On the first Brother Meeting of the semester, Cook Chapter took the time to recognize the past year's Executive Board. Each old member ritually handed over their power to the new Executive Board and each new member said a small speech about the wonderful things that our Executive Board has done in the past year. As a present from the brotherhood, each departing member got their respective Alpha Zeta official executive board charm. We welcome the new year and cannot wait to see what our new leaders have in store for us!

On the last day of classes for this semester, Cook Chapter decided to relax for a few hours and have a movie night. 23 brothers squeezed in to one room and watched Just Friends, laughed and ate. To make the night more interesting, each brother was supposed to bring a baked good to share and have judged by the old executive board in a Bake-Off. The 'contestants' ranged from cookies and cake to cinnamon roles and the winner got  a bag of 'study aids,' including Red Bull and various candies and chips.

The Florida Chapter of Alpha Zeta hosted the National Service Project for the second time. 10 brothers came from Florida and across the country to help in the Orlando area. The trip was an opportunity for members to work hard and make a difference in the lives of people we encountered or helped. The 10 members who came to Orlando worked extremely hard and made a huge difference in the lives of disadvantaged people in the Central Florida area!

On December 3rd, the brothers of Cook Chapter came together for their Fall Semester Formal. Over 60 people attended, both members of the chapter and guests. The chapter had fun getting dressed up and dancing the night away. Fun superlatives were given out, such as best big/little pair and hardest working brother, and each class preformed their class dance (a Cook Chapter tradition).

Alpha Zeta California Epsilon strives on giving back to the children and families of the Central Valley. Throughout the month of November and into December, members of our chapter were working hard to secure donations from families, friends, and local businesses to fulfill the mission of Project Shoebox. The goal of Alpha Zeta, Cal Epsilon's Project Shoebox was to assemble gifts for the underprivileged children in Fresno. These shoeboxes were to contain a variety of things (toys and necessities) that the children in our city may not get for Christmas...

On Sunday November 20, 2011, 20 brothers came together for the Cook Chapter annual Thanksgiving potluck dinner. Each person brought a dish, many using local produce that directly supports local farmers. While there brothers reminisced about the past semester while watching football (it is Thanksgiving after all). It was a comfortable night with good friends and good food.

On Saturday December 10th 2011, seven brothers of the Cook Chapter traveled to McCarter Theater (Princeton, NJ) to see their presentation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. This classic story was well presented with excellent acting and beautiful staging with fantastic set design and a few new songs that worked well into the show.

After Thanksgiving is an especially exciting time for our chapter. Not only is there only one week of classes left, but it’s time to prepare for the holidays! Just like any family, the holiday season at Alpha Zeta is filled with events that help to not only bring in the holiday cheer, but also to improve brothership throughout the house. This holiday season was no different.  In preparation for the holiday season, the house purchased a Christmas tree for display in the formal room and together, members of the house decorated the Christmas tree...

At the end of every semester, members of Alpha Zeta gather to hold their semesterly formal. It is a time to honor the accomplishments of graduating seniors and a time to hand out their mugs. This semester we honored Veronica Pallidino 11’ as the winter graduating senior. On December 2nd, 65 members and guests of Alpha Zeta traveled just up the lake to the Taughannock Farms Inn for the Winter Formal...

For the last several years, members of our chapter have volunteered at the Ithaca Shooting Stars Girls Ice Hockey Tournament. Our chapter’s chef, Peter Seznek, is the president of the local girl’s hockey league and asks us to help our every year. The tournament was a weekend long (Dec. 2nd-Dec. 4th) with games played at two different rinks in the area. Members help out by running the clock and keeping score for games. Around 10 members participated in the event throughout the weekend.