Centurion_A Dream Come True

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Centurion: A Dream Come True

Anecdotal ReflectionsOn the Beginnings

Of Centurion Social Club

Concerning Foundational Facts

About Centurion Social Club

Through Homecoming 1984

Participants:

Carl Cates

Danny André Dixon

Danny Mann, Jr.

Perry Sims

Kerry Wilson

Prepared Homecoming 1984

Tape and Notes Taken by

Danny André Dixon



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Contents

Beginnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Perceptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

First Plebes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

The Constitution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Sing Song ―New Kids in Town‖ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

The Dream Lives On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

Club Song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33



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Centurion: A Dream Come True

Beginnings

Danny Dixon

And so how did it all start?

Danny MannIt was the Monday after Bid Night (November 1979). Kerry Wilson and Carl Cates lived across

the hall from me in Smith-Adams. And Kerry said, ―Let‘s all go pledge Galaxy.‖ We all pledged,

and I can‘t speak for Carl, but I didn‘t work very hard at the rushes to get to know people. I juststood around. And Kerry was sort of shakin‘ hands and doing the stuff you‘re supposed to be

doing to impress people at rushes. And as a result, when the bids came out, I didn‘t get a bid.And Carl didn‘t get a bid. But Kerry did.

The Monday after bids had come out, I was walking through Moody Coliseum after chapel was

over and Bob Hunter stopped me and said, ―Danny, what club did you pledge?‖ And I said,―Galaxy. But I didn‘t get in.‖ And you know Bob. He seemed all upset and excited and

everything. He said, ―You need to drop by my office a little later on.‖ So later that afternoon I

went by his office. I really didn‘t know what he had in mind. I guessed he felt that I was upset or

hurt or something. And I assured him that it wasn‘t Galaxy‘s fault that I hadn‘t gotten in, and all

this kind of stuff , and that I hadn‘t tried hard. So anyway, we talked.

Now Bob hunter is the best man that I have ever met for finding things for other people to do. He

never, at any time in the talk that we had— which lasted about 25 minutes—he never said, ―Why

don‘t you instigate starting a new social club. But we talked about how he had helped Kinsmenget started, and how he was always pleased to see new social clubs get started because he was a

Frat (Frater Sodalis) himself. Anyway, I leaned forward and I said, ―Do you think that the time isright or feasible to start a new social club here at ACU?‖ He said, ―You know, Danny, that

sounds like a good idea.‖

Well, I got pretty excited about it and walked straight from his office to Garvin Beauchamp‘soffice. And I sat down. I told him about my discussion with Bob Hunter, and the idea of starting

a new social club. I said, ―Beech, what do you think about that idea?‖ Now you‘ve gotta knowBeech to understand this, but he leaned out slowly over his desk and got real soft and husky

down in his voice, and he says, ―Oh! Isn‘t that a good idea! You and your buddies‘d be the good

ones to get it started.‖

So I walked out of that meeting—and Carl [Cates], this is where your memory‘s gotta startcomin‘ in— and I was pretty excited about that meeting because we had Bob Hunter‘s backing,though that was the last input he had into the formulation of the organization.

That Monday night, Kerry was at a Nova meeting [Galaxy pledge meeting].

Kerry Wilson

It was a meeting to get acquainted with what was to be expected of us during the pledge period.



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Danny Mann

Anyway, Kerry was gone, and I knocked on Carl‘s door and I said, ―I‘ve got something I‘ve

gotta talk to you about.‖ And he said, ―What?‖ And we started talking about it. And he got pretty

fired up about it too. But the thing that we agreed on was that we could not tell Kerry because we

didn‘t want to cause a conflict of interest in his activity with Galaxy. We knew that he waspleased, and we were pleased for him, that he was in Galaxy. And none of us had anything

against Galaxy. But we also felt like we wanted to talk to some other people about it.

The next day, Tuesday, in chapel, Carl, Kerry, and I were all sitting together down in Section A

that year, Row B.

Perry SimsKerry, did you quit Galaxy before this or after this?

Kerry Wilson

I knew nothing about this before I was approached later.

Danny MannHear that, world? I was just getting to that.

Kerry Wilson

I swear upon my 35 mm pictures of long ago!

Danny Mann

So anyway, Carl and I were talking about it while we‘re sitting there. Kerry comes and sits down

beside us. And I remember this just like it was yesterday, because he didn‘t have a suit on, and

he also didn‘t have on his pledge pin. So I asked him, ―Where‘s your pledge pin? What‘s thedeal?‖|

And he looks pretty disgusted. And he looks pretty tired. And he says, ―Well, I de-pledged last

night.‖

Danny Dixon

Why?

Danny Mann

We‘re not going into any secret details.

Danny DixonWhy not?

Kerry Wilson

‗Cause it isn‘t right.



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Danny Mann

‗Cause he wouldn‘t . . . he doesn‘t need to . . .

Perry Sims [Interjecting]

Turn off the dad-gum tape recorder and let‘s get down to it!

Danny Mann

Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!

Perry Sims

And take away Danny [Dixon‘s] notebook, and we‘ll never tell!

Wilson [More seriously]Some of the things were not what I wanted to be subjected to.

Danny Mann

And there was something that you never told me about because you were sworn to secrecy.Something that happened on bid night that he didn‘t approve of at all. And he had struggled with

it since then—

Kerry Wilson

— that I could not see participating in later.

Danny Dixon

What was it?!

Kerry Wilson

I can‘t say. The only significance of this discussion now of me de-pledging Galaxy is that it was

not a club that I wanted to be a part of, even though I had personal friends in the club, and still do

have friends who were long ago; it was not the type of organization that I wanted to be in.

Carl Cates

I can tell what I recall he told most everybody. He said, ―Danny Mann and I didn‘t get in.‖ And

you‘ve got to understand—David Flow (a Centurion later) had pledged Galaxy and didn‘t get in.Carl didn‘t get in. And all my close friends are not in, and so—

Danny Mann

He couldn‘t see dropping fellowship?

Carl CatesRight. Right.

Kerry Wilson

But most of all, you know, this type of thing happens in clubs. One person gets in and then he

realizes, ―Well, next semester I‘ll go through the period and I‘ll get these things over and done

with.‖ But I couldn‘t see staying there ‗til next semester. And though I wouldn‘t have gone



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through it myself, I guess I made a judgment on their behalf that I didn‘t think they‘d want to be

a part of what I‘d been through.

Danny Mann

And the importance of this part of the story is that Kerry knew nothing, absolutely nothing about

Centurion before he de-pledged Galaxy. He de-pledged absolutely not encouraged by any of us.This is more important than the big reasons why he did de-pledge.

Now I‘m going to just Start wandering: One of the very important things about what we did after

that point was in recruiting. Kerry knew people that I didn‘t know. Carl knew people that I didn‘tknow, and I knew people that neither of them knew.

Danny DixonWe had one meeting, where a lot of people on campus came to express interest.

Carl Cates

It was like Curtis Carpenter and even Charles Pullen, and several guys who ended up beingMoonies [Galaxy] members.

Danny Dixon

Jimmy Fagala.

Danny Mann

I‘ll remember the deal about Fagala. I‘ll never forget that.

Perry SimsWhat was that all about?

Danny Mann

He wanted us to do weird things.

Danny Dixon

He wanted us to be a club club. I remember that previous to this meeting, there were several towhom we sent letters saying we wanted to be a club that was not like a club. A club made up of

people who don‘t need club. And that was one thing that we pushed that night. In the Main

Room.

Perry Sims

Yeah! He wanted the stuff like they did at LCC (Lubbock Christian College].

Danny Mann

Yeah! He wanted stuff for bid night like the shaving cream in the mouth and that kind of thing.

Carl CatesYeah! He wanted to start a new chapter here of an LCC club [Koinonia?]



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Danny Mann

Let‘s keep this in chronological order, now. I don‘t remember that on this Tuesday we could do

anything but ―P.R.‖ until the next Wednesday night. This was Tuesday after bid night that wetalked to Kerry about it, and started talking to other people. It was the next Wednesday night that

we had our first organizational meeting.

Carl Cates

We got together in your room Danny [Mann], and there were several people sitting, talking, and

thinking through the logistics of it. I remember your room mate Paul Sloan being there. It seemslike that was the time we decided that everybody was going to go out and talk to people about

being at this meeting we were going to have. And then there was the first major interest meeting

you‘re describing.

Danny Mann

And that happened in the Main Room. We talked to people, but it was all very ―hush -hush.‖

Nobody knew anything about Centurion until we had that Charters‘ Meeting in the

Administration Building. But nobody talked about it. Galaxy didn‘t know about it. And if theyhad, |Kerry, they would have give you a hard time about Centurion.

Kerry Wilson

I really didn‘t even get much flack about de-pledging, ―Cause another fellow de-pledged. And

they didn‘t bother him or me until—

Danny Mann

– Centurion became common knowledge.

Kerry Wilson

Right.

Carl CatesBut there was some pretty heavy duty stuff going on in that Main Room Interest Meeting. The

tentative name came up. Before the meeting, nobody thought it would be a serious effort or that

it would go through.

Danny Mann

I remember three meetings in the Main Room.

Danny Dixon

I remember before that big one, Danny, and your conversation with me. I wasn‘t exactly

organizationally involved at the first.

Perry Sims

I remember that Jim Nutt was the one with the initial input that we be a different kind of social

club, though he had other time commitments in basketball and didn‘t stay with us.



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Carl Cates

When he stood up and said that, it weeded out the people who thought we were going to be aclub that would meet and have a three-hour Bible study every Wednesday night. That gave an

opposite perspective to work against some of the people at the interesting meeting.



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Meetings

Danny Dixon

Well, Danny, go on with the substance of those first organizational meetings.

Danny MannWell, I was principally the mediator for discussion. All that meant was that I stood up in front

long enough to recognize some speaker and then I sat down, and let the meeting go until it gout

out of line. And then I‘d stand up and field another question, and we‘d discuss that. But we had

a lot of discussing about what we wanted it to be. I think we made a big deal out of making sure

everyone understood that we weren‘t against all the other clubs. But that we just like the idea of

the opportunity to start from scratch.

Danny Dixon

I heard verbalized, ―Give the guys on campus another option for a different type of club.‖

Kerry WilsonYes.

Danny Mann

It came up lots of times from a lot of the more fanatical people who said, ―We don‘t want to belike this or that of other social clubs.‖ And I remember we put down negative talk of bad-

mouthing everybody else. If that was the only way that we could make what we were doing look good— by talking down others— our purpose was no good anyway.

Kerry Wilson

I remember us saying that if we‘re gonna start from scratch to build an organization, let‘sdecided what we do want to do to unite social and spiritual— not to be anti-anything as best as

we could.

Carl Cates

We discussed the name of the club in the second meeting when we were fed the concept of being

a new chapter of the LCC club. If we did that we figured, we‘d have to adopt their principles. Wewanted something original. And everyone was coming up with names like ―Boanerges‖ Gr eek

for Sons of Thunder [It was being pronounced Bow AN er Jeez.]

Danny Dixon

I still wished we‘d had that name. If the Freshmen hadn‘t come up with that little group t that

little radical Spirit group that went by that name . . .

Carl Cates

Some of the people liked the idea of an entity that was concrete, that stood for something

historical. I was sitting down with an astronomy book looking for a name. Jody Dean had out his

Bible. And Jody, with all his quiet nature, screamed out across the room, ―We‘ll call it

Centurion!‖ And was sitting there staring.



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Danny Mann

Some people didn‘t like it because it was too much like Trojans. But we came back to it becauseof the rich Roman history behind it.

Carl Cates

Jody Dean had done research and presented most of that information in our next meeting.

Danny Mann

Well I know that sitting over in Smith-Adams with Carl and \Kerry that my concern was where

would we get our traditions, and that‘s why the Centurion idea appealed to me.

Carl Cares

When you talked about the original Rome as original conquering city-state, it was rich in namesand even in certain procedures that we could immediately incorporate into Centurion. For

instance, it took a Senate vote to raise a Plebeian to Patrician status.

Danny MannWhat came next?

Danny Dixon

That meeting where we said midnight is the deadline for being a Charter Member.

Danny MannI would never have dreamed of some of the guys who came in as being ones who would even

think of joining a club.

Danny Dixon

Time was winding down. We had to have a charter written.

Danny MannI remember talking to Ricky Kemp who was Vice President of the sTudents Association, and a

very good friend of mine at that time. I remember him saying that all a charter needed to say

was, ―This is what the club stands for,‖ and later on we could write the Constitution. There wasno time limit on that part of it.

Perry Sims

That‘s how I remember Jim Nutt wrote the statement of purpose for the club, ―To properly uniteour Christian lifestyle with our social lifestyle.‖ He had said in that original meeting that weought to be a club that Jesus would be a part of if he were in a social club. And we said ―Are we

gonna make Him to be a Greek dude!‖

[Laughter from All]

Perry SimsThat phrase in the Constitution wasn‘t changed until a couple of years later.



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Danny Mann

And really, the reason for that was that in two years we‘d lost and drifted from the idea of theoriginal dream and we were very uncomfortable with the idea of that in our Constitution. So we

took it out. I‘d like to see it put back in.

Perry SimsIt comes across weird. The way it‘s worded now, I think it says the same thing. It‘s just worded alittle more eloquently. If people would look at the original document in the Dean‘s office, they‘d

think we were a bunch of Bible-totin‘ Bible majors.

Danny Mann

Think of how much time we had. [Bid night was in the first of September]. October and

November was when we were going through the chartering process.

Danny Dixon

We had to have something to present to the Students Associatin. And the one thing that we didn‘t

have worked out was a statement on what our pledges were going to do. And all we wrote in theConstitution— and it stayed that way, and eventually caused the major conflict that arose in the

club—was ―Pledges of Centurion shall be called Plebes.‖ Period. That‘s all it said.

Carl Cates

They didn‘t need to know everything about our pledging period. We‘re getting a little ahead of

ourselves, though. We‘d decided on our club colors. Ron Armstrong, who‘d come from ArizonaState, came up with them [Maroon and Gold].

Danny DixonDo you remember the hole in the wall because of Ron Armstrong?

Carl Cates

Oh yeah! That argument over whether, because of his GPA, he could be in Sing Song.

Danny Dixon

Perry, you remember over at the Vanderpool Building, I was Keeper of Order [Name later changed to Parliamentarian, although the office of KO covered much more than mere administrative

procedure in meetings]. That first year you were Sing Song Director, and you looked at me in an

officers‘ meeting and said, ―Dixon, if the President of the University overrode the rules and said

he could be in it would you approve? Tell me, now!‖

Perry Sims

I just wanted as many people on stage as we could get. With our small numbers we were going tobe pitiful anyway.

Danny Dixon

And I wanted to go by the Constitution which said he couldn‘t.



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Perry Sims

Joe Hardin wanted to beat David Flow to a pulp.

Danny Dixon

And David Flow was so scared, and he couldn‘t hit anybody, so he just ran his fist into the wall!

Carl Cates

We‘re deviating. But to talk about the colors and things like that is just to put credit where it‘s

due. There are so many things. Who was on the first Constitution Committee?

Danny Dixon

Perry Sims, me [Danny Dixon], Tom Gritton, and Buddy Overton.

Perry Sims

And Buddy was there just for that first semester. He didn‘t even come back in January.

Carl CatesAnd he was the one who designed the logo.

Perry Sims

We were one of the most argumentative groups because no one would conform to what anyone

else wanted. That‘s why we wanted to start a new club.

Danny Dixon

This is true.

Carl Cates

It was the biggest group of non-clubbers that ever was in a club!

Danny DixonWe believed that everybody should have his say in a meeting.

Perry SimsAnd that everyone could do what he wanted and not have to conform to something else.

Danny Mann

But the thing that we did so well, was that when we walked out of those club meetings —

Kerry Wilson

— We were unified.

Carl Cates

Even in disagreement we were unified.

Danny Dixon

And that didn‘t hold true in the next couple of years all the time.



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Carl Cates

That‘s true.

Danny Mann

[Thoughtfully] But it did, that first year. We walked out agreed.

Carl Cates

We got all that ―jot and tittle‖ agreed upon at least by consensus.

Danny Mann

There was one club, and it was Centurion. It was not fragmented.

Danny Dixon

That was one of the main reasons that we said, ―Two-thirds vote for anything to pass.‖ We never

wanted there to be just a 51-50 per cent decision.

Kerry Wilson

That‘d be pretty hard to do. Ha!

Danny Dixon

Forty-nine/fifty-one!

Perry Sims

There we go! Danny Dixon, Math major.

Danny Dixon

But I‘m majoring in Bible!

[Laughter All]Carl Cates

What about that charter ceremony.

Danny Dixon

There never was a ―Charter O mever wo;; fprget. Tjpigj. |State upir fi;; ma,e/|‖ ceremony, though

the charters were all inducted. ―Grit‖ (Tom Gritton) made up the ceremony. I remember that I

always that of it as a strange deal, especially where it was worded, ―Where you stand, all have

stood before,‖ because on the first night in November, that was the first time it had ever been

done. No one went before! That‘s why we were charters!

Perry Sims

Danny Dixon

And, ―If you turn around, it will be on pain of death.‖



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Perry Sims

And we asked Mark Perry to pledge to the original ceremony about ―Your loyalty to the United

States.‖ And he kind of went, ―But I‘m a Canadian!‖

[Laughter All]

Danny DixonWe did take that out later.

Carl Cates

But let‘s face it: ―Grit‖ wrote most of that first ceremony.

Danny Dixon

He needs credit for that.

Perry Sims

I know that I about died laughing every time I did that part of the ceremony with the water

poured on the hands and said, ―This is for your purification.‖

Carl CatesI remember that first ceremony. It was a unifying time without any doubt.



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Perceptions

Danny Mann

We need to mention the coverage we got.

Danny DixonI remember this much: Everybody laughed us off as a legitimate club. They said, ―You‘ll never last.‖

Danny Mann

Let this name go down forever: Max Steward, in Galaxy, said, ―I hope they fall flat on their

faces!‖

Carl Cates

He was ―Mister Yes-I-Comb-My-Mustache.‖ He called Ricky Kemp, my friend who was a Frat.

And he said, ―Is it true that Danny Mann, and Kerry Wilson, and Carl Cates and some guys are

starting a new social club?‖ And Rick said, ―Yeah. But I think you need to talk to Danny aboutthat. I can‘t give you any information on it.‖ And Max said, ―Well I hope they fall flat on their

faces!‖ And the thing that we hadn‘t said yet is that a potential new club had to be voted on bythe entire Senate of the Students Association. The day that we were to be voted in, Kemp calls

me into his office down at the S.A. in McGlothlin Campus Center and says, ―Guess what I justfound out? Greg Muns, Galaxy president, has been on the phone to the leaders of all of the men‘s

and women‘s social clubs this afternoon trying to rally enough votes to defeat you all, and tokeep you from becoming members of the Inter Social Club Council.

Danny DixonWe knew that something like that was in the brewing.

Carl Cates

Well we thought it was going to happen at the Senate meeting, but we had in-house people there.

Danny Dixon

And they voted for us. No one voted against us.

Carl Cates

Kerry and I were both in Senate that year. And Kel Hamby wasn‘t gonna go against us. We had

the senior class behind us. We had the sophomore class behind us, and the freshmen sure weren‘tgoing to go against us. And it was pretty well sealed, gone, and honed.

Danny Dixon

We had our ―stuff together.‖ No one voted against us.

Perry Sims

And as much as Galaxy was against us, Kinsmen were for us.

Danny Dixon



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And why was Galaxy against us? I think it was because with the leadership that was in this club,

we were going to be a threat to take away the Moonies prestigious Number One position that

they‘d held for so long.

Perry Sims

Which we did by the time we were seniors two years later. And if there was one club that wedidn‘t agree with in the way they handled themselves, it was Galaxy.

Danny MannKinsmen were very friendly. Their spring President helped us a lot. Sub-T was very friendly. The

only club that Muns got to was Ko Jo Kai. And rather than vote against us at the ISCC meeting,

they just didn‘t show up. Galaxy was there and they felt they had to vote for us when they saw

everybody else‘s hands go up.

Carl Cates

In essence, we just marched right through. The Student Life Committee breezed us by. Senate

wasn‘t a problem.

Danny Mann

ISCC wasn‘t a hindrance.

Danny Dixon

Our officers were:

President — Danny Mann, Jr.

Vice President — Glenn Purselley

Keeper of Order — Danny Dixon

And I should say that in the revision committee even, there was never a change officially of the

title Keeper of Order to be called Parliamentarian. I don‘t know where that came from or why

it‘s allowed even today.

Secretary— Rick Flood

Bouncer — Joe Hardin

ISCC Reps (2)--?

Spiritual Life Director — ?

Plebe Pop— Carl Cates

In the creation of the Constitution we talked about the power we wanted the President to have.

Danny Mann

He had more power than any other President in any other social club. He had the authority to

veto any action, and it was dead.

Danny Dixon

But he could be removed from office with a two-thirds vote.



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Danny MannI started to veto Sing Song that first year.

Perry Sims

I wish you had.

Danny Mann

But it was a good exposure.

Danny Dixon

You only used that power once. There was a close vote on some action the club was considering.

Danny Mann

I don‘t know if the present President, Kevin Gwin, even knows about that power.

Danny DixonHe knows.

Danny Mann

What did I use it for?

Carl CatesIt had to do with some close vote the club had for what to do for spring social in 1980.

Danny DixonThe vote was just at the two-thirds, but it was clear that a lot of people weren‘t comfortable withit. And so for unity of spirit, Danny, you vetoed it, and everybody respected the decision.

Danny MannI thought it was over Greg Melton. He wanted to play in intramurals, but he was inacactive

because he had missed too many Wednesday meetings because he was a weekend youth

minister. I wanted to veto the club decision to let him.

Danny Dixon

I don‘t think that‘s what it was. Carl is more on target about that.

Carl Cates

You were nubbed for not wanting Melton to be in intramurals.

Danny Mann

I guess that was when I began to go down in popularity.

Danny DixonThe club has reaffirmed its position on inactive status in a recent meeting (1984).



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The First Plebes

Carl Cates

Well, let‘s step back some. We need to get into the first pledge period and Sing Song. I‘m goingto insert something here because I froze half to death doing a bunch of this stuff. I was working

in town over Christmas in 1979. I was trying to earn money for Spring tuition. There were only

three of us in town.

Danny Dixon

Oh yes. That year we chose Sing Song Director. The candidates were Perry Sims and Rick Flood. We knew there‘d be no time after our return to do any preparation for Sing Song. We hadonly become a club in November 1979. It was December. Sing Son would be in February of

1980. And we had to have the pledge period set up too.

Perry SimsWe had to submit a name for Director just a few weeks after we started the club—

Danny Mann

— We did a lot of things like that.

Carl Cates

Yeah, we did—

Perry Sims

Because ―Highty Duty‖ (John Duty, Director of Special Events wanted the names by the end of the month).

Danny Dixon

I remember how in the officers‘ meeting we consciously said we were going to railroad throughthe Pledge Master.

Carl Cates

I think Grit had been Plebe Pop but he‘d decided not to come back in the Spring, and didn‘t tellus till the very end of ‘79. But I was going to be in town. I remember studying in the library. And

I researched and wrote. That‘s when everything concerning traditions that got in the Pledge Book got written. Grit and I dreamed and schemed and bounced a thing or two off Kerry, and cooked

chili, and got ill, and played ―42,‖ and all sorts of things to plan for the pledge period.

Let‘s say some more about first bid night, skipping the part where Danny Dixon screamed at

everything I‘d planned.

Danny Mann

And I wore a suit the whole night because I was so uptight about the whole thing.

Perry Sims

Ha! And that was the stupidest thing you ever did!



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[Laughter from All]

Carl Cates

My favorite memory was when I shouted out that the Plebes had to do 200 pushups and 200 sit-

ups, and Al See pooped off, ―Sir! May I show my fellow Plebes how to do these, sir?‖ He drops

and gives us 25 on each arm— after having done the 200 of each previous requirement. We leftAl alone for the rest of that night.

Perry SimsI was fixing to say, no one messed with Al!

[Laughter from All]

Danny Dixon

I will say that we treated our pledges better than all the clubs. We began the night by taking them

all to a steak dinner. Their pledge periods after that first night was primarily not in being put to

shame by the club, but by them doing service for others on campus.



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The Constitution

Danny Mann

What do we need to cover?

Danny DixonI think we need to cover the significance of the Constitution.

Danny DixonAnd I remember how all of us on the Constitutional Committee [Jody Dean, Perry Sims, Buddy

Overton, Tom Gritton, Kerry Wilson and Danny Dixon] would meet in Walling Lecture Hall

sitting there with a dozen constitutions spread before us from the various Christian Colleges.

And we looked at them. The President of Kinsmen gave us the Kinsmen Constitution. He said,

―Call on us if there‘s anything we can do to help.‖

Perry Sims

I wanted something that was very simple that we could look to, like the U.S. Constitution, thatdidn‘t tie us down to legalities.

Danny Dixon

And I wanted us to be legally tight, so there‘d be no questions as to what we were about inspecifics that were significant.

Danny MannI wanted us to be legal too. I wanted everything to be obvious ‗cause you‘d be ―loose‖ if youweren‘t.

Danny Dixon

There‘s a lot that still is ―loose‖ in it as it stands now.

Kerry Wilson

The Committee had our own little ―Mini Knock -Down-Drag-Outs‖ working on that thing. Butwe all wanted the same thing, though— something that was going to be significant and last.

Danny Mann

We need to write a commentary on the Constitution, so that future generations can know our

original intent, or else anything could come up in interpreting it.

Danny Dixon

If there was ever a Commentary on the Constitution, the only people who could ever do it would

be the charter members. No one else could ever know our intention as we knew it. Whatcompromise did we come to, Perry, for it to be a précised document as it is?

Perry Sims

One of those characteristic Centurion long, long, meetings, and I gave in. My will was weak! Welooked at all the different constitutions, and our original Constitution was very similar to them.



21

Danny Mann

I had nothing to do with writing the Constitution.

Carl Cates

Nor did I.

Danny Dixon

The club voted on every single paragraph that the Constitutional Committee originated.

Danny Mann

That‘s why we had some long meetings at the first. That‘s where I get my everlasting reputation

for being long-winded. I don‘t think I am, let the record show . . .

Danny Dixon

Notice how long, even now, it takes for him to get to his point.

Danny MannWe had such long meetings because we had to write and ratify a Constitution.

Danny Mann

When I got the letter inviting us to Homecoming Breakfast this time, I sat down and read it and

just got real reminiscent. I thought, ―Isn‘t it funny that all that had to happen on a point of

procedural conflict was for Danny Dixon to stand up as Keeper of Order and say, ―YOU CAN‘T

DO IT THAT WAY!‖ as if it were physically impossible to proceed the way we might have been

thinking. And it was because of the Constitution. He would stand up and say it. And unlike what

most other groups of college people would have done like saying, ―Oh, that‘s just a piece of

paper. It‘s no big deal!‖ when he stood up and in that high -pitched shrill shout, ―Order!‖ andread why from the Constitution, nobody questioned it.

Danny DixonMitch Mullhall, in my opinion, has been the only other person with a parliamentarian spirit who

has realized the power and importance of his office of Keeper of Order. I remember in the

creation of the Constitution that the Committee knew that first and foremost, this club had got tohave a law that could not be changed on a whim. And as we were sitting down and writing out

things, I remember pushing, pushing, pushing to make the parliamentary p0wer great in the

office of Keeper of Order.

Danny Mann

Of all the things that I disagreed with Danny on, I agreed with him 100% on this, and I always

backed up that Constitution. Sometimes I wanted to interpret it differently than he did. Iremember that I could wait to read it as it would come along. The Committee would work on it,

and Dixon would type on it until late in the night, and I‘d get it the next morning. I‘ll never forget that.

Isn‘t it interesting that we became the second largest club on Campus in a year and a half?Second only to Galaxy, and I believe with all my heart— and you may choose to edit this out,



22

Danny [Note: I didn’t— D.A.D.]— that those people who were recruited in that time in that first

year and later became members the next year, they were recruited when we were following thatConstitution that we had very carefully worked through. And while all of the leadership that club

had, their lives centered on God, and in trying to live like Jesus lived.

Kerry WilsonI remember the prayer meetings.

Danny MannI remember prayer meetings. I remember getting up in chapel once when I led singing, Dixon

spoke, Kerry led a prayer, and Karl gave the announcements— when everybody leading in the

ACU chapel experience that day was a Centurion. And it wasn‘t because it was Centurion Day

either. We were spiritual leaders on campus and we just happened to be chosen to participate thatday. That was my proudest moment in club. And I remember it happening at Hillcrest Church

too.

Kerry WilsonMany of the L.I.F.E. Group leaders were Centurions [L.I.F.E. small groups at the Hillcrest

Church of Christ. Norman Archibald, who was Dean of Students at Abilene Christian University

at the Time, was also Hillcrest‘s University Minister during its period of greatest numericalgrowth with college students. His ministry schema organized the 1,000-plus students in the

L.I.F.E. groups. The letters of the acronym stood for Love Involvement Fellowship and

Evangelism.]

Carl Cates

Some nicknamed it Centurion Church of Christ.

Danny Mann

The point that I‘m making is that this club has come through a difficult time here recently. And it

had the difficult time because of this: The Constitution was not held up. And because the club

itself —and I don’t say this to put down individuals— but the club itself was not centered in the

same spiritual atmosphere.

Danny Dixon

I always used to get peeved in reading through Contending for the Faith magazine when these

guys would write these articles and say, ―Brethren, we‘re drifting!‖ And they‘d rant and rave

about how we as a fellowship were leaving the Churches of Christ. And I can rememberwatching the club, after its second year. Decisions were made with the statement: ―These arethings clubs do!‖ And I would think, ―We are drifting! How often there were times that we‘d

make decisions precisely for the reason that we didn’t want to be like other organizations.

Danny Mann

Sometimes we went overboard.



23

Danny Dixon

True, we did. But we had a certain consciousness of our own valid uniqueness that attractedpeople.

Danny Mann

I wanted us to be pro-active, not reactive. But I agree. I wanted us to chart our own course, notbased on what others were doing.

Perry SimsThat first year, half the stuff we talked about centered around being unique — even if it meant

hanging our President from the bell tower—

Danny Mann

— Which as President, I was always against!

[Laughter by All]

Danny Mann

Let me say this: I would like this history to include a prediction from us as original officers: As

long as Centurion goes by that Constitution and keeps at its absolute center ―God as the basis for

everything they do,‖ God will bless them. I don‘t believe we became the second largest club oncampus and became a real force on campus that everybody talked about by our own merit. I

believe with all my heart that God blessed what we did. And that‘s the reason that the club grew.

And that‘s the reason that it was so dynamic you couldn‘t even put a handle on it.

Danny DixonKevin Gwin reaffirmed this at the breakfast this morning. So at least we knew where the desire

of the club is. We just have to have people with the will and the fortitude to be tenacious about

following through with that reaffirmation for a spiritual focus.

Danny Mann

Put that in there!

Danny Dixon

Danny, what are your feelings about the current revisions in the Constitution?

Danny Mann

I‘m not comfortable with them. Because until we put together some kind of commentary, any

revision may really go off the track of what we originally intended for it to be. And we don‘t

have any control over that.

Perry Sims

Well, what we originally wanted it to be and what i t‘s become over the last two years is different.

It‘s their club and what they want it to be.

Danny Dixon



24

Now, you see, that‘s one thing I didn‘t like about Kevin‘s speech this morning, which reflects

what you‘re saying, Perry.

Carl Cates

What was said?

Danny Dixon

He said, ―I really appreciate the guys in past years that let go and let it become our club.‖

Perry Sims

The older guys, 24 years old, need out. Carl‘s in there. But they‘re returning to the the dream.

Danny Mann

But don‘t you think they‘re getting back because of Carl Cates‘ influence, and because of DannyDixon‘s influence?

Carl CatesI was casually active until this Fall when they asked me to come back.

Danny Dixon

Let me say something. I‘ll tell you one of the reasons I think the present leadership wanted to goback to the old was the big hullabaloo that came over C.W. and K. B.. They wanted to get into

club in the Fall of 1982. Jim Brown was Spiritual Life Director. Jeff Conner was President.

Kerry Wilson

I was never aware of this since I‘d already begun my family.

Danny Mann

Are you gonna put this on tape?

Danny Dixon

Well no. [Substance: The two individuals initialized above wanted to join Centurion. Their

qualities were such that they met all the high standards of character specifically outlined in theConstitution. Derogatory remarks were made bid night concerning their not having some of the

more socially recognized qualities such as athletic prowess, which would make the club more

attractive and a more significant force in intramurals. Dixon made efforts to get the Constitution

amended to more precisely represent the initial spirit of the document that would not ―black ball‖the entry of people in to Centurion because people may have found them inept by worldly

standards when they really represented the highest of godly qualities and would be an asset to the

club in those ways.

The proposed amendment was not to forbid a vote to keep any individuals out of club, but was

designed so that if a person did not get a bid, all voters would be required to state their reasons

for not desiring particular candidates. The spirit of the move would be to make sure thatillegitimate intent, as powerful as it might be, could not function under cover of darkness and

intrigue. All would be exposed, although the vote might stand anyway, if these voters wanted to



25

stick with their intentions. The proposed amendment of which three sentences were read was

never fully allowed to be read to the club for the members‘ consideration due to certainperceived parliamentary irregularities.]

Danny Dixon

The original intent of the organization was that good people could be in the club and that peoplewould be openly responsible for their action in rejecting individuals.

Danny Mann

That‘s such a subjective thing.

Kerry Wilson

This would keep them out of pledgeship, not club.

Danny Dixon

In our haste in leaving out until later the Constitutional statement on pledges, we never defined

how one could become a pledge. We merely said, ―Pledges shall be called Plebes.‖ Until 1982,there was no statement on how to decide who could get in or on how to vote people into the

organization. It was a fundamental error. And we never did it the same way twice up until thattime. Nor did we anticipate a problem like the one that happened between the two guys

mentioned above. It was finally voted that year that any person who would vote would have been

in quality contact with the prospective Plebe. If a member didn‘t attend the retreat that potential

Plebes were invited to, he could not vote. It was felt that rushes and teas were inadequate to getto know these people.

But when the next election year came around, and the next pledges were up for bid, the processfor a retreat was totally rejected and removed from the Constitution before it was ever put into

effect even one time. And the danger for another affair like this one still remained.

Eventually, we came up with unofficial and unconstitutional First and Second Votes. But at thattime, only one vote existed in the Constitution. And that was the one that stated how one became

a member— by open vote. We really messed up by not being precise with regard to pledges.

Kerry Wilson

No one ever asked us to be specific in the Constitution after we went to that first SA meeting.

Danny DixonAnd we paid for it later. I made several trips to Dean Beauchamp when Jeff Conner was

President and all of this was blowing up, and he said, ―There is no second vote.‖ The thing was

that the whole system was arbitrary. Too much was taken for granted.

Danny Mann

Really, our ―Second Vote,‖ which wasn‘t in the Constitution was a formality.

Danny Dixon

So then the most important vote was the ―First Vote?‖



26

Kerry WilsonRight.

Danny Mann

No one had ever been turned down on the Second Vote, to my knowledge.

Danny Dixon

But how many had been refused entrance for illegitimate reasons? And when it happened with Kand C, they were wrong not to allow them in.

Perry Sims

Sure they were. That‘s why we need to let it go. \ it‘s not ours anymore, it‘s theirs.

Danny Mann

That‘s the problem with the ACU Social Clubs structure. And if the truth would be known— and

get ready for this; this is radical— I would like to do away with the vote, period. But at the sametime you can‘t do away with selectivity and be successful at Abilene Christian. That‘s the nature

of the beast. And to be selective, sometimes a certain group of people will turn down a certainperson here and there.

Danny Dixon

I‘ve never been against selectivity. I‘ve just be for responsible selectivity.

Danny Mann

Well, remember the personality and characteristic of the social club at that point in time whenthey made that decision. The decision even was indicative of and sheds light on the club at that

time. That was probably a smart decision on their part— get ready for this— it was probably a

smart decision for them to do that, because even though those two guys were the type of guys

we’d have originally Chartered even, they would not have fit into the club at that point in time.They would have been disillusioned. They would have chosen to be Inactive.

Danny Dixon

If the guys that aren‘t in the club now had gotten in and gotten into leadership positions, the clubwould be as it was at that time. And I‘m speaking in terms of their stated intent as present

officers. Only time will tell what will happen.

Perry Sims

This is a question of when the club would have made it back to our original intentions. A year

earlier or now. It doesn‘t matter because it seems they‘re there now. What‘s happened hashappened.

Danny Mann

People are going to be misused in the present ACU Social Club Structure. If I had my way, and

I‘ve told Beech this before, I would completely wipe social clubs off the face of the ACU



27

campus for two or three years and then reorganize them in such a way that the process of

selectivity would be a whole lot different.

Danny Dixon

I‘m saying the blow up caused them to see what was going wrong.

Perry Sims

Well, then maybe that was a good thing to happen.

Carl Cates

It may have been.

Danny DixonWe never intended for the vote that was in the Constitution to be an insignificant formality. And

it must not be that even now, or ever.

[Note: As of the writing of the present editing of this document, a new ACU methodology for entrance into Social clubs which solved the problem by a system of lots and bids where students

are allowed to chose their clubs they want to be in and to have several choices. The present

document is basically historically accurate up through 1984.— D.A.D. 2011]



28

Sing Song: “New Kids in Town”

Carl Cates

Perry, say something about Sing Song.

Perry SimsSing Song 1980 was one of the most embarrassing experiences in my entire life. I was standing

there in front of a bunch of people with nothing on but a sheet!

Danny Dixon

Sing it!

Perry Sims

No way. Don‘t you know it?

Danny Dixon

No. I wasn‘t in that Sing Song. I think I was off being a god running at a track meet. I‘m notsure.

Danny Mann

Kill Joy!

Danny DixonHey! I think, in reality, at that point in time, I was against dancing, which included for me, as

ACU called it (only on Sing Song nights) ―choreography.‖

Kerry Wilson

My how our values have changed over the years!

Perry SimsNew Kids in Town

(Begin to the Tune of ―One Tin Soldier‖)

Listen, people, to the story that began three months ago,

All about the new beginning of the club Centurion.

Told that we would never make it,

Told we would not last too long.

But we didn‘t listen to them.

Now we‘re singling in our first Sing Song!

We‘re the New Kids in Town!

We‘re the New Kids in Town!

There‘s a new club in town.

―I don‘t want to hear it!‖

There‘s a new club in town!

―We don‘t really want them!‖



29

[Tune: ―The Quest‖]:

―They will dream the impossible dream.

They‘ll fight the unbeatable foe.

And besides, they‘ll steal all our pledges.

Oh please! Don‘t let them go on!‖

[Tune: ―Looks Like We Made It‖]:

But it looks like we made it,

And we‘ve only just begun. \ Cause we‘re Centurion.

Now we‘re a club. Yes, we‘re second to none.

(Centurion!) Now we are one.

Yes, we are Centurion(Centurion!) We really did it!

Now that we‘re one. We‘re brothers of Centurion!

[Tune: ―We Did it Our Way‖]: And now the future‘s clear.

And so we face our opening curtain.

My friends, we‘ll say it clear

And state our case of which we‘re certain.

We‘ve lived, we‘ve laughed and cried.

But through it all we found each other.Oh, but more, much more than this,

We did it our way!

For what is a man? What has he got?If not a club that he has not

To say the things he truly feels,

And not the words of one who kneels.

The record shows we took the blows,And did it our way ! ! !

Danny DixonOh man! The history in that song!

Danny Mann

Isn‘t it the truth? ―And now we‘re singing in our first Sing Son . . .‖; ―We did it our way . . .‖;

―They said we‘d never make it . . .‖

Perry Sims

You know when I wrote that line, I always thought that we‘d be saying 50 years from now,

―We‘re singing in our fiftieth Sing Song,‖ and that we‘d use that line every year.

[Laughter from All]



30

Kerry Wilson

But you see the whole significance in being in Sing Song that first year was not to win it . . .

Danny Dixon

It was to prove that we were a club.

Kerry Wilson

That was the whole idea. We knew we didn‘t have a chance. We just wanted to get up there and

do it.

Danny Mann

Yeah!

Perry Sims

And that‘s why we wrote the song that we did. Because you remember how we talked about

doing the Siamese Twins deal. And I said, ―You know that‘s a real cute idea. But heck! We can‘t

win anything anyway.‖ Let‘s face it: When Galaxy spends a thousand dollar s on their song and

costumes, there‘s no way you‘re gonna beat ‗em. And so I said we‘d save that for some other time and let someone else do it. I just want to do a song that lets everybody know that we are oncampus. And look what happened the next year. We put 23 guys on stage that first year. And the

next year we had 53.

Danny Mann

We tried in succeeding years to keep something going that we really didn‘t understand.

Perry Sims

But think about it. We were 18 and 19 years old. Sophomores. That explained a lot of the hassles

we had to go through.

Carl Cates

Oh yeah! But I can‘t believe I stood up and said, ―We can‘t let M. P. in because he shakes handslike a dead fish!‖ That‘s embarrassing.

Perry Sims

But think about it: That‘s a 19 year old mentality. ―A real man doesn‘t shake hands like that.‖That‘s what everybody said. But it‘s to our everlasting credit that we didn‘t listen to it, and he

was there in the club with us.

Kerry WilsonAnd he turned out to be a super guy.

Carl Cates

As a matter of fact, I even voted ―yes‖ after having said that and the members discussed his

potential.



31

Danny Mann

I think I did wrong with Greg Melton, in not wanting him to be able to be in intramurals. And hewas a youth minister. You think back on all those things.

Perry Sims

Bart Castle, the second President, he was a good President. And the next year when he was inStudent Senate, that helped us more than anything else.

Carl CatesIt made me proud to see that, and participation in church. All the areas were covered. Social and

spiritual lifestyles were combined as we intended.



32

The Dream Lives On

Danny Dixon

Who wrote the Club Song?

Carl CatesThe two people who wrote that song were Jeff Conner and James Williams. And James refuses

to take the credit for it.

Perry Sims

And Conner has begged for it.

Danny DixonCome on guys!

[Laughter]

Carl Cates

James is a living paradox, because he does like recognition for other things.

Danny Dixon

Should we give it to them?

Carl Cates

I think we should.



Club Song

By Messrs Jeffrey H. Conner and James Williams

The sky was clear. The wind was cold

In November of ‘79.

On a cloudless night in the heavens aboveA new Star there did shine.

That selfsame star had been seen before

When Rome was grand indeed.Her leaders and her generals

Had looked up to that beam

For courage (for courage) in their hour (in their hour) of need.

The conquering might that enslaved the world

Is with us still today.

We‘re one small group with heads held high.

To God above we pray:―Look down on the Star that fell from the sky

With your Word guiding our way.Lead us through the paths

That the righteous did trod.‖

May the fellowship (fellowship) last (may it last) for aye!

Sure as the heavens and bright as the sun

Long live the brotherhood.

Sure as the heavens and bright as the sunLong live the brotherhood.

Centurion!

Centurion_A Dream Come True

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