Palm - Fall 2008 - (Page 8)

ato palm FEAT U R E COOKING Life Loyal Tau ﬁnds success through brotherhood GUY FIERI WOULDN’T BE where he is today without Alpha Tau Omega. In season two of “The Next Food Network Star,” Fieri was a contestant on the show when fellow University of Nevada-Las Vegas brothers notiﬁed ATO National Headquarters. ATO then communicated Fieri’s appearance to the rest of the ATO Nation and the resulting inﬂux of voting helped Fieri become “The Next Food Network Star.” “I had ATOs from all over the country e-mailing me and letting me know they voted for me,” said Fieri. “A lot of the success I’ve had (in life) is because of that overwhelming support from ATO.” Fieri now has four shows on the Food Network, ﬁve restaurants in California, and a wife and two sons. His most popular show, “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives,” has him spending a large portion of his time on the road. “My lifestyle right now is like herding cats,” said Fieri. “When you ﬁrst get into something it’s hard but the more you do it and the more you learn about it, the easier it gets. I’m really just trying to lay down a foundation for my sons Hunter and Ryder.” “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” also gives Fieri the opportunity to meet more Taus. “I run into ATOs everywhere,” he said. “Usually who is an ATO? Someone leading the program, winning the game, or calling the shots. Tau brothers just kind of come together.” AT O PA L M FA L L 2 0 0 8 WITH FIERI Even one of the producers on the show is an ATO. “During the show one of the guys was talking about being in a fraternity and I said I’m in the only real men’s fraternity in the country – ATO ped – and my producer stopped in mid n show and said ‘You’re an ATO? I’m an ATO’.” d Ironic that Fieri would be gungnitial ho ATO considering his initial ideas about fraternities. After attending junior college, Fieri had no plans to join a fraternity when he started ada-Las at the University of Nevada-Las s Vegas. “I met some guys and just hey connected with them. They had a great time, ran as a big crew and I was just in,” said Fieri. “I had the best time of my life in college use and a lot of that is because I got otherhood aligned with the ATO brotherhood ell with a focus on doing well in school, getting involved, having a good time and doing well together.” per The beneﬁts run deeper e. still for the 1988 initiate. “Learning the history and how it all came about and what it took to keep it going, that’s a big deal to be part of that and part of history,” said f Fieri. “The recognition of g brotherhood and working together, some people ﬁnd it ﬁnd nthropy in church or other philanthropy organizations but what I found rie in ATO is that camaraderie and shared experience.” For Fieri, ATO isn’t something he did in college. It’s what he is. “You ﬁnd what you are looking for in this universe. I was one of the least likely people to be in a fraternity,” said Fieri. “I meet people who say I was a Sigma Chi, no I AM an ATO. It’s the way you live, it’s a discipline, the way you believe. ATO is a feeling.” 8 https://secure2.ato.org/?id=0d5da84b-6ca6-40d3-8bad-6f9ddc539f70&u=

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Palm - Fall 2008

Palm - Fall 2008 Contents Navigating Guyland The Next Star 78th ATO Congress NHQ: Headquarters News SIR: Success in Review TAU: Alumni News ITS: In the Spotlight

Palm - Fall 2008

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