It seems unusual to find a stack of cartoon movies on the dresser and a little coat lying on the chair in Joe Lichty’s room at Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity.

That is, until a little boy with brown hair and dark brown eyes strolls in and sits down on the couch. Three-foot-tall, three-year-old Caleb Lichty is the youngest member of Alpha Gamma Rho, 201 Gray Ave.

Joe’s brother and Caleb’s father, Matt Lichty, was an ISU junior and a member of Alpha Gamma Rho when he was killed in a car accident on his way to a job interview in December 1997. Caleb was only six months old.

After Christmas break, Matt’s wife, Tiffany, decided to return to Drake University to finish her degree, and Matt’s brother Chris, then a sophomore, offered to take care of Caleb at the fraternity house one afternoon a week, she said.

Over the course of the semester, the men of Alpha Gamma Rho were asking to spend more time with the newest fraternity brother, so in the fall of 1998, he began to spend two days a week at the house. Joe, now a junior in agricultural systems technology, entered the house at the same time.

It has now been more than three years since Caleb became a member of Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity. He knows his way around the house and has been there longer than half of his fraternity brothers.

“I think that Caleb’s time at the fraternity has definitely affected his personality,” Tiffany said. “He is much more of a people person now.”

Members of the fraternity said Caleb brings the heart of a child to the house.

“When I’m with him, I act like a two-year-old,” said Chris Lursen, junior in agricultural systems technology. “A lot of guys do that.”

The three-year-old’s presence can be a relief from the day-to-day pressure of university life, said Matt Rowles, junior in finance.

“Being able to come home and play with Caleb takes away the stress of school,” he said.

In many ways, Caleb is a just a younger version of the typical college male. He likes hanging out with the guys, watching movies, playing computer games, spending time in the rec room and his occasional – yet necessary – homework. Caleb has a competitive edge, quotes movies and has a 21-year-old girlfriend named Ganga.

Ganga is only his imaginary girlfriend, though. Joe said when Caleb is asked about her again, she probably won’t be 21.

“She’s usually a different age every week,” he said.

The only difference is that the movies Caleb watches are animated, and his little arms can’t possibly reach all the handles on the foosball table, even when he stands on a chair. Regardless of technique, when he wins, he’ll make sure to let everyone know by raising his right fist into the air and exclaiming triumphantly, “Yes! I won, I told you!”

Caleb’s favorite one liner, “little guys can do big things too,” comes from the Berenstein Bears movie, “Learn About Strangers,” which he has basically memorized.

His most effective strategy for pool is when “you throw the balls into the holes with your hands,” and instead of classes like chemistry and agronomy, Caleb is more concerned about learning his ABCs and singing songs with the help of his Smart Learning Center.

“I’m not as big as Joe, but I’m not a baby – I’ll be four on May 15,” he said, holding up the correct number of fingers.

He dresses like the “big boys” in his own ISU shirt, mittens and coat. He even sports his greek letters every now and then. While he loves Iowa State and the Cyclones, Caleb is only in preschool at the Whistle Stop Academy in Huxley.

“It’s nice for Caleb to have that male figure in his life, and it’s good for me because I know that he is safe,” Tiffany said.

The Alpha Gamma Rho house mother, Jan Brown, said it has been rewarding to see how the men have grown since Caleb came into their lives.

“Caleb has made the men aware of the responsibilities of parenting and has taught them the patience that a child requires,” she said.

Over the past three years, the men of Alpha Gamma Rho have played an active role in Caleb’s development while watching him transition from diapers and baby food to walking and talking.

“The men have had an opportunity to observe the thought process of a child as it develops,” Brown said.

Joe said he is thankful for the compassionate outreach to the Lichty family by his fraternity brothers.

“I respect all of my fraternity brothers because of what they have done for me and especially my family,” Joe said. “Caleb and Tiffany will always be a part of Alpha Gamma Rho.”