On March 20, nine brothers of Tau chapter dressed in black blazers and red ties and set out to perform a “not so traditional” initiation.
Their pledge, Drew Smith, had checked into the hospital the day before complaining of stomach pain. Smith had been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia while in high school. Even though he had been cancer free since July 2011, his immune system is still weak.
Smith had transferred to the University of Florida in January, pledged Theta Chi, and had worked his way up to pledge class president. The brothers were afraid that Smith might not be able to make the initiation ceremony.
Travis Johnson, who had taken Smith “under his wing” as a little brother at the chapter, thought that it would be unfair for Smith to miss the initiation ceremony after all of the hard work he had done. So Johnson contacted Smith’s mother and set the wheels in motion for a surprise initiation ceremony.
The brothers gathered at the hospital, and Smith became first brother of his pledge class — from his hospital bed.