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u wa a | 1 2 5 y e a r s a n d c o u n t i n g
Visionary leadership
throughout the 1960s inspired the UW Alumni Association to create the Washington Alumni Fund, a joint effort by the UW and UWAA that began the modern era of private support for the University of Washington. The Alumni Fund took a grassroots approach to fundraising, based in part on the UWAA’s “crew drives” that began in the 1920s to raise money for the rowing team’s travel expenses and equipment. This legacy of volunteers working personally with alumni continues today. The Behnke family played a monumental role in the alumni association’s efforts to raise money for the University. John F. Behnke, ’50, was the first chair of the volunteer Alumni Fund Board in 1966. In addition to John, who served as UWAA president from 1970-71, his brother Robert Behnke, ’43, was UWAA president from 1962-64. Bob’s wife, Sally, ’44, was a stalwart in supporting the UW and UWAA, too. With Sally’s death this past December, we say goodbye to a family that set the standard for steadfast, heartfelt support for the UW.
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The Behnkes’ work helped establish the UW Foundation, which supports student scholarships and other critical efforts at the UW, and ranks as one the most successful university fundraising organizations in the nation. That kind of dedication remains as strong as ever today, with UWAA President Mike Egan, ’90, who also serves as a director of the UW Foundation, leading the alumni association into its 125th year. “We are grateful for what the University has done for us and our community,” Egan says. “We are always going to support the UW so others can benefit for centuries to come.” Read more about how the UWAA and many outstanding alumni helped lay the groundwork for private giving to the UW on the UWAA homepage at UWalum.com/columns.
JUNE 2014 COLUMNS
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