Written by Shealyn Wade & Tiane Davis | Photo courtesy of Bob Plunket
Harding social clubs have a history of tradition, some of which include passing down houses for older members to live in. Some use their houses for devotionals, others for movie nights. But what is it like to live there?
Senior John Allen Keith, a member of the men’s social club TNT, lives in a house called the “Grungeon.” The Grungeon has been a TNT house for the last 15 years. While it wasn’t necessarily the initial intention for it to stay a TNT house, passing it down to the next senior class of TNT members has been a tradition since 2006. Keith spoke about the camaraderie of living with six of his best friends.
“While living in the dorm with 100 people you know and love is awesome, having the space of the Grungeon has allowed us to host a vast group of people for devos, movie nights, football games, etc,” Keith said.
Keith said the Grungeon has a goofy and sweet nature, and it has cultivated community among the Grungeon men, as well as other TNT members and beyond.
Senior Braden Mathews, a member of men’s social club Knights, has lived in three different Knights houses, currently living in the newest addition to the Knights’ homes: the “Royal Court,” which Knights members moved into for the first time at the beginning of 2022. Matthews said the hope for this house is to become the generational house for Knights. “Castle Black,” the Knights’ current house, will be vacated at the end of this school year. Knights members have had numerous houses over the years, all with the common goal of having a space that fosters a tight-knit community within their club.
“With our house, we have the space to maintain the Knights’ foundational traditions that have been intact since the start of Knights in 1968, connecting the past to the present,” Matthews said. “I actually ran into a guy in Atlanta who was in Knights about 10 years before me, and we talked about traditions of the past that remain traditions in the present. It was cool to bond over shared experiences.”
Both Keith and Mathews said the lessons they have learned while living in a house have challenged and grown them in ways living in a dorm never could, specifically navigating the reality of paying bills, cooking and cleaning.
Senior Noel Tomlinson, a member of women’s social club Zeta Rho, lives with three other members of Zeta Rho in a house in Searcy. She said having a house off campus has helped members of different pledge classes grow closer together.
“We have had several sleepovers with girls in all different pledge classes of Zeta Rho, and we’ve made so many memories that we will all cherish forever,” Tomlinson said. “We also host a devo at our house every other week for anyone that wants to come, but mainly ZP and TNT members come.”
Tomlinson said the house has been a Zeta Rho house for two years, and she started living in it in May. She said they experience challenges, but nothing more than the usual challenges other people experience when living together, such as keeping up with chores.
“I love being able to host people whenever we want to, and it just provides a place other than a dorm room for people to hang out — almost like a little escape from campus,” Tomlinson said.
