Scholarship. Leadership. Success. In embodying those and other ideals, members of the prestigious Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity step up to the self-assigned task of role modeling &045;&045; or as the president of the Natchez chapter Dr. Samuel White put it, &uot;modeling life for others.&uot;

The Rho Epsilon Lambda Chapter, now with 16 members, received its charter in 1998, a momentous occasion, members agree. Because a chapter exists at Alcorn State University, the national organization hesitated to authorize one in Natchez, only 40 miles away.

&uot;It was one of the hills we had to climb,&uot; said long-time educator Fred Marsalis, now principal at Morgantown Elementary School. &uot;We had to convince them a chapter in Natchez would be a good thing.&uot;

Marsalis, a member of Alpha Phi Alpha since 1962, and physician Dr. J.R. Todd, a member since 1960, are the most senior members of the Natchez group. Most of the members joined during their college years, eligible only through stringent academic and leadership qualifications.

Having a Natchez chapter allows the men to serve specific needs in the town most call home. &uot;Our focus is on what we can give back,&uot; Marsalis said.

The three principles guiding the fraternity are scholarly achievement, brotherhood and service to humanity. Leadership at the national headquarters in Baltimore, Md., is crucial to successes of the Alpha programs throughout the world.

&uot;Through our various programs, we have ways to meet those goals. And brotherhood is important. We try to aid and assist each other in every way we can,&uot; Marsalis said.

The fraternity was founded in 1906 at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. Seven Cornell students banded together to help each other survive in what had become a racially hostile environment.

All of the seven students went on to achieve in their school careers and later in their vocations.

Todd’s parents attended Cornell, and he spent many summers there as a youngster, he recalled, as he thumbed through a book on Alpha Phi Alpha.

Later in life, as he became a member of the fraternity and learned of its history, he realized he had played in and around a house on campus that figured in the history of the fraternity. That memory is one of many that solidify Todd’s commitment to the organization.

&uot;It’s one of the few black fraternities in the community known for scholarship,&uot; Todd said. &uot;You need many organizations to make a community function, a multiplicity, the layers representing everything going on.&uot;

The Natchez chapter will be known for providing scholarships and for sponsoring such groups as T-ball and Little League teams. And they will be mentors.

&uot;Long before mentoring was a buzz word, this group was mentoring, providing leadership in the African-American community,&uot; Samuel White said. &uot;In a small community like this it is even more important that young people see men of substance who have accomplished something.&uot;

Thomas Tolliver, chancery clerk in Wilkinson County and founding president of the Rho Epsilon Lambda Chapter, said the long-standing tradition of service continues as fraternity members grow in stature in their communities.

&uot;And the needs of the community certainly are here,&uot; Tolliver said. &uot;And we implement our own programs on the local level.&uot;

Those programs follow the Alpha University approach, Tolliver said.

Each member has a personal way of identifying with the fraternity and its goals, said Edward Brown. &uot;To me it was a symbol. It was reaching for something you might think is out of your reach,&uot; Brown said. He described &uot;wearing the Greek letters&uot; and having young black men ask what they mean.

&uot;What better could you do than show them black men in the community who can achieve high goals. They find out the meaning of alpha,&uot; Brown said.

Michael Winn said anyone aspiring to be an Alpha Phi Alpha member knows it’s a challenge. &uot;It prepares you for life. During the pledge period you are challenged mentally and physically,&uot; Winn said. &uot;Alpha has a rich history, and we are very proud of that; and our legacy continues.&uot;

Darrell White said all fraternity members hold in high honor the founders and many of the high-profile members from the past.

&uot;I see the fraternity as a group of men aspiring to the ideals of men in generations that preceded us,&uot; he said. Dr. Martin Luther was a member. So was Paul Robeson &045;&045; and many other well-known figures. &uot;Their names are synonymous with the development of the African-American community nationwide,&uot; Darrell White said.

Winn said the fraternity brothers are anxious to be of service, particularly where there is a need to work with younger people. &uot;We would welcome any young group to call on us,&uot; he said. &uot;We would glad to mentor in any way we can help.&uot;