On Sunday October 28th, members of the Cook Chapter of Alpha Zeta set aside some time to bond with each other by going to a Battleview Orchards for their annual apple and pumpkin picking. Our chapter supported this local, sustainable family owned farm by enjoying their organically grown produce. The brothers were also able to enjoy pie, apple cider, hot apple donuts, and many other baked goods, all of which are made with organic produce that can be found right on the farm. For the members of the Cook Chapter this was a great way to celebrate the changing of the seasons.

Fall Festival, on Sunday, October 14, 2012, is a Rutgers Gardens Sponsored celebration of the Fall Season in its entirety while also showcasing the beauty and hard work of the Gardens association. Alpha Zeta brothers worked at the Fall Festival and their jobs included directing children and families through the scavenger hunt where participants were able to appreciate the variety of plant species and general beauty of the location. Brothers also helped set up the signs, the food court, and clean up at the of six hour day. It was a wonderful contribution to the community.

Every member of the fraternity has a family made up of their bigs, grandbigs, cousins and so on. In our chapter, it is a tradition for each family to have a family dinner, normally once per semester to hang out, eat good food. It allows alumni who attend to get to know the new brothers in their family more closely. They share good food, games like charades and taboo, and often times a good movie is thrown in the mix. Below are a few pictures of families during their dinner celebrations.

Saturday, September 29, 2012,  the New Member Upsilon Class got together the day of the installment as official pledges for their first bonding day. The purpose of this retreat was first and foremost to outline the upcoming events/semester for the new members. They learned about all of the upcoming events, the amount of service hours they are required to complete during their new member semester (5), the history of the fraternity, the requirements for initiation, big/little relationship information, the hazing policy of the university, and everything the fraternity is involved in throughout the year that we would love for them to participate in if they have the time and choose to do so...

As part of the rush process, Cook chapter organized a card making event. On Thursday, September 20, potential new members would come to the campus center, where brothers would be providing all sorts of materials. The Halloween Cards made were sent to the children in the St. Peter’s Hospital Pediatric Unit. Cook Chapter tries to make cards for the children for all occasions, including Valentine’s Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas for the children. We hope that our contributions make their days a little brighter.

Wednesday, December 12, 2012 brothers convened at a fellow brother’s house to de-stress during the last two weeks of the semester, also known as Finals time. In addition to enjoying the forever popular movie "Despicable Me,” they also had a bake off, in which members brought baked goods and everyone in attendance voted at the end of the night. The winner was awarded a $10 Dunkin Donuts gift card, so he/she would have a plentiful supply of coffee during this stressful time.

On Friday, November 30, 2012, brothers and alumni held a Mary Kay night, where a Mary Kay Beauty Consultant came over to a brother’s house and held a "make-over” session and explained to brothers how they could become Mary Kay consultants themselves, a lucrative job to have on the side to help pay off student loans. A picture is attached showing brothers and alumni prior to beginning.

As part of Rutgers' Homecoming spirit week, Cook Chapter participated in the annual Bed Races. Each group was given a hospital bed and a week. The purpose was to pick a theme and decorate both your bed and your racers in that theme. Cook Chapter this year decided on the farming/Wizard of Oz theme. Our name was spelled out in corn husks on the front, while corn stalks grew out of the bed posts. Our bed rider dressed up as the wicked witch of the west, even coloring her face green. Each team has two people running and pushing the bed and one person on it. Other themes included the Rugrats, where the bed was Raptar, the Blue Man Group, Nintendo, and Christmas...

On Saturday, October 20th, members of the Cook Chapter of Alpha Zeta teamed up with Clean Ocean Action to pick up trash from our local beaches. Our chapter went to Point Plesant, NJ for the day, picking up cigarette butts, small pieces of plastic, and even needles from the sandy beach. The cleanup was a huge success, and Cook Chapter even got mentioned in the local Asbury Park Press. The Clean Ocean Action group organized hundreds of volunteers to clean beaches all up and down the New Jersey Shoreline.

On a spooky, clear Friday night in November, members of the Florida Chapter of Alpha Zeta decided to attend one of Gainesville’s corn mazes together. The Newberry corn maze attraction consisted of a scary corn maze, a haunted house and a frightful hay ride which had all the members jumping in excitement and fear! Everyone got to know each other’s "scare level” which helped bring members together, especially in the corn maze where they had to stick together to "get out alive”. It was a fun night overall.