Home Sweet Home

It is often said that a house is just a building, but a home is where you feel safe, protected and loved. For the alumni of the North Dakota Chapter, creating a home for future generations of Delta Upsilon brothers was their main goal when constructing the newest chapter house at the University of North Dakota. On April 20, 2024, that new home hosted its house dedication and welcomed alumni spanning the chapter’s six decades.

“The essence of what DU has done, and must continue to do, is to build a vibrant, caring community that supports the learning, development and sense of belonging for everyone who enters the doors of 421 Princeton,” said Lynn Luckow, North Dakota ’71, who served as chair of the chapter house planning team and accompanying capital campaign.

Beyond the traditional bedrooms, kitchen and dining room, the new 17,600 square foot home also features a media center, library, formal study room, and one large “Cultural Commons” area that will allow chapter members to enhance their learning experience. The Cultural Commons in particular was designed with the idea that it could be used to host a multitude of campus events, including meetings and arts performances.

Over the course of the chapter’s 61-year history, it has found a home in two other chapter facilities. The most recent, located at 505 Princeton, was built in the early 1970s through a partnership with the university to meet the housing needs of fraternities and sororities on campus. While the space worked for the chapter for many years, over time, the facility, which was not constructed to be commercial grade, began to show its age, with significant improvements needed to plumbing, electrical and the physical structure itself. In late 2019, chapter advisor Brad Aafedt, North Dakota ’86, sounded the alarm that the house was becoming uninhabitable and the chapter needed to research its options. Thankfully, the university was in the midst of its own construction and renovation projects that included plans for Greek housing. The new North Dakota Chapter house now sits at 421 Princeton, just behind the old property, with space for five to six additional fraternities or sororities to build homes on the same street.

To fund the project, which included purchasing the land from the university as well as construction, chapter alumni embarked on a fundraising campaign that, to date, has brought in $5.7 million. The “Honoring Our Legacy, Building Our Future” campaign was initially estimated to raise $2-3 million, but the outpouring of support well exceeded expectations. This included 11 brothers who signed personal guarantee notes with the bank to begin construction, which started on Aug. 5, 2022, with an official groundbreaking ceremony taking place on Oct. 22, 2022.

Alumni formed multiple committees to aid in the planning and construction of the home. More than 35 individuals served as committee members, with dozens more attending at least one of the 88 bi-monthly virtual meetings hosted by the planning committee. Those involved in planning intentionally chose to work only with local contractors and to source building materials locally, as well. In another nod to alumni, the exterior design for the home was based on the home once owned by Doug Mark, North Dakota ’86, and his wife Katie.

Upon its completion, the home, which will not house undergraduates until fall 2024, played host to more than 100 alumni and guests during the house dedication on April 20. The weekend festivities included house and campus tours, social gatherings, and a gala. Special guests included International Fraternity President Tom Durein, Oregon State ’92; Past International Fraternity President Bruce McKinney, Missouri ’74; UND President Andy Armacost; and scores of North Dakota Chapter alumni. In the end, those on the planning committee knew it wasn’t just the new house that brought so many back to Grand Forks.

“It wasn’t the house that brought them back; it was the friendships, the DU experience, and what that experience has meant to them throughout their lives,” said Russ Grundhauser, North Dakota ’83, co-chair of the Communication & Events Committee. "It was remarkable to see what an incredible group of alumni that had consistently come out of our chapter at North Dakota. All of their effort and commitment, it was so reaffirming.”