The Days at 559 Morris Ave.

There are many ways to label the house at 559 Morris Ave. in Elizabeth NJ. Some people called the Faux brick house rundown or dilapidated but those who spent time there simply called it the Chi(Rhymes with sky) House.

The 3 story house had many interesting features in it, it had an old fashioned banister that fell apart nearly every time somebody would grab it, a door that opened up to nothing except the back side of a wall, and the brothers room was supported almost entirely by a piece of a tree propped up in the basement. The walls of the brothers room were painted gold with black trim and was adorned by the paddles of the pledge classes of the past. The party room was painted with a high gloss black paint with gold trim and had it's own bathroom and kitchen in it along with a stage and stripper pole. The top 2 floors were filled with 5 bedrooms, a bathroom and kitchen. Each bedroom had its pros and cons. The 2 bedrooms on the third floor were the quietest but did not offer much privacy because it was just a converted attic while the bedrooms on the second floor were much more private but you could always feel the thump of the DJ equipment downstairs.

Days were typically quite living at the house. On nice days in the Spring and Fall we would light up the grill, crack open some cold beers and play wiffleball or just talk about the shenanigans that happened the night before. During the winter all of the brothers prayed for snow so we could have an excuse to have our "Chi Snowed in" all day closed parties.

Nights at the house were another story, the house was always packed with brothers, friends, and sorority girls. On mixer nights themes ranged from "80's Night" to "Toga Party's" and even "Anything but clothes." The Party room was full of people dancing, the brothers room provided a nice place just to hang out, and the kitchen had beer pong and drinking games. Late nights often resulted in trips to "The Trop" or even a drunken excursion to White Rose to grab cheeseburgers and Disco Fries.

While I write this it makes me think that everytime we (Sigma Theta Chi) lose a house it is a complete end of an era. Im sure the Brothers from the 80's feel the same way about the Jefferson house and the brothers from the 90's feel the same about the Westminster house as the brothers from 2003-2007 felt about the house on Morris Ave.

Living in a Fraternity house it whole lot of work that often goes unnoticed I would not trade my experiences in that house for the world.