Davy and Mike.
When I first joined Lambda, we made these things called Black Books. It was kind of like a history and trivia book about the house. One page had a list of founding brothers and I think we had to memorize their names. At the time I graduated in 1982, the word was that one of those guys, Gilman Kimball “Davy” Crockett, was still alive.
In 1984, when I was living in Southern California, I received the Zeta Zephyr and it had an update from Gilman Crockett, ’15: “I understand I’m the only one left of the original group of brothers. I think everyone thinks I’m dead! Davy is alive and well in living in Long Beach CA. He’s planning an around the world trip “if my health and money hold out.” I remember thinking, I’ve got to meet this guy. It’s like meeting George Washington for a Lambda! So, I called him and introduced myself. As soon as I said I was a Lambda Chi from Penn State, he got very excited and said how great of a time he had in the fraternity. We arranged to meet for dinner. I drove down to Long Beach and the first thing he said was “Let’s raise a toast to Lambda Chi.” We then went to a fancy seafood restaurant with an ocean view. I remember thinking, we didn’t have a reservation, but Davy just walked right up to the Maitre’d and said, “I’m Colonel Crockett and called in a reservation for two. Give us a table with a view.” She said, “yes sir” and we were seated. He then reveled me with stories of his life. He joined the Army to fight in WWI because it seemed like a great idea, until he got shot twice in France. But he did learn one line of French that served him well with the ladies – voulez vous coucher avec moi (would you like to sleep with me?). He was a lot of fun. And it just showed that if you were a Penn State Lambda Chi, whether you were in the class of ’15 or the class of ’82 or any other year, you knew how to have a good time and enjoy life. I salute Colonel Crockett and the other founders for starting what so many of us have enjoyed for over 110 years.
He is buried in Arlington Cemetery – COL Gilman Kimball Crockett (1892-1993).
Davy Crockett.