Chapter History – The Birth of PSI IOTA IOTA CHAPTER
After years of discussions and due to the large number of brothers living, working, and serving in the Fort Walton Beach area who were unwilling to continue sacrificing their time, family, and other obligations to travel outside Okaloosa County for fraternity meetings, these brothers began making serious efforts to establish a local chapter on behalf of Omega Psi Phi, Inc.
These efforts ultimately came to fruition. Nineteen (19) Omega Men, who were members in good standing with the Upsilon Alpha Alpha Chapter (Panama City, Florida), expressed their desire to establish a chapter in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. On Sunday, April 10, 1994, the Supreme Council of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., officially approved the charter and assigned the name Psi Iota Iota Chapter. This chapter was established in Okaloosa County, in the city of Fort Walton Beach, Florida.
The following nineteen (19) brothers are listed on the approved charter:
- Brother Arthur Becton
- Brother Arthur Blakely
- Brother Stacey Carswell
- Brother Gregory Cody
- Brother Roy Corlew
- Brother Joseph George
- Brother Cleo Goodin Jr.
- Brother Lewis Jennings
- Brother James R. Lewis
- Brother Keith Marshall
- Brother Cleophus McIntosh
- Brother Robert Palmer
- Brother Linwood Rodgers
- Brother Steve Seals
- Brother Fred Thomas
- Brother Benjamin Trotter
- Brother Dr. Rommie Wheeler
- Brother Victor Wheeler
- Brother Cecil Williams.
The chapter continued to build a strong foundation and a visible presence in the local community. Subsequently, it secured approvals from the International Headquarters, the Mighty Seventh District, and the Florida Statewide Organization (FSO). In the fall of 1995, the chapter established a Membership Intake Program (MIP) and on Saturday, November 11, 1995, Psi Iota Iota Chapter successfully conducted its inaugural Charter line initiation, which included two (2) candidates: Brian Evans and Charles Sansbury, “2 Came First.”
Since the fall of 1995, the chapter has held seven (7) additional Membership Selection Programs, totaling twenty-nine (29) m