Most communities share similar first signs of spring, like leaves budding and birds singing, but it is different in Newark, Delaware. The first sign of spring in this town is Alpha Gamma Rho and lawnmowers. Hundreds of lawnmowers lined up at the University of Delaware for the men of Alpha Gamma Rho.
Every April, the community brings hundreds of lawnmowers to the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, for Beta Upsilon Chapter’s annual Lawnmower Tune-Up. The chapter hosted the 21st Annual Lawnmower Tune-Up, April 14–16, 2023. “As a chapter with only 31 members, we are proud to say that we were able to tune up approximately 300 lawnmowers within a span of just 72 hours,” said James Mooney, Noble Ruler of Beta Upsilon Chapter. “It was truly an awesome accomplishment for us, and we couldn't be more thrilled!” During the event, the chapter cleans the lawn mowers, changes the oil, sharpens the blades, and replaces the spark plugs for $45 per mower.
“It was truly an awesome accomplishment for us, and we couldn't be more thrilled!”
In recent years, community members dropped off more than 500 lawnmowers for the event. Less than 20 lawnmowers were serviced at the inaugural tuneup. The chapter has serviced nearly 10,000 push lawnmowers since the inaugural Lawnmower Tune-Up, and is an important service for the community and its first sign of spring.
This article first appeared in SICKLE & SHEAF. To revisit the full issue of the magazine, click here.
