Beechwood Educational Foundation – History

The concepts of education and leadership were fundamental to the creation of Beechwood Educational Foundation (BEF) when it was formed, with the following Brothers serving as its initial Board of Directors:

Edward G. Bierhaus

A. Michael Cusick, Jr.

Peter C. King

William A. Shuck, Jr., MD

Robert P. Wylie, MD

William D. Boaz, MD

Alan J. Dansker

Ray Mehlig

James W. Strickland, MD

Richard E. Bonsib

David G. Elmore

Frank L. O’Bannon

King R. Traub

Robert M. Clark

Eugene D. Fletchall

William C. Reid, Jr.

Martin Weissert

Shortly after its formation, the Foundation was fortunate to have Brother Louis A. “Bud” Mangels (Zeta 1956; 1934-2018) serve as its leader. There could not have been a person better suited to lead the Foundation than Bud.

During his days at Zeta Chapter, Brother Mangels was a model FIJI, serving the chapter in a variety of leadership capacities, including Rush Chairman, Pledge Trainer, Chapter President and a 3-year member of the Bike team (including the 1956 Champion Little 500 Team).

After graduating from IU in 1956, Bud served Phi Gamma Delta at the international level in a variety of capacities.  He served as a Field Secretary 1957-1959, the Ritualist for ten years, Archon Councilor, Archon Vice President, and Archon President 1978-1980.  Bud also served as the Executive Director of the Phi Gamma Educational Foundation in Lexington, KY from 1991 to 1996. During his years of service, Bud was involved with the chartering and establishment of numerous new FIJI chapters, including Iota Sigma at Indiana State, Epsilon Alpha at the University of Alberta, Mu Tau at the University of Memphis, and Alpha Omicron Chapter at the University of Akron.

Bud served as a Field Secretary for the National Fraternity shortly after graduating from IU.
Bud also served the National fraternity as Archon President (1978-80)
Bud enjoyed meeting with FIJI brothers from all generations, including visiting with Diamond Owl recipients.

Bud enjoyed a successful professional career. During his days as a resident of Fairlawn, Ohio, Brother Mangels even found time to serve as Mayor.

Brother Mangels’ selfless dedication to Phi Gamma Delta and Zeta Chapter spanned an amazing 65 years of his life. He established an endowed scholarship fund within the BEF in honor of his parents, Gustav and Emilie Mangels. Bud battled non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma for several years and passed away on November 27, 2018 with his wife Barb and his family at his side. The Trustees of the BEF will be forever grateful for the devotion of Brother Mangels to Zeta Chapter and to the BEF.

Since its inception, the BEF has provided thousands of dollars for funding for the library, computer tools and resources for undergraduates of the Chapter House.

Additionally, numerous grants have been awarded to brothers of Zeta Chapter to recognize achievements in scholarship, education and philanthropic endeavors.

Through the Beechwood 2nd Century Campaign (B2CC), the BEF supported the educational components of the new Chapter House through commitments in excess of $9 million.

Our challenges for the future are to maintain and increase the ways we can support our beloved Zeta Chapter. We appreciate the past support of our Graduate Brothers and the BEF looks forward to continuing our efforts in the future.