of Mike. They live in Tecumsch, Mi (wherever that is!) so if you are there and need a place to sleep, she has invited you. Thanks for the tip, I used it and managed to get in contact with Keith Zak. We had a nice long talk, and got caught up with each other.


Rick,
Well I am a bit better at communicating than my hubby, besides that, I
just LOVE all you guys. I feel like you are my family. Delts are always
welcome at the Porath Family Hotel…always open 24/7 for Delts.
Seriously, that http://zabasearch.com is a great way to locate people. I use
it at work all the time to track people down. I hope you can use it to
find some others.
Hope your move to Marietta goes great! It is such a great place, I wish I could move back there…although maybe that would take away some of the magic…
Take care, Wiona
I recently got an email address for Al Mason, one of our founders. I contacted him and got this reply, it's always nice to find someone from our past. Al, you may be hearing from Shawn Selby for a booklet he is planning for our 40th Anniversary. He may want to pick your brains, fair warning here!

Hi Rick, Yes, you have Al Mason, one of the original founders of the frat house
at Marietta. It was great visiting the house. I was pleasently surprised to see how well Delt is doing. I was surprised, no, shocked to see how poorly the state of affairs is for the other houses. Keep me posted of events, thanks for your e-mail.

Sincerely, Al Mason



Speaking of the booklet for our 40th, time is running short for submitting your story to Shawn. I have sent my effort to him and have had the pleasure of his response telling me it was pretty good. Bravo for me! I'm learning how to write. Send yours in, he has put a deadline of November 2007, so he can get it all put together. His email address is: **removed for privacy reasons**

I got the following note from Trent Elliott, thanks for the offer Trent I will take you up on your kind offer. And if I come back in a Uhaul, I'll let you know so you can help me unload!


Rick,

Now that you have secured your house, please let me know when
you are officially "in." I'm always in the mood to buy a brother a welcome
home cocktail.

Trent Elliott
'01

As a result of our email letters, Steve Fox and Ted Smith have gotten back in touch with each other, and I'm sure that others have used the email list to find lost brothers. You can access the email list at the chapter website, http://www.marietta.edu/~delts/ The password to access the list is **removed, if you need help with it please contact the chapter or Rick Neel**. While you are there, take a minute to update the alumni records. We know that we have some bad data, and need your help to correct the errors.

The new addresses that I have this week are from Matt Mancall and Keith Zak Welcome guys! Hope to see you back in Marietta soon.

The people that I need help finding this week are: Paul Kelly '85, Mike Malone '85, John Rhein '85, Jon Townshend '85, Duane Stokes '88, Steve Newton '66, Peter Rosenberger '67 and Peter Ross '67

Thats all I have this week, hope all is well in your lives! Rick Neel '73