Can a fraternity survive without a place to call home?

For Theta Chi fraternity, the answer is definitely yes.

It has been just over a year since the Theta Chi brothers lost their house.

In the early morning of Oct. 5, 1996, members of the next-door Theta Delta Chi fraternity spotted smoke pouring from the Theta Chi kitchen windows.

The fire department arrived in time to stop the fire from damaging neighboring buildings, but the Theta Chi house, along with almost everything inside, was lost in the blaze.

A year later, the fraternity is thriving in spite of tremendous odds.

Theta Chi President Ryan Krogstad said none of the fraternity members have left the fraternity or dropped out of school because of the fire.

He said the only losses have come through graduation.

A few of the Theta Chi brothers are living in a group of apartments at 207 Stanton Ave, he said.

Krogstad said other fraternity members are living with friends around Ames.

“It’s been an adjustment for a lot of people who have never lived in an off-campus apartment,” he said.

“I think there are a lot of people who miss living in a house together,” Krogstad said.

A new house will be built on the same site, and Krogstad said the construction is in the “fund-raising stage.”

He said Theta Chi will receive money from alumni fund-raisers and from their house insurance policy.

He also said they are hopeful a loan will not be needed to cover the cost, which is estimated to be about $1 million.

Construction is expected to start in late spring 1998.

The 30 members of Theta Chi fraternity are looking for new members, Krogstad said.

He emphasized that rushing new members for the house is an ongoing process.

“You might meet the best brother in the world on the first day of class, or you might meet him at mid-term,” he said.

Krogstad said Theta Chi is concentrating on fall rush, because during summer rush they didn’t have a “central location” to use.

With help from all the members during school, he said Theta Chi could grow by as many as 25 brothers by the end of the semester.

Krogstad said the impact on Theta Chi has been deep, but he also sounded a positive note for the future.

“I think it’s made people realize more what the fraternity is about,” he said.

“It’s not just a physical structure, it’s more what people put into [the fraternity]. It brings out the best in people,” Krogstad said.