Story By Eliza Heiman
MONTEVALO, Ala. –Throwing spooky haunted houses, taking to the stage to represent Gold Side, to even playing the French horn, Cameron Short does it all.
Short is a junior at the University of Montevallo and an active member of Alpha Kappa Lambda. The fraternity has been on campus for almost 30 years, and with 30 members, AKL is the largest fraternity on campus. AKL is very active in the city of Montevallo with community service, holding fundraisers and even hosting parties.
One of the upcoming events that AKL is hosting is a haunted house in the Student Activity Center. The annual event is a way for students to get together and is a personal favorite for Short because of its Halloween theme.
Short first got his first recruitment offers for AKL in his freshman year at UM, but was unable to join due to his financial situation at the time. Despite that setback, Short knew he wanted to officially join the fraternity in his sophomore year. “We try to like just make the most of the opportunity that we have now with the guys that we get,” said Short.
“We try to like just make the most of the opportunity that we have now with the guys that we get.”
Cameron Short
This year, Short is excited because he gets to be a part of the recruitment process. “So it’s been interesting,” said Short, “going out and recruiting guys and telling them about my personal experience after being a newbie last year.”
Short, who grew up with sisters, appreciates the brotherhood he’s found in AKL. He said some of his favorite memories involve bonding with his brothers during what he called “small moments.” “there’s no business need to be attended to,” Short said, “there’s nobody else but us – just us guys – and we’re just hanging out with one another.”
Along with AKL, Short also heavily participates in the College Night activities for the university. In his freshman year Short played ultimate frisbee for the Gold Side.
Ultimate frisbee started out as something Short did for fun. “At first I was just playing for the intermural season,” said Short. “A lot of the guys I played with were on Gold Side and I kind of just got recruited.” Starting out indifferent as a green, Short became a Gold and continued to participate in College Night events.
When asked what his favorite memory of being in College Night was Short responded with one word, “winning!”
During Short’s sophomore year, he continued playing ultimate frisbee, and he got involved in College Night’s theatrical performances. “It was a surreal experience,” Short said. “I got to actually see what it was like to be a part of the cast and to be in the atmosphere,” said Short.
Short appreciated being in the shows but stated that the best part was when the winner was announced. Whether it was a win or a loss the relief of it being over made it worth it. “it’s one of those experiences that you wouldn’t trade for the world, you know, it’s a very unique experience, nobody else does what we do as far as College Night goes on any other campus,” stated Short.
Out of all the new things that Short has started since he came to UM, he still enjoys the activities that he did back home.
Short started playing the French horn in the sixth grade and continued to play in high school where he joined the marching band. When Short came to the university he had no plans of continuing to play.
“I was honestly just going to leave it all behind me and just like it was fun while it lasted,” said Short. At one point, Short was talking with a friend who happened to be a music major about how he used to play, and they recommended him for the wind ensemble.
Being in the wind ensemble has its perks, like taking a recruiting trip to Gulf Shores. “We stopped by five high schools, and we got to basically play for them, give them a showcase of our music, talk to a few of the students, and basically just pique their interests with the University of Montevallo,” said Short.
In the coming weeks, Short will travel to Disney to perform with the wind ensemble. “It’s been six years since I went last time,” he said. He’s looking forward to experiencing Disney more freely this time.
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