Alpha Phi Pi, Alpha Delta Chapter (Lynn, Mass.) Records

Alpha Delta was the Lynn, Massachusetts chapter of the national Jewish high school fraternity Alpha Phi Pi. Alpha Phi Pi was founded in 1920 by twelve high school students in New York. By 1932, it had grown to include 1,064 members across the country, produced a monthly publication, The Triangle, and hosted annual conventions.

The Alpha Delta Chapter of Alpha Phi Pi was organized in December 1931. It existed intermittently and in various forms for decades, with its last recorded activity in 1993. The group was organized by Lynn Classical High School student Louis Winer. Initially founded as a club because Jewish students were not allowed to join Classical High’s fraternity, it was accepted as a chapter of Alpha Phi Pi in 1932. Louis Winer was the Chapter’s first Chancellor. The Chapter’s advisors included Harry Weiner, the scoutmaster of Lynn Hebrew School’s Boy Scout Troop 4, from which several of the fraternity’s members also participated.

From 1932-1940, the Alpha Delta Chapter, comprising of students from Lynn’s Classical and English High Schools, met approximately weekly at Lynn’s YMHA. It held social events, such as dances, debates, and luncheons, and participated in the city basketball league. In 1939, Alpha Delta hosted Alpha Phi Pi’s annual National Convention, held at Boston’s Parker House hotel.

After a period of dormancy, the group was reactivated for a short time in 1953, with Louis Winer’s son, Saul Winer, installed as Chancellor. The Chapter met at Temple Beth El in Swampscott, and appears to have remained active through 1955.

An Alpha Delta Alumni group of the Chapter’s original members was formed in 1954. The Alpha Delta Alumni provided support to the high school chapter, attended its events, and held its own events.

Beginning in 1986, the Alpha Delta Alumni began to meet twice yearly, on the North Shore and in Florida. The last recorded activity of the group in this collection is a 1993 reunion, following Louis Winer’s death in that year.

1920

Alpha Phi Pi founded in New York

1931

Alpha Delta Chapter organized by Louis Winer in Lynn, Massachusetts

1932

Alpha Delta Chapter accepted into Alpha Phi Pi

1932

First officers installed

1933

Chapter passes resolution regarding Hitlerism

1934

Louis Winer retires as chancellor, wins chancellor’s gold medal at National Convention

1939

Chapter hosts Alpha Phi Pi National Convention in Boston

1953

Chapter reactivated in Lynn, Saul Winer installed as Chancellor

1954

Chapter Alumni hold reunion, apply for Alumni Charter

1986

Alumni begin holding reunions twice yearly, in Florida and North Shore, Massachusetts

1993

Louis Winer dies

1993

Last record of alumni reunion