Fletchall Room honors Union pioneer

High atop the Student Activities tower, the Fletchall Room pays tribute to one of the Indiana Memorial Union's greatest supporters. \nEugene Fletchall, who died Feb. 1, served on the Union Board as a student in the 1930s and returned to the University after his retirement in 1972, spending the next three decades working in support of his alma mater.\n"Most people have one 30 year career," said Indiana Memorial Union Associate Director Thom Simmons. "He had two of them."\nAccording to plaques on the walls of the room named in his honor, Fletchall became president of Union Board, Interfraternity Council and his fraternity, Phi Gamma Delta, as an undergraduate during the Great Depression. He also worked part-time at the Union hotel as a night auditor before enrolling at the IU School of Law. Fletchall received his diploma, but he never practiced law, instead taking a position with Swift & Company, a deli meats distributor. Fletchall worked all across the country for Swift, ultimately advancing to become its executive vice president. \nFletchall received the Distinguished Alumni Service Award in 1967, and the committee wrote of him then that "his quiet, unselfish service ... has spanned nearly 40 years and his great personal warmth and unexcelled strength of character have drawn to him a wide circle of firm friends."\nIn 1972, Fletchall retired to Bloomington where he immediately began volunteering. He spent the next 30 years donating his time to IU, the IMU and Union Board.\n"He was instrumental in raising endowments for scholarships for Union Board volunteers," Simmons said. "He realized that that was a way he could thank and support Union Board directors." \nFletchall was also the man behind the brick drive that sold named bricks in front of the Union's circle drive to raise funds for Union gardens, Simmons said. \nBut beyond that, Simmons said Fletchall, whom he met when Simmons came to IU in 1989, provided a link from the Union to other supporters.\n"He was the connection to the alumni," Simmons said. "He'd call them when they gave gifts or he'd write them letters and just say 'thanks.'"\nIn 2003, the room was dedicated in Fletchall's honor. Though he was in poor health and the room is one flight of stairs higher than the elevator goes, Fletchall attended the dedication. A year later, he had a second retirement, giving up volunteering 30 years after he began.\nToday, minus the decorations in Fletchall's honor, the room is much like it was when Fletchall used it in the 1930s. In that era, Fletchall and his fellow Union Board directors would meet in the room each week for their meetings. The original table and chairs they sat in more than 70 years ago remain today, flanked on all sides by artifacts including awards Fletchall received, his diploma, a petition endorsing his 1932 candidacy for Union Board president and a gold meat locker lock in a glass case to commemorate his professional career with Swift.\nOf all he gave back to the University and the IMU, though, Simmons said the most important thing was Fletchall's continual support of the students involved in Union Board.\n"He developed a special relationship with the Union Board presidents," Simmons said. "Through Gene, they appreciated the history and tradition of Union Board"