Auburn M
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EDITOR
Suzanne Johnson CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Shannon Bryant-Hankes ’84 ART DIRECTOR
Audrey Lowry ’12 UNIVERSITY PHOTOGRAPHER
Jeff Etheridge EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS
Ashtyne Cole ‘15 Nick Hines ‘15 DESIGN ASSISTANTS
Jenna Ritterling ’15, Amanda Jernigan ’18 Madison Wooters ’15 IT SPECIALIST
James Hammond ’13 PRESIDENT, AUBURN UNIVERSITY
Jay Gogue ’69 VICE PRESIDENT FOR ALUMNI AFFAIRS & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, AUBURN ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
Gretchen VanValkenburg ’86 PRESIDENT, AUBURN ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
Jack Fite ’85 AUBURN MAGAZINE ADVISORY COUNCIL CHAIR
Neal Reynolds ’77
DEPARTMENTS 7 From the Editor
22 Philanthropy
We all can make a difference. Because.
Two pages of photos from the Because This is Auburn campaign celebration and kickoff. Above, David Housel ‘69 (top) and Thomas Gossom Jr. ‘75 talk about Auburn’s future.
CONCOURSE 10 A-Day 2015 Aubie (above, left) was in the celebratory spirit for A-Day weekend in April.
13 Mixed Media Auburn alumni on screen, on stage, on the page and on iTunes.
16 Porter’s Story An Auburn veterinary school researcher and an alumni couple rally around their young son Porter to fund clinical trials for a fatal condition.
20 Tiger Walk In his 10th year as athletics director, Jay Jacobs looks ahead.
THE CLASSES 49 A Million-Dollar Match The Auburn Alumni Association sponsors a $1 million matching program for life members to raise money for endowed scholarships.
50 Class Notes 52 In Memoriam 63 Backchat See what your classmates are talking up on social media and remember to tag us in your Auburn pics with #AuburnAlumni!
ON THE COVER University photographer Jeff Etheridge camped out on a nearby rooftop in order to capture this rare angle of Samford Hall at the breaking dawn of a new day—symbolic of our cover story. And the word “Because” on the cover? It’s in the handwriting of none other than George Petrie.
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AUBURN MAGAZINE ADVISORY COUNCIL
Maria Baugh ’87 John Carvalho ’78 Jon Cole ’88 Christian Flathman ’97 Tom Ford ’67 Kay Fuston ’84 Julie Keith ’90 Mary Lou Foy ’66 Eric Ludgood ’78 Cindy McDaniel ’80 Napo Monasterio ’02 Carol Pappas ’77 Joyce Reynolds Ringer ’59 Allen Vaughan ’75 AUBURN MAGAZINE (ISSN 1077– 8640) is published quarterly; 4X per year; spring, summer, fall, winter, for members of the Auburn Alumni Association. Periodicals-class postage paid in Auburn and additional mailing offices. Editorial offices are located in the Auburn Alumni Center, 317 South College St., Auburn University, AL 36849-5149. Phone 334-844–1164. Fax 334-844–1477. Email: aubmag@auburn.edu. Contents ©2014 by the Auburn Alumni Association, all rights reserved. ADVERTISING INFORMATION Contact Jessica King at 334844–2586 or see our media guide at www.aualum.org/magazine. POSTMASTER Send address changes to AU Records, 317 South College St., Auburn, AL 36849–5149.