AEPi’s History of Service

The Jewish Fraternity, Alpha Epsilon Pi, recently posted this article highlighting the service of its members in the Armed Forces. It is a wonderful look at Jewish military service throughout the years. Be sure to check out the photo album in the article with some interesting historical publications highlighting that Jewish service.

Alpha Epsilon Pi is no stranger to war. In its 99 year history, the fraternity has endured World War I, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, Desert Storm, and the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. With a longstanding legacy and much history to be discovered, our fraternity has committed the months leading up to our Centennial Celebration Convention in New York City to honoring our brothers who have served and who are serving in their respective country’s armed forces.

This is certainly not the first time an initiative of this kind has been undertaken. In 1940, our fraternity formed an Armed Services Committee to keep in touch with brothers wearing their country’s uniform. This committee also sent servicemen gifts in the name of our fraternity, including wallets stamped with our letters and portable checker sets. Alpha Epsilon Pi even had a fundraising arm, called the Serviceman’s Fund, to finance the fraternity’s service member efforts.

During the war years, the last chapter to receive its charter was Iota Deuteron, University of Alabama, on January 24, 1942. Expansion, because of the war, was at a standstill. The Supreme Board of Governors intuitively understood that if our fraternity was to survive, every chapter had to remain active by pledging and continuing to initiate new brothers so that when the war ended, our chapters would be active for veteran brothers returning home to campus.

On January 28, 1942, Alpha Epsilon Pi lost its first brother in combat – Lieutenant Arthur Amron (Chi 1940). Lt. Amrom lost his life serving with General MacArthur in the Phillipines [and was awarded the Silver Star for his heroic actions]. He was the first of too many who made the supreme sacrifice.

There were no Conventions in 1942 or 1943; all fees paid by the chapters for convention were collected and invested in Defense Bonds. Past Supreme Masters offered to replace members of the Supreme Board of Governors should they be drafted.

By late 1942, more than 400 brothers – 1/6th of Alpha Epsilon Pi’s entire membership – were on active duty in the armed forces. By 1943, that number swelled to as many as 600 brothers, rapidly approaching half of Alpha Epsilon Pi’s entire membership. By the time the war was winding down, more than 2,000 members of Alpha Epsilon Pi were still in the armed services.

By the end of World War II, 67 Alpha Epsilon Pi brothers had made the supreme sacrifice. The Supreme Board of Governors also moved to confer brotherhood posthumously on every pledge who lost his life in service. With pearls in short supply following the war, the badge of AEPi was produced without the 33 pearl inserts. Only about 40 of these badges were produced, one of which is housed in the museum showcase of our Headquarters.

1950 saw yet another conflict with the Korean War. Just a few months into the conflict, 600 brothers were already in the service. On October 16, 1954, Alpha Epsilon Pi held an overseas convention in Seoul, Korea, in the Kim Room of the Continental Restaurant. As you might imagine, this skims the surface of Alpha Epsilon Pi’s dedication to our war veterans and those serving in an active duty or ROTC status.

For those of you fortunate enough to attend the 99th Convention in Phoenix this summer, the Year of the Veteran kicked off with a moving Shabbat dinner honoring Jewish War Veterans. Shabbat is, in part, a time for reflection. For one night, we reflected on those who came before us in service, those who have given their lives in service, those whose bodies and minds have been reshaped by war, and those who are still prisoners of war or missing in action. Led by a color guard comprised of five Jewish veterans from Jewish War Veterans Post 619 and uniformed IDF soldier, we reflected on the sacrifices of all those who have served or are actively serving in any armed force so that we can remain safe and free here at home.

The effort shows no particular favor to the United States alone. In fact, a New York Times Article from August 2012 titled “Enlisting From Afar for the Love of Israel” followed the story of Josh Warhit, Rochester 2012, as he made his way from the United States to enlist as a lone soldier in the Israel Defense Forces. Warhit is just one of many brothers serving in the IDF, not including the scores of brothers from our Israeli chapters who have served or are serving. With a strong presence in five countries, Alpha Epsilon Pi is in a unique position to have members distributed across numerous armed services.

The next step in this year-long effort is the formation of Alpha Epsilon Pi’s Armed Forces Committee, the first of its kind in our fraternity in more than 70 years. This committee is comprised of brothers in every branch of the United States military and from the Israel Defense Forces. We are also pleased to be partnering with Jews in Green, an organization started by our very own Capt. Jason Rubin, Virginia Tech 2003, United States Marine, and past founding Master at Sigma Alpha.

We hope that our relationship with Jews in Green will be the first of many new partnerships to come as we explore the endless possibilities that the Year of the Veteran initiative promises. Such partnerships will allow the fraternity to continue supporting our serving brothers well beyond their college years – and wherever their military careers might take them – so that Alpha Epsilon Pi can continue to be a Commitment for a Lifetime.

This article first appeared in The Lion, the publication of Alpha Epsilon Pi (the Jewish fraternity). It is reprinted with permission from AEPi International.