After Pledging Elsewhere, Legacy Ric Moody ’76 Finds True Home at PDT
Quite often, a son will follow his father’s footsteps into Greek Life, setting his heart on the same family of brothers that he has heard so much about.
But for Ric Moody ’76, the path was not so clear.
“My father didn’t influence my choice of fraternity,” he explains. “I actually pledged Sigma Chi and was pledge class president, but after a while, I decided it wasn’t for me. I de-pledged and pledged Phi Delta Theta.”
Keeping his dad, Paul Moody ’47, in the dark about his change of brotherhood, Ric surprised him at an Ohio State football game.
“I showed up at an OSU game with my pledge pin on. He said, ‘welcome aboard’,” Ric fondly recalls.
Ric, who didn’t live in the house during his time at Ohio State, feels that perhaps he would have had a different experience, but he doesn’t regret his decision.
“I may have had a closer relationship with my brothers, but would have also probably flunked out by having too much fun!” he says, laughing.
Already stretching his time in school from four years to six, Ric recognized the need for privacy to study, but still found plenty of time to enjoy the social aspect of the fraternity.
“I remember Monday night dances at the Castle, Thursday nights at the Varsity Club, and Friday nights at Char Bar. And I won’t forget cruising 15th Avenue with the top down, Streaking on 15th, and the Oval!”
It wasn’t all fun and games, though—Ohio Zeta left a deep impact on Ric, serving him well past college.
“Ohio Zeta gave me a sense of organization and structure,” he says. “Learning to be responsible to a bunch of brothers and doing the right thing.”
When he launched his career as a Commercial Real Estate Broker and Auctioneer, Ric was able to take advantage of his Ohio Zeta connections. Through his association with the fraternity, Ric rubbed elbows with movers and shakers, including presidents of banks and large companies.
“As funny as it sounds, golf helped my career, too,” he says. “It levels the playing field when you spend four hours with someone where you are equals. It was a great way to open doors and get to know people.”
Going back to the house isn’t something that Ric has been able to do very often, but he does return each football season to cheer on his alma mater, having not missed an Ohio State football home game since 1969.
Ric is also committed to giving back to Ohio Zeta, something he has witnessed since he was a child.
“Giving back is something I grew up watching my dad do,” he says, “so it is natural for me to continue that. I also funded a scholarship for a player in the Dayton area on the Ohio State football team.”
Keeping in touch with his brothers has been difficult, but Ric will always have the fraternity as a part of him and remember those years as some of the greatest of his life.
“After graduation, people go with the wind everywhere,” he admits. “You get busy with life, family, work—you keep the great memories, though.”