Volume 3: My days in a college fraternity Chapter 157 A Belated Gift
The charity dinner hosted by the SSD Stanford University Chapter was held as scheduled at the Langham Garden Hotel in San Francisco.
Former Chief of Naval Operations Thomas Hayward did not expect that he would still receive so much attention after his retirement and become the focus of the audience.
Almost every attendee in a suit would politely come over to chat with him, and then casually ask him about the cooperation plans between his Guardian Foundation, the Veterans Association and SSD that he had mentioned in his speech just now, such as using technology to improve the living conditions of veterans.
Thomas swore to heaven that it was because the Stanford branch of SSD donated 100,000 yuan to his foundation that he was willing to come to the charity dinner to help out. The speech was of course provided by SSD. He just took a quick look at it and found no problems, so he just read it out.
As for how to use technology to improve the living conditions of veterans? How would he know? Maybe transform them all into mechanical skeletons and allow them to return to the battlefield?
In the end, he could only ask these people to ask SSD, the organizer, to learn more details about the technology part of his speech.
When a group of business representatives from various Silicon Valley companies asked Tommy Hawke, the head of the SSD organizer, Tommy Hawke stood in front of these people with a sanctimonious look, starting with the opportunity of this cooperation, and finally talked about the details of the technology order. That is, they learned that many World War II veterans are already too old and even suffer from Alzheimer's disease, so the Veterans Association, the Guardian Foundation and SSD are preparing to find a technology company to cooperate in developing a portable electronic product, like an electronic bracelet or necklace, to prevent those poor veterans from getting lost...
Tommy Hawke stated his needs without blinking an eye. His serious expression made it impossible for people present to imagine that this portable anti-lost product was purely something he made up to trick them into buying tickets.
There are even several business representatives from Silicon Valley hardware companies who are seriously considering whether this kind of hardware product is feasible.
That night, thanks to the appearance of these nerds eager to get orders, a total of $310,000 was raised for the Veterans Association. Although it did not become the champion of the SSD charity dinner donation rankings over the years, it successfully made it into the top ten and ranked eighth on the historical fundraising list.
This made former chairman Charles, who was the first to learn the news, call from Yale University and scold Tommy Hawke for not being loyal to his brothers. He ran around to help Actor, but after he left office, Tommy Hawke came up with this gimmick for the SSD Stanford branch, so that he did not enjoy the honor as chairman.
For this charity dinner, SSD had representatives from seventeen university chapters in addition to headquarters officials. However, aside from a few major military academies, the rest were from other California chapters that came to help out.
After the charity dinner, the chairmen of these chapters moved to a relatively private club to dine and chat with Ian, Ted, Donald Rumsfeld, Thomas Hayward, Pete Wilson, Dick Cheney and others. The main topics were prescription drug discount programs for pharmaceutical companies and military personnel, which were topics Tommy didn't care about anyway.
Of course, having dinner with these big guys is the privilege of the SSD branch chairmen. Those rookies who were brought here to broaden their horizons naturally don't have this opportunity. But they are not completely empty-handed. Tommy took Jason, Tony and Dennis, and a dozen rookies from several military academies to another nightclub for drinks.
These rookies from military academies were no strangers to Tommy and Jason. After all, these two guys had appeared on the cover of the fraternity's internal magazine and had achieved financial freedom at a young age. Many SSD brothers regarded them as the new generation of business idols of SSD.
Tommy also demonstrated all the virtues that a qualified SSD brother should possess, he was forthright, generous, and talkative. After a few drinks, he became close friends with these dozen trainee officers.
When Tommy stood up again and raised his glass, everyone looked at him. Tommy pointed at Tony and Dennis, who were obviously a little alienated because they were not members of SSD, and said to the dozen people in front of him: "Do you know why they are here? Who is from West Point? Stand up, stand up!"
The four SSD members of West Point Military Academy stood up and looked at Tommy with some confusion. Tommy pointed at Dennis and said, "That guy's name is Dennis. The first thing you have to do when you become veterans is to punish him severely, because he will report to West Point as a freshman. Do you understand what I mean? He will report with my SSD internal recommendation letter, so you should figure out for me now how to make this guy incontinent during the rookie probation period."
"Really?" The four West Point rookies shook hands with Dennis, and the leader smiled: "Hello, Dennis, we will follow Tommy's instructions and take good care of you."
After Dennis shook hands with the four people, he scratched himself with that hand: "Wow, I can already feel your enthusiasm."
The SSD members from other schools burst into laughter. The four people from West Point Military Academy stared at Dennis and raised their middle fingers. "I'll remember you, Dennis. You will definitely show up at SSD. And I promise that by then, not only your people will be able to feel our enthusiasm."
"Want a few drinks?" Dennis picked up a bottle of whiskey and said to the four people, "Maybe I can let you see how much I can drink here before I go to report. It's not easy to make me lose control of my bowels and bladder, but I promise that if you get drunk before me, my bird will help you to have smoother bowel movements in the future."
"Where are the brothers from the Naval Academy?" Tommy ignored the drinking contest between Dennis and the four rookies from West Point, and continued to look at the crowd and asked.
Three SSD members from the Naval Academy stood up. "We can help you, Tommy. So you need our help teaching another idiot a lesson?"
"No!" Tommy smiled and put his arm around Tony's shoulders, introducing him to the three of them: "Tony, he is my brother from the same father and mother. Due to family reasons, he started school a year later, so he will go to the Naval Academy next year. Although he is a rookie, he is my brother. You can trust him. Let him help you solve any trouble. He is an omnipotent God. Believe me, after all, I have known him long enough, and he has never let me down."
"Nice to meet you all." Tony said with a smile after shaking hands with the three of them.
"Can you solve any problem, Tony? Tommy is a legend in our SSD. I'm curious about how powerful you are to make him praise you so much. You are welcome to enroll next year. We will hold a small welcome ceremony for you." The rookie in the lead had a drink with Tony and asked with a smile.
Tony nodded. "I hope it's not an incontinent welcome."
"Of course not. The Naval Academy prefers to strip the rookies naked and tie them to the mast of the training ship." The other party said with a smile.
"I'm sorry that I can't attend a military academy due to my health. I love this country and I'm willing to give everything for it. But it's not that bad. At least I still have you guys, the SSD bastard brothers, to protect this country for me. When I see you, I feel like I'm with you. If I can't stand on the battlefield, then let me stand behind you and do what I can. If you encounter any trouble in school or in the army, you can call me to talk." Tommy held up a glass of wine and said to everyone:
"Maybe I can't go to the battlefield with you, but I can prepare a small gift for your parents on Mother's Day or Father's Day, or accompany them to the hospital when they are not feeling well. In short, give me what you can't do by yourselves, and I will help you complete it. We are brothers, helping each other, and this is the meaning of SSD's existence."
"Cheers to SSD!" a fraternity member raised his glass and shouted.
The others also raised their glasses and echoed: "Cheers to SSD!"
Yes, this is the meaning of SSD.
"I wish you all the best in the army. Cheers, officers!" Tommy Hawke raised his glass and wished these young faces with bright smiles.
…
After the charity dinner, Tommy Hawke took off his suit, changed back into jeans and a T-shirt, and returned to Stanford University to begin his studies.
Most of the time, if friends wanted to find him, they only had to go to three places: the classroom, the library, and his residence.
A year later, Sophia finished all the graduate courses at Stanford Law School. After reluctantly saying goodbye to her classmates, she saw Mr. Page open the rear door of the blue Cadillac he owned:
"Miss O'Connor, I'm here to pick you up."
"Thank you, Paige, but where are we going?" Sophia asked curiously, looking at the old man who had a blank expression most of the time.
Paige deadpanned, "Go where Mr. Hawke wants you to go. He has arranged a job for you."
"He didn't even ask me if I was willing to continue working for him after graduation." Sophia sighed and looked at Paige with a wry smile.
Paige asked calmly, "So, do you want me to call him and have him ask you this question?"
"No, of course he doesn't need to ask me." Sophia turned her head and took one last look at the campus, then turned around and got into the car.
The car started and carried Sophia away from Stanford University campus, and her campus life ended.
…
"Good Girl, I knew you could do it." Tommy took out two cans of Coke from the refrigerator, opened one for Susan himself, and handed it to her with a smile.
Susan in front of me recently completed her credits at Davenport Community College and received a transfer letter from Stanford University, which means that she will become a freshman at Stanford.
"What major are you going to study?" Tommy sat opposite Susan and asked with a warm look.
Tommy in front of her looked more mature, but Susan felt that the biggest change in Tommy was his temperament, a change that was difficult to explain.
"Any suggestions?" Sophie asked with a smile after taking a sip of Coke.
Tommy shook his head. "No, you have to choose the major you want to study. No one else can provide any help with that."
"Political science. I want to study political science. I have read a lot of books on related subjects before." Sophie gave her own answer.
"Not a bad major." Tommy nodded slightly after hearing Sophie's answer, then thought for more than ten seconds before slowly saying:
"This major is considered a shortcut for women. I like to do things that take shortcuts and let people take shortcuts in life. It's normal for you to choose this. You have been deeply influenced by me. However, there is an important prerequisite for the success of taking shortcuts..."
"The ability to match it." Susan took the initiative to speak before Tommy finished speaking.
Tommy turned his gaze to Susan Curtis in front of him. Two years of community college experience had washed away her worldly air. Now, she was wearing a red baseball jacket, a white T-shirt with red piping, light blue printed jeans, and a pair of white casual shoes on her bare feet. She was no different from those college students. Sitting here, she looked like a California summer, giving people a sense of freedom, vigor and fashion.
Tommy was not unhappy when the other party answered first. He just smiled and asked, "The last time I saw you, you were still that gorgeous and fashionable student in the Upper East Side of New York."
"Last time I was there to help Mark meet someone in New York, so I was dressed like that. You said that clothes can reveal another face of a person." Susan looked down at her outfit and said, "Now I'm going to be a freshman, so I'm naturally going to make myself look younger and more energetic."
Tommy slowly lit a cigarette, looked into the distance and gave his own advice softly: "I think you should start an internship in political science while studying at Stanford University. For example, you can set up a fraternity organization that both men and women can join. There is only one hard standard for joining this organization. The other party must be... the first generation of Stanford students in the family. If you can play with these first-generation college students and make them identify with you, I think when you graduate, you can do a lot of high-paying jobs related to political science."
"Brotherhood?" Susan was stunned for a moment: "It's a bit beyond my expectation."
Tommy looked at Susan and said, "I will provide you with the expenses for the first year, but starting from the second year, you and your organization will have to be self-reliant. If you want to get my donation, you have to give me something that attracts me. This is the first lesson in political science, resource exchange."
"I guess you've helped me think of a name for it?" Susan shrugged and smiled as she looked at this guy who was obviously younger than her but always made her feel dependent on him through his words.
Tommy said, "The Greek letter ONE is exactly the English word ONE. This is its name, and it is also the name of all members of this fraternity, the first generation. What do you think of this name?"
"It's fine if you like it. The name doesn't matter. I'll try to establish it." Susan said to Tommy, "If you want me to do that."
"What reward do you want? I mean you got the transcription notice, which deserves an extra reward." Tommy laughed and asked Susan.
Susan exhaled, thought seriously for a long time, and then said to Tommy: "Give me a hug, Tommy, a hug."
…
Warwick, Rhode Island.
Colin Hawke opened the envelopes with the Stanford logo and read the contents:
"Student Tommy Hawke, we have confirmed that your GPA is above 3.5. We are honored to award you the Stanford Academic Achievement Honor Cord."
"Student Tommy Hawke, we have confirmed that we would like to thank you for , winning the third place in the California League. We are honored to award you the Stanford Outstanding Achievement Honor Cord."
"Student Tommy Hawke, we have confirmed that we would like to thank you for participating in the development of software engineering standards and information technology standardization research at the Department of Computer Science at Stanford University during your time at school. We are honored to award you the Stanford Important Project Participation Commemorative Honor Cord."
"Mr. Tommy Hawke, former president of SSD, I am honored to present you the SSD graduation commemorative honor cord on behalf of all SSD brothers before your graduation ceremony."
Tommy looked at his father and said, "These honors give me the courage to invite you to my graduation ceremony, Dad. These are enough to prove that I have not wasted my time."
"Of course you didn't waste your time, but that's not important enough. In my opinion, what you deserve the most praise for is..." Colin Hawke carefully put away the letters and said to Tommy:
"What you should be praised for most is that you found a girlfriend when you were in college. Otilia is a good girl. During the years you were in college, she would come to say hello to me and Bethea every time she came back for vacation. I need to tell you something solemnly. The Hawke family has rules for breaking up. If Otilia finds a better man and breaks up with you, I will comfort you, son, and encourage you to win her back. But if you are ready to let her down because you can't control yourself or you meet another woman, I don't know what her father, Mr. Farrell, will do, but my advice to you is the same as the one I gave to your brother Tony. That is, if a man from the Hawke family dares to let down the woman who has given so much to him, I will castrate him myself and send your thing to your girlfriend as a souvenir."
"Remember what I said about preparing a gift for you? It took a long time to prepare, but it was finally ready before I graduated. Now it's waiting for you in California." Tommy looked at his father, as if he remembered something else.
Colin stared into Tommy's eyes. "If it's a gift like the California girl, I guess your mother in heaven wouldn't like it. I say it again, you can't let down someone who treats you well. Ottilia is coming back from abroad. She even called me and told me to ask a tailor to come to my house to help me take measurements and prepare clothes for your graduation ceremony. You can't let down a woman like this."
"What are you thinking about, Dad? A son pimping ? Am I so despicable in your eyes?" Tommy said dissatisfiedly after hearing his father's words.
"Tony called and said that you taught him how to take his college friends to nightclubs and flirt with dancers. Thanks to you, Ashley, who moved to Maryland to rent a house to accompany her in school, now beats him three times a week." Colin took a sip of beer:
"His description of you made me think that you were studying how to be a pimp at Stanford University in California. Of course, it doesn't matter what you studied. What matters is that you had four years of college life that you thought was happy."
Tommy looked at his father speechlessly: "Tony told you that I studied pimping at Stanford?"
Colin burped. "No, he said it more directly. He said you are the madam, and he is the gigolo who dresses up to attract customers for you."
…
Summer 1987, Stanford University Stadium, Stanford University's 96th graduation ceremony.
For the graduates, this is the last and most important highlight of their college career. Of course, the highlight also belongs to the parents of the graduates. Even the unkempt Colin Hawke wore a well-tailored suit, with a neatly trimmed beard and carefully combed hair.
Like other parents of graduates, he walked towards the stadium along the red carpet aisle with a bouquet of flowers pinned to his chest.
Behind Colin was Ottilia, who had flown back from Europe specially. Even among so many parents, she was still dazzling , making many men fix their eyes on her. She was holding Bethia's hand and introducing to Bethia what would happen at the graduation ceremony.
Finally, there was Tony Leon, Vice President of the SSD Chapter of the United States Naval Academy, who was wearing the Naval Academy's summer white midshipman uniform and holding Ashley's arm.
After all the attending parents had taken their seats, the graduates, dressed in neat academic gowns and bachelor's caps, and led by their mentors, slowly walked into the venue to the rhythm of the Stanford March. At that moment, all the parents clapped their hands for these children until they turned red.
After the graduates took their seats, the graduation ceremony officially began. First, all the graduates sang the school song for the last time, and then President Donald Kennedy gave the last campus speech to the graduates.
Then it was the student representative's turn to speak. Bethea was very upset to see that the speaker was not her brother but a black girl. "Tommy is terrible. He didn't even speak on behalf of the graduates! If I graduate, I must speak as a student representative and dress up beautifully to attract everyone's attention."
Then, former U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher gave a speech as a famous alumnus and special guest of Stanford University.
When all is over, the principal reads out the name of each graduate one by one, invites them to the stage, presents them with their diplomas, and helps them to tassel their ceremonies. Then the students can give a brief confession.
Tommy Hawke was the last person to go on stage. The principal handed him his diploma and tasseled it. Then Tommy took the microphone and looked towards the audience:
"Dad, I know you are here. Remember the gift I said I would prepare for you? It's ready. On your last day at Stanford University, I hope the president will help you open this gift."
"Mr. Colin Hawke, this is your gift, and also Stanford's gift. Tommy Hawke donated three million dollars to Stanford University in your name to build a library. He hopes that this library will be named the Colin and Alida Library. Your name and your wife's name will be forever engraved in Stanford University. Every Stanford student will remember your contribution. Thank you for your support of Stanford University. At this moment, can I invite you to the stage and present you with a certificate of honor on behalf of the school board?"
The volunteers on the scene immediately guided Colin Hawke to the podium. When Colin heard the news, he was a little overwhelmed. After being reminded by Ottilia, Tony and Ashley, he followed the volunteers to the podium. He looked at his son next to him, and then at all the people who gave him warm applause, and took the certificate of honor presented to him by the principal with a confused look on his face.
But when the principal asked him to give a speech, he looked at Tommy at a loss. Tommy smiled encouragingly at him: "You can say anything, Dad. Anything is fine, even swear words."
"I'm not the only one who can swear." Hearing his son's teasing, Colin relaxed and looked at everyone in the audience:
"If his mother was here, she would be proud of him. Thank you Stanford... Let more people in this world remember his mother's name. Thank you, son, you are our pride."
Colin Hawke took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. He looked at the principal and said in a serious tone of request:
"Alida and Colin, I mean, can you put my wife's name before mine? That's my only request."
Before he could continue, all the parents could not help but exclaim and gave the warmest applause to Colin's decision. Even Ottilia and Ashley had red eyes and covered their mouths because of Colin's words.
Tommy was surprised by his father's decision. He looked at his father beside him and said, "I really hope my mother is sitting in the audience and hears your touching words, Dad."
"She can hear me." Colin hugged his son tightly. "Thank you for the gift you gave us. Thank you for remembering your mother. Happy graduation, son."
