Benedictine College - Spirit of Giving, Summer 2012

Spirit of of Giving Investing in Excellence Campaign • Summer 2012 • Special Edition

Students gather in the Laughlin Rotunda of the Ferrell Academic Center.

A CAMPUS TRANSFORMED Since 2005, we have opened eight new residence halls, renovated several buildings on campus, field-turfed both the soccer and football field, renovated our landscaping, built Mary’s Grotto, added the Mother Teresa Center for Nursing, and built the Ferrell Academic Center.

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Dr. Wangari Maathai (1940-2011), Nobel Peace Prize Laureate 4 and alumna, will be greatly missed. Above: Her 2007 visit.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

WHAT DONORS GAVE US In this section, learn about all the new Investing in Excellence scholarships and funds that have transformed Benedictine College.

The Spirit, page 25

Thanks A MILLION Who wants Benedictine College to be a millionaire?

In this section, meet the men and women who gave a million dollars to the campaign.

The Ferrells, page 33

$70,309,266.85 Expendable - $21M Endowment - $12.2M Capital - $37.1M

HOW A CAMPAIGN CAN

Change a College

You’ve heard the story behind the numbers. Now, see the numbers behind the stories: How much was raised, and where it was used.

The Numbers, page 40

WAYS TO GIVE

SPIRIT OF GIVING STAFF

Give By Mail

Editor

Gifts made by check should be payable to Benedictine College and mailed to: Office of Advancement 1020 North Second Street Atchison, KS 66002-1499

Tom Hoopes, G, ’10

Production Manager

1-800-766-0078 ext. 7416

Lead Designer

Scholarship - $5.2M

Hayleigh Diebolt

Capital - $.1M

Online Giving You may make a gift securely online using your debit or credit card.

Visit http://my.benedictine.edu/bcannualfund.

Writers

Photographers

Megan Bickford, ’03 Ryan Cassidy Hayleigh Diebolt Kelly Elias, ’85

Vaughn Kohler Steve Johnson, G ’12 Rosemary Wilkerson

Beth Hoffman, ’09 Unrestricted - $5.4M

Give By Phone

Designers

Athletics - $.1M

Megan Bickford, ’03 Chris Rowden, ’03

Academic - $1.5M

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Thriving Faith. A Marian procession from the Abbey Church to the grotto.

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From the

President

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ow! I cannot thank you enough for the Investing in Excellence Campaign. This was an incredibly successful fundraising campaign. In the end, we raised nearly six times as much as we had in any campaign in the college’s history.

The successes of this campaign are amazing. It brought Benedictine College 5,000 new donors, built Mary’s Grotto, doubled our endowment, built the Ferrell Academic Center, and surpassed its $50 million goal, raising over $70 million.

But for Benedictine College, the real success of the campaign cannot be measured just in dollars raised, but in the way we will advance our mission of community, faith and scholarship.

Think of what the renovation of the old Abbey — the former Freshman Hall now called Elizabeth Hall —did to strengthen our commitment to community on campus.

By taking that building from a campus eyesore to a campus focal point, we didn’t just reclaim one building, we re-launched our student life program. The renovation of Elizabeth Hall inspired a new attitude toward student services — a spirit of excellence, challenging staff and students alike to be better. In the years since then, student life has become a great strength of the college, ranking as one of the best in the nation.

In the same way, the art and architecture on our campus tells the story of our thriving faith life.

Anthony Gude’s mural in the Raven Roost showed

St. Benedict and St. Scholastica bringing the faith to Atchison. The Frederick Hart statues give our students exposure to the greatest Christian artist in American history. And the grotto puts Mary in the heart of campus.

Now, the Investing in Excellence Campaign has given us a building that is the launching pad for inspiring scholarship at Benedictine College.

The distinctive Ferrell Academic Center tells the world the importance of academics at Benedictine College. It houses our school of business, our education department, and our departments of philosophy and theology. Each of our students will have classes in the new building in their four years here.

The building showcases a school that is already recognized by U.S. News & World Report and the intellectual journal First Things magazine as one of America’s best.

Our new strategic plan, “Benedictine 2020: A Vision for Greatness,” is designed to bring the college to new heights.

The Benedictine College donors have a lot to be proud of in the new campaign. Not only have they gone further and done more than any others in the school’s history, They have put that money to work where it counts, in the academic future of one of America’s great Catholic Colleges.

Every donor to Benedictine College is counted as a partner in this campaign. Thank you so much for making this campaign a reality.

It’s a great time to be a Raven,

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Inspiring Scholarship. The entryway to St. Benedict Hall features paintings of great thinkers.

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From the

Vice-President for Advancement

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e did it!

The Investing in Excellence Campaign for Benedictine College has been an incredible journey of faith and inspiration. I am humbled by the fabulous selfless work of the faculty and staff; by the passion and dedication of our Board of Directors; and the unflagging spirit of our long-time, and new, donors and volunteers.

President Steve Minnis, along with the Board, was able to discern the needs of the college, had the courage to move forward with a campaign four times larger than any campaign in the school’s history and then had the vision to empower and ignite the passions of others to take part in this bold initiative.

It is a great pleasure to take this opportunity to highlight and applaud the achievements of the massive team effort that inspired many people and to acknowledge the extraordinary generosity of the donors and volunteers who make our success possible.

In this spirit of gratitude, I am pleased to present this special ‘campaign in review’ issue. Many donors and volunteers allowed their love of this place and each other to speak to our hearts and to our spirits about family and everything Benedictine through the campaign. They are changing lives and making a difference in the world by their generosity.

One such donor is Bob Dehaemers, shown here Bob and his family have been associated with the Atchison

Benedictine Sisters for more than 75 years. A nurse by profession, Bob was moved by Benedictine College’s decision to begin a School of Nursing. Bob ensured his legacy with the profession by naming the Benedictine College School of Nursing as the sole beneficiary of his estate, an estate estimated to be worth in excess of $2.0 million.

However, Bob didn’t want to wait until he passed, he wanted to experience the growth of the School of Nursing while he is still alive. He attended the dedication of the Mother Teresa School for Nursing and Health Education, as well as participated in the pinning ceremony of the college’s first nursing graduates. Bob is pictured on the cover of this issue surrounded by the smiling faces of nursing graduates that he now calls colleagues.

Another dream was realized when Doug and Betsy Brothers purchased a life insurance policy in the name of Benedictine College for $1.0 million. The proceeds of this policy will name the Doug and Betsy Brothers Chair of Physics. Dr. Brothers said he wanted to repay in some way all that the college had given him. A position that Dr. Brothers has held for many years will bear his name in perpetuity. That gives me goose bumps.

Each donor has their own story about why they give to Benedictine College. For each, it is a story of significance.

This campaign has allowed our Benedictine family to reflect, renew, and rejoice in our heritage and come

For Benedictine,

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Spirit

THE THAT MAKES

BENEDICTINE COLLEGE

Great

“Benedictine College recommitted itself to who we are as a college, and our people recommitted themselves to us.”

That’s how Jim O’Brien, who just finished his eight years as chairman of the board of directors of Benedictine College, summed up the Investing in Excellence Campaign at Benedictine College, which wrapped up in December.

The success, in terms of the numbers, was startling.

The campaign included givers to the annual fund, scholarships, capital funds, endowment, and more.

Through the campaign: About 5,000 new donors began giving to the college.

Donors built the campus’s signature building overlooking the Missouri river: the Ferrell Academic Center.

Donors built Mary’s Grotto.

Donors more than doubled our endowment.

The college set a goal of $50,000,000—four times larger than any campaign before — and donors surpassed it, raising more than $70,000,000.

It wasn’t easy. When the campaign was announced in 2008, many people felt the goals was too high for the college to reach.

But it quickly became clear that there was something exciting happening in the Benedictine College community. Ravens were coming together in a whole new

way. Newly Elected Benedictine College board chairman, Jack Newman, ’70, said the mood was palpable. “I encourage people to come to campus,” he said. “Not just to see the facilities and beauty of the grounds, but to feel the spirit.”

That spirit is a spirit of reaching for greatness. While many schools in the Midwest and across the nation were trimming staff and lowering expectations, Benedictine College was booming.

How? “We made a conscious effort to drill down to our foundation and build our future on our mission: Our four pillars and our mission of community, faith and scholarship,” said President Stephen D. Minnis, ’82.

“When people saw that commitment, they got inspired.”

Take Mark, ’82 and Mary Ann (Moyer), ’83 Lazzo, for instance. They created a scholarship for the same reason they choose to spend their own four college years to Benedictine College. “We like the way the college is being led. We were inspired by the commitment Steve made and what he and his family gave up to lead the college,” said Mary Ann. “This is our way of showing our support for Benedictine College.”

Every giver has a unique story, but they all tend to cluster around the college’s mission of community, faith and scholarship.

DJ Howell, class of 2007, is one of many donors inspired by the college’s Benedictine emphasis on community. With his annual fund gifts, he wants to

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The Scholarship Ball, Benedictine College’s signature fundraising event, was a key part of the Investing in Excellence campaign — reconnecting alumni and friends with our vibrant campus life. celebrate community—and contribute to it. “We simply want to give back to the college that has given so much to us. … We also hope our future giving has an impact on the growing diversity at Benedictine.”

Thriving faith life has also always been a Benedictine hallmark says, Alvin “Squeaky” Marquart. He and his late wife, Opal, are parents of three Benedictine college alumni: Duane, ’78, Addison, ’83 and Kyle, ’85. “I always say that anybody who wants to be somebody goes to Benedictine College,” said Alvin.

What earned his contribution was the college’s continued commitment to its faith life. “Being one of the great Catholic colleges in America, it is our hope and prayer that we all, the administration, faculty, students, parents, families, donors and clergy, continue to work together to share with pride our Catholic faith,” Alvin said.

That phrase “one of the great Catholic colleges in America” comes up a lot when you talk to donors.

They are impressed with the great things happening at Benedictine College academically.

Inspiring scholarship is the third aspect of the mission.

It is the reason, Don Germano, class of 1975, and his wife, Nancy, of Hudson, Ohio, were enthusiastic supporters of the college throughout the Investment in Excellence campaign.

The scholarship he received at Benedictine College, “coupled with an excellent education, gave me the step up

I needed to earn a graduate assistantship. I wanted to give back,” he said, “so that future students could experience a similar opportunity.”

William and Cecelia (Christophene), ’55 Brunner of St. Joseph, Mo., are strong supporters of higher education and Mount St. Scholastica. They donate to strengthen the college’s liberal arts pillar. “You get asked to donate to a lot of things and you have to choose the ones that are most important to you,” she said. “And I really think small colleges are important. There is such a place for that kind of education.”

There were many ways to give to the Investing in Excellence campaign, but the campaign’s greatest visible achievement was the new Ferrell Academic Center.

That building sums up the Benedictine College spirit of reaching for greatness. Donors to the building say Benedictine students deserve the best, including the best facilities.

The Ferrell Academic Center on the hill completes a campus picture that has been developing for years.

Jim O’Brien, who led the charge to beautify the campus, understands how important the “architecture of greatness” is. “If it wasn’t for all the campus renovations,” said the former chairman of the college’s board, “Benedictine might not even exist today. What do those buildings represent? Trust.”

The renovations are a pledge to past Ravens whose sacrifices and accomplishments are not forgotten, and an

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The Ferrell Academic Center is a new focal point on campus.

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WHAT DONORS GAVE US The

Investing

in

Excellence

Campaign was all inclusive — donors helped us in many ways, from annual fund gifts to endowed scholarships to major capital gifts.

We couldn’t have done it without each and every one!

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Holy Family Endowment When Tony and Anita Horinek, farmers from Colby, Kansas, sold part of their harvest last fall, they asked that the check be written not to themselves, but to Benedictine College Ministry.

They mailed their gift of $24,579.18 to the St. Martin Center with a note saying, “May God continue to bless you with the insight to lead students closer to Him today and forever.”

Fr. Brendan Rolling, OSB, Director of Ministry at Benedictine College, informed them that they could establish an endowment with $25,000. The Horineks humbly agreed to share their story and additional funds were raised from their sons and daughters-in-law, recent BC grads Clint and Sarah, and Aaron and Elisa. In addition, gifts from the Jim and Joan Taphorn family will also go toward building this endowment, to be known as the Holy Family Endowment. It is the first endowment dedicated to enhancing the faith life on campus.

Our Lady of Lourdes at Mary’s Grotto.

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2006

Benedictine’s PRAYER

WARRIORS

Mother Teresa at Mount St. Scholastica in 1981 with Mother Noreen Hurter and Sister Kathleen Egan.

Mother Teresa once said, “Give yourself fully to God. He will use you to accomplish great things on the condition that you believe much more in His love than in your own weakness.”

With Benedictine College facing one of the biggest campaigns in its history, President Stephen Minnis realized he would need an army of volunteers to help the campus meet its financial goals.

He recruited members for his “Memorare Army” after considering the story of Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta.

When her newly formed Missionaries of Charity needed money to build their motherhouse, she promised to pray 85,000 Memorares for the Virgin Mary’s help. Needless to say, she got her motherhouse.

“I can recognize a great idea when I see one,” President Minnis said. He asked students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the college to join the Memorare Army and commit to praying 1,000 Memorares apiece, asking the Blessed Virgin’s intercession to help the college. More than 380 people enlisted.

Benedictine College alumnus Joe Wurtz ’99, shares his zeal for the Memorare Army. He and his wife Megan lived in Virginia when they first learned of Benedictine College’s Memorare Army and the couple joined the campaign effort.

Eventually, they moved to Kansas and Joe became Benedictine College’s Dean of Students. As a married couple, “We have adopted the Memorare as our bedtime prayer,” Wurtz said. “The last thing we say to each other before sleep is this prayer.”

The Memorare Army continues as it successfully campaigns for increasing enrollment, support for incoming students and the care and protection for Benedictine College. Benedictine students kneel for the Memorare after Masses in Memorial Chapel trusting fully in Mary’s intercession—no matter the circumstances.

“Not all of our supporters have the capability of writing a check for the campaign,” said Minnis. “They still gave of themselves in a meaningful way. No matter their station in life, no matter where they resided, every time they prayed the Memorare they knew they were joining a larger community of prayer warriors on behalf of their beloved college.”

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Thomas M. Hoenig SIBC Fund A long time business associate of Tom Hoenig, ’68 took the opportunity presented by Benedictine College’s 2006 Scholarship Ball to surprise his friend with a very special gift. Frank Potenziani, a San Diego businessman and president of M&T Trust, pledged $100,000 to endow the college’s Student International Business Council (SIBC) as the Thomas M. Hoenig SIBC. SIBC helps students locate and participate in international business internships and conferences. It has a mission of “peace through commerce.”

“Frank believes in Tom Hoenig and calls him an American hero,” said Stephen D. Minnis, president of Benedictine College. “And because of Tom Hoenig, Frank believes in Benedictine College.”

Hoenig, a Director of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), graduated from St. Benedict’s College, now Benedictine College, with degrees in economics and mathematics.

Previously, he served as the eighth chief executive of the Tenth District Federal Reserve Bank in Kansas City, Mo.

Benedictine students deliver clean water to Honduran villages.

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2006 TANDEM Bicycle How did tandem bicycles become a key symbol of the Investing in Excellence campaign?

In February 2006, David Moritz ‘57, an alumnus in Dallas, gave the college one of the toughest, most rewarding challenges in its history. First, he generously donated a million dollars to the campaign, then he said if the college could raise $6 million for the building by June 15, he would donate another million.

Raising a total of $8 million in four months was unheard of in the history of Benedictine College.

However, the advancement staff was up for the challenge, and with the help of many generous donors, by June 15th, at 10:00 a.m., they were only short $650,000 of meeting Moritz’s Challenge.

“The fact that we were within $650,000 is a testament of the early donors who showed support and gave us the confidence to push forward,” said Kelly Vowels, Vice President for Advancement.

On that same day, Mike Sweeney, captain of the Kansas City Royals at the time, came to Benedictine to speak.

Sweeney told a story about how he was struggling early in his career and his future was uncertain.

A friend gave him a picture of a tandem bicycle—a twoseater. She told Mike he was on the front pedaling hard and guiding the bike. However, she said real success

would only come if Mike got on the back seat of the bike and pedaled as hard as he could, and let God guide from the front. Sweeney said his career took off after that, and so did his faith life.

President Minnis was inspired by the story. “I walked outside and made the decision that I was going to peddle hard the rest of the day and let His will be done,” he said.

Almost immediately, the President’s cell phone rang. It was a friend of the college committing $300,000 to the campaign. Then it rang again. A member of the Benedictine College board of directors committed $100,000. Then another board member called, committing $50,000. By noon the college was just $200,000 short of its goal.

The President peddled. He called Steve Dunn of JE Dunn Construction and asked if their family would help.

They had already committed a quarter of a million dollars to the building, but they understood the need to meet the challenge.

The Dunn family discussed the situation and then offered the College the remaining $200,000 for the building challenge.

By allowing God to guide from the front seat, Benedictine College met the challenge and raised $8 million dollars in four short months; and tandem bicycles became a key Investing in Excellence symbol for the remainder of the campaign.

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Engineering Through the tireless work of Dr. Darrin Muggli, professor and chair of the Engineering Department, Benedictine College received a $250,000 grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation, which followed a $250,000 grant from the National Science Foundation in August 2010. Both grants enlarged a pool of financial resources that was originally established by a $30,000 grant from the Westerman Foundation, which was used to purchase a Universal Testing Machine.

The latest grants allow for the construction of a combined lab that will include fluid flow, heat transfer and process control. Overall, the grants have allowed for the expansion and construction of lab space, as well as significantly accelerated the overall program.

Chairman of the Department of Engineering, Dr. Darrin Muggli.

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ENGINEERING

Success

Talk about investing in excellence: In just three years, Benedictine College expanded its engineering physics major to an engineering program that has graduated students with chemical, civil, mechanical, and electrical engineering degrees through a partnership with the University of North Dakota (UND).

For decades, Benedictine College was losing too many gifted students to universities with accredited engineering programs. That exodus came to an end with the hard work of Dr. Darrin Muggli, professor and chair of the Benedictine College Department of Engineering, who secured impressive grants to build key labs on campus for the college’s expanded engineering program: • $250,000 from the National Science Foundation • $250,000 from the Keck Foundation • $220,000 from the National Science Foundation • $52,000 from The Westerman Foundation

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2008

“We are developing a high quality program that builds on our strengths in the sciences and mathematics and incorporates the complete core of liberal arts courses, which make a Benedictine education special,” said Dr. Doug Brothers, professor and chair of the Benedictine College Department of Physics and Astronomy.

Students in the program take all of their classes on the Benedictine College campus, with the exception of two, two-week summer laboratory sessions at UND. About 80 percent of the coursework is taught by Benedictine professors, with the remainder of the classes taught through distance learning with professors at UND. Students will obtain two degrees: a liberal arts degree from Benedictine College, which includes the complete core of liberal arts coursework, and an Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET) accredited engineering degree from UND.

Athletic Improvements Nearly 3,000 loyal donors supported Benedictine College Raven Athletics and its mission of improving athletic facilities for the department’s more than 600 student-athletes who compete in 15 varsity sports.

The $1.4 million in donations provided support for our teams as well as upgrades for many facilities across campus including adding field turf to Larry Wilcox Stadium, located on the north end of campus. On the southwest corner of the campus near the new Legacy Apartments, the BC Soccer Complex also received new field turf, as well as new lighting and world cup-style goals.

These renovations not only benefit Benedictine College athletes and coaches, but also Raven sports fans everywhere.

Coach Larry Wilcox, Kansas’ “winningest” college football coach.

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Mary’s Grotto THE HEART OF CAMPUS

2009

Kansas City, Kan., Archbishop Joseph Naumann blessed and dedicated Mary’s Grotto on campus in 2009.

Archbishop Joseph Naumann, head of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, blessed the new Marian Grotto on the campus of Benedictine College on Sept. 8, 2009, the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Benedictine College built the grotto to commemorate the 150th anniversary of two 1858 events: the appearance of Our Lady in Lourdes, France, and the founding of Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas.

However, the story of the Marian Grotto begins more than two years earlier, when Lou Holtz, former football coach at Notre Dame, was invited by President Stephen D. Minnis to give the spring commencement address in May 2007.

Prior to his arrival, President Minnis told Holtz how he admired the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes at the University of Notre Dame and how much the Benedictine College students would appreciate a similar shrine on campus.

To prepare for his speech, Holtz began to read everything he could find on the college and soon became enamored of Benedictine. Holtz surprised everyone when he arrived on campus and immediately presented President Minnis with the first donation to the grotto project.

His generosity was soon followed by benefactors Bill

and Jean Dunn and Jane Westerman who gave the decisive gifts to complete the grotto construction.

The Dunns’ gift remembers their youngest child and only daughter, Mary Kathleen Dunn, who had Down’s Syndrome and passed away in September 2007 at the age of 39.

The Dunns felt that such a Christian campus needed a grotto, and for them, the Marian Grotto had two meanings. One was their great faith in the Blessed Mother, who helped get their daughter through two complicated heart operations. The second meaning is in memory of a loving daughter who brought their family so much joy during her life.

Westerman’s gift was made in honor of her incredible dedication to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Westerman, who received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree in May 2008, said in her commencement address, “I wanted to share my gifts of time and treasure with others. I wanted to make a difference in their lives, to give only with the expectations and hope that they will pass it forward and experience the joy in doing so.”

Mary’s Grotto is in the heart of campus and has become the center of several Benedictine traditions.

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Benedictine Bottoms Fund The Benedictine Bottoms Endowed Fund provides assistance to students who wish to conduct original research at the Bottoms; monies go toward equipment, summer room and board, and research stipends. Currently, more than $110,000 has been raised for the Fund.

Benedictine Bottoms is a 2,112, acre wildlife area in the flood plain of the Missouri River. This site is managed for three habitat types that existed in the area before development, timber, native grass and wetlands.

Gifts to the Benedictine Bottoms Endowed Fund ensure that present and future Benedictine College students will continue to enjoy an exemplary resource for scientific exploration and learning.

Sister Susana Kindole, OSB, doing turtle research in the Benedictine Bottoms.

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THE

RAVEN WALK

At the dedication ceremony for the Raven Walk on June 3, 2011, Abbot Barnabas Senecal, OSB, recalled a time when college students from St. Benedict’s rival, Rockhurst University, rearranged the stones on the hillside below the walkway, spelling the Jesuit name in place of St. Benedict’s. That college prank resulted in an even deeper pride in all things Benedictine.

“Today, we celebrate another arrangement, this time, of bricks. These newly placed and secured bricks also result in deep pride; a pride of place, a pride in a common effort, a pride in this place of Christian formation and practice,” Abbot Barnabas said.

The long brick walkway to St. Benedict Hall from the Student Union has long been a Benedictine College experience.

Hundreds of students, faculty and staff walk the Raven Walk every day; and each year, thousands of campus visitors climb the steps of the red brick road.

After more than 100 years of daily use, the walkway was in disrepair, with uneven bricks and crumbling concrete.

The class of 1985 decided to commemorate their 25th reunion by raising more than $80,000 for renovation and improvements to the Raven Walk. Members of the class of 1960 and other alumni and friends joined in the effort to raise a total of $163,000. “If there’s one experience that we all share at Benedictine College, regardless of when you attended, it’s the Raven Walk,” said Reunion Class Agent Lené Westerman ’85. “When the discussions of repairing the walkway came up, I jumped at the chance to help.”

Today, the Raven Walk’s original bricks have been reset in concrete and railings and curbs have been replaced.

Through the generosity of alumni and friends coming together to save a historic campus landmark, future Ravens will follow in the footsteps of the generations that came before them as they climb the hill on the beautifully landscaped pathway.

Abbot Barnabas summed up the pride felt by those who contributed to the walkway in his prayer of dedication: “The Raven Walk is a symbol of the effort all of us make daily to rise to new levels of understanding and commitment.

Increasingly, the classrooms of this campus are “up there,” where the walk leads us. We move up and down this walkway, becoming better persons, walking with one another, arriving at appointed times, entering into conversation about and with our Lord. May His blessing be upon all who have contributed to this renewal of the Walk, and upon all who, in the future, will move midst the beauty of this place.”

Campaign

2010 23

Nursing School Proud parents and family members watched as the first class of 15 nurses graduating from Benedictine College’s Mother Teresa School of Nursing received their nursing pins at a traditional ceremony welcoming them to the profession in May 2012. Sitting front and center, Benedictine College benefactor Robert Dehaemers of Arlington, TX, had dreamed of this day for several years. In 2008, Bob’s attorney notified the college of a $2 million bequest to start a school of nursing at Benedictine College. Bob’s belief that Benedictine College was the right place to start a new nursing school was the catalyst to start the program in 2009. The following year, the Kansas State Board of Nursing officially approved the new program.

Dehaemers wasn’t the only college friend who had a vision for Benedictine’s future nursing program. A year earlier, in 2007, Richard Miller of Denton, KS, gave $25,000 to endow a nursing scholarship in memory of his wife. The Dorothy (Joyce) Miller Nursing Scholarship was created two full years before Benedictine College even announced its intention to start a nursing school.

Supporters for the Mother Teresa School of Nursing continued to follow Dehaemers’ and Miller’s lead. In 2010, The Guy I. Bromley Charitable Trust gave $25,000 and Mount St. Scholastica College alumna Mary Alice Weir Ziegler ’50, of Georgetown, TX, gave $10,000 to enhance the nursing library.

“I am very proud that we have developed this new program,” said President Stephen D. Minnis.

“It is very much in keeping with our mission, it allows us to help address a serious and growing need in society today (shortage of nurses), and lets us offer a program that students are eager to accept. Benedictine College, with its emphasis on community, faith and scholarship, is perfectly suited to educate the nurses our world so desperately needs.”

Noelani Hedlund, one of Benedictine’s nursing students.

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2010

STATUES THAT COMMUNICATE

Greatness

Over the summer, Benedictine College will install the final pieces of its Frederick Hart “Ex Nihilo” (Out of Nothing) fragments collection in their new home on the Missouri Bluff Patio outside the new Ferrell Academic Center.

The promise of the outside installation is what led Benedictine Alumnus Dr. James Bongers, ’77 and his wife Linda to not only donate their art collection, appraised at $1.5M, to the college, but to also fund the naming of the patio as part of their $200,000 pledge to the Investing in Excellence Campaign.

Jim Bongers, a dentist from Manhattan, Kan., and an avid art collector, said that he became impressed by Frederick Hart’s work as he learned more about the artist.

He said that Hart’s work was very spiritual in nature and that Hart himself was a convert to Catholicism late in life after initially serving as an apprentice in Washington, D.C.’s National Cathedral. Later he was the artist who created the front façade of the National Cathedral, which many consider the greatest religious art commission of the 20th Century.

As his collection grew, Bongers knew he needed to share the beauty of Hart’s work in a more public arena.

The bronze Ex Nihilo fragment pieces, the Ex Nihilo tympanum, which depicts the story of creation, and the

trumeau figures of St. Peter, St. Paul and Adam, were first loaned to Benedictine College in 2005.

“My alma mater had a renaissance and the spirituality of Benedictine College made this the right place for the collection,” Bongers said.

In the spring 2010, Benedictine College had plans to repave the Raven Walk stairway, which leads from St. Benedict Hall down to the Student Union. The plans included a plaza area with three pedestals at the base. In addition, a patio with pedestals along the wall overlooking the Missouri River was added to the plans for the new Ferrell Academic Center.

When the Bongers were shown the plans and told how their art could be displayed permanently outside, they knew they had found the right home for the collection.

“They are now displayed under Mary’s Grotto and under the blue sky,” Bongers said.

“They are very majestic out there, each with an individual story of conversion. Each one is a powerful statement. They are beautiful and they are where they are supposed to be.”

In December 2010, Bongers gifted the entire collection to the college dedicated to the memory of Fr. Conrad Pillar, OSB, his chemistry professor and Fr. Eugene Dehner, OSB, his biology professor.

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The Justin Martyr Fund When the Benedictine College Department of Philosophy received a generous gift from an anonymous donor, the faculty decided to establish an institute that encouraged public discourse regarding philosophical issues. The Justin Martyr Institute for Philosophical Inquiry was established and is supported by this endowment.

Under the direction of the Benedictine College Department of Philosophy, resources from the fund are allocated to promote invited lectures, provide support for local faculty to develop public lectures, and host scholarly conferences and symposia.

Gifts to the Justin Martyr Institute for Philosophical Inquiry Fund help support people and events that cultivate critical thinking and meaningful reflection. This is consistent with Benedictine College’s mission to engage and educate students capable of transforming the world through personal, spiritual, and intellectual greatness.

The third floor of the Ferrell Academic Center features our Departments of Philosophy and Theology and a reading room.

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FORWARD LOOKING St. Benedict A

The new statue of St. Benedict in front of the Haverty Center features hands of hospitality modeled on the hands of Abbot Barnabas Senecal, OSB, of St. Benedict’s Abbey.

The daughters of Eleanor Kohake decided the best way to use the money their mother left to Benedictine College in her will was to give the campus its own St. Benedict statue.

A larger than life-sized bronze sculpture of St. Benedict embodies the very spirit of guidance, inspiration and leadership that is the legacy of Benedictine College.

The sculpture was designed by Benedictine College alumnus and sculptor Tim Mispagel, ’94. This original artwork stands outside the Haverty Center near the center of campus raising a welcoming hand of hospitality, with the ever faithful raven sits at his feet.

“For me, the art making process has been an analogy for living life: be present, embrace mistakes and strive to persevere. How perfectly this aligns to our Benedictine motto, ‘Forward Always Forward,’” Mispagel said.

“This sculpture of St. Benedict and the raven is, without a doubt, my greatest artistic achievement. I’m honored

2011

and truly blessed to have had the opportunity to share with my alma mater.”

The project started when Eleanor Kohake’s daughters Vicki Abel, Deb Holthaus, D’Ann Hermesch, Renee Washburn, and Amy Minnis (wife of President Stephen Minnis) made a decision to use their mother’s gift to give the college a tangible symbol that reminds students and alumni alike what it means to be Benedictine.

Doug and Marjorie Minnis, parents of President Stephen D. Minnis, ’82 were also major contributors to the sculpture, along with other members of the Kohake family and Stephen and Amy Minnis.

During the March 21, 2011, St. Benedict statue dedication, Mount St. Scholastica Prioress Sr. Anne Shepard, OSB, offered her prayer of dedication. “Grant that Benedict may guide Benedictine College to desire and seek God, to love learning, to seek peace, to listen attentively, to use our talent and abilities for the good of others, to walk eagerly in

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The class of 2012 bids fare well to campus, at Haverty B.

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31 Scholarships During the Investing in Excellence Campaign, family, friends, and supporters of Benedictine College gave more than $2.1 million in cash for endowed funds and scholarships. That means almost $110,000 will go directly to students each year in perpetuity.

The thirty-one newly endowed funds provide for a vast array of student needs from supporting departments and programs in the sciences or business to recruiting or recognizing students who excel in academics and athletics.

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Thanks A MILLION They are a special group of donors.

The men and women you will meet in the following pages didn’t just give generously — they each gave at least a million dollars to the Investing in Excellence Campaign.

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B James, ’77 and Linda

BONGERS

B Doug and elizabeth “Betsy”

BROTHERS Dr. Douglas Brothers, Professor and Chair of Physics and Astronomy at Benedictine College, and his wife, Dr. Mary Elizabeth “Betsy” Brothers, have committed an irrevocable “legacy gift” in the amount of $1,000,000 to fund an Endowed Chair in Physics. The endowed chair, which will be known as the Douglas and Mary Brothers Endowed Chair in Physics, is a distinguished academic position recognizing leadership and promoting academic excellence that provides assurance the position will be funded into perpetuity. The prestige of an endowed chair enriches the college by attracting and retaining highly qualified faculty, ensuring quality instruction, and it ultimately benefits the students of Benedictine College.

A 1977 graduate of Benedictine College, Dr. Bongers, D.D.S., is a true renaissance man.

In addition to his understanding of science, he is passionate about art, history, and his alma mater. Dr. and Mrs. Bongers donated a vast collection of Frederick Hart sculptures to Benedictine College, that greatly enhances the elegance of the campus.

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C D H Cloud “Bud” L., Jr., and Sally

CRAY

Described by President Stephen D. Minnis as “the most optimistic man you’ll ever run into,” Mr. Cray led MGP Ingredients, Inc., to new heights as its Chief Executive Officer. An amazing leader, Mr. Cray is also a true lover of Atchison and faithful supporter of Benedictine College. He has always been able to see the big picture, realizing that if Benedictine College is strong, it is good for the city of Atchison.

Robert “Bob”

DEHAEMERS Robert Dehaemers’ generous gift was critical to the establishment of the Benedictine College nursing program. Dehaemers has become a real friend of the program, as well as an active participant in its events. He attended the dedication of the Mother Teresa Center for Nursing and Health Education, as well as the 2012 pinning ceremony of our first graduates.

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F H M Elizabeth “Zibbie” Gillespie, ’62 and James

FERRELL

Few couples compare to James and Elizabeth “Zibbie” Ferrell in terms of their commitment to Benedictine College. Long-time supporters of the school, the couple exemplifies competence, charisma, and charity. James Ferrell took the lead of Ferrellgas from his father in 1968 and built it into an enormously successful company. Ever the mentor and consummate lifelong learner, Mr. Ferrell is a student of history and business, and a formidable leader who has used his talents and experience to help take Benedictine College to the next level. His wife, Zibbie, is truly a model of character and love, and serves as a great role model for the young women who live in the dorm that bears her name. Together, the Ferrells have exercised an immeasurable influence and inspiration.

Michael R. and Marlys

HAVERT Y

A fourth generation railroader who spent his career with Kansas City Southern, Mr. Haverty is a selfless leader and dynamic mentor. He is a native Atchisonian and graduate of Maur Hill Prep School. He and his wife, Marlys, made a significant gift toward the renovation of the Raven Roost, bringing grandeur to the facility.

Mr. and Mrs. Haverty are unique in that they asked that their naming opportunities be made in honor of past presidents, board members, and people who had invested their time and talents in promoting Benedictine College.

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L M M David, ’67 and Sheryl

LAUGHLIN Dave and Sherri surprised everyone at the 2008 Scholarship Ball with the presentation of a $1 million check for the Investing in Excellence campaign. In addition to their lead gift they have generously donated the track used by the track and field program, two golf carts to the school for use in transporting campus visitors, as well as provided seed money for men’s and women’s lacrosse. Dave sits on the board of directors and is past chairman of the finance committee of the board. He has been instrumental in securing funding for new residence halls, and moving the board forward in the construction of the Ferrell Academic Center. In 2011 the couple received the Cross of the Order of St. Benedict.

Mary Kay Rochford, ’56

M c ALLISTER In 1952, Mary Kay McAllister attended Mount St. Scholastica College for just one year. She developed a great love for the Benedictine community and became a faithful supporter throughout her life, as well as an outstanding board member. In addition to a capstone gift that allowed Benedictine College to complete construction of the Student Union, she had the foresight to purchase a life insurance policy that helped the school increase the endowment from $8 million to $12 million. She was an incredible woman.

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M M Jean Weitkamp, ’71 and Thomas

M c DONNELL Jean McDonnell is a 1971 graduate of Mount St. Scholastica College and her husband, Thomas, graduated from Rockhurst University. Both have been faithful supporters of higher education. Their consistent, generous support of philanthropic causes is incredibly inspiring.

David, ’57

MORITZ

A freshman player on the 1954 National Champion basketball team at St. Benedict’s College, David Moritz went on to achieve great success in the automotive and real estate industry. He never forgot his roots in Atchison and Beloit, Kan., however, and was probably the person who provided the most incentive for others to give to the campaign by being one of our earliest donors to step forward with a significant contribution.

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P S W Hon. Joseph L., ’45 and Laura E.

PETERS

In 1941, Mr. Peters received news of the bombing of Pearl Harbor while he was working in downtown Atchison. Shortly thereafter, he left town to fight in World War II and afterwards went on to graduate from Georgetown University School of Law. He always remained a consistent supporter of Atchison and Benedictine College. He committed a significant gift to the college through his estate plan.

Ladd and Karen (Cray)

SEABERG

The Seaberg name is instantly recognized and highly regarded in Atchison and beyond.

In addition to their successful service on the board of MGP Ingredients, Inc., the Seabergs have contributed tremendously toward the betterment of the community and region.

Through both business and non-profit leadership, Ladd and Karen helped bring recognition and prosperity to the Atchison area and to Benedictine College. Most recently, a significant combined gift from the couple and Karen’s father and mother, Bud and Sally Cray, enabled the remodeling of one of the donated Atchison Hospital buildings into Cray Seaberg Hall, now home to the college’s journalism and mass communications department, the psychology department, and the sociology department, as well as a residence hall for 42 female students.

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T W Byron G., ’55

THOMPSON Byron has been a pillar of the banking community and truly models the Benedictine value of “prayer and work.” In addition to running a profoundly successful business at Country Club Bank, Byron has consistently shown a commitment to faith, family, and work.

Laura Jane

WESTERMAN It is difficult to imagine where Benedictine College would be without the Westerman family.

Jane’s generosity blessed the Benedictine community in a variety of ways: she was being the first major donor to support FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students), the first million dollar donor to the Investing in Excellence Campaign, completion of Mary’s Grotto, and donation of the College Mace. Jane is remembered as a woman who used her financial resources to bring glory to God.

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HOW A

CAMPAIGN CAN

Change a College The Investing in Excellence campaign, which officially closed on December 31, 2011, began with a $50 million goal. That mark was surpassed a full year ahead of schedule. The campaign raised $70 million in private gifts and pledges.

All outright gifts, pledges and deferred gifts, including those to athletics, were counted in campaign totals.

Specifically, the Investing in Excellence campaign has made possible: • $12.3 million for academic scholarships and program support.

• $36.9 million for new and renovated facilities.

• $6.3 million for educational and other program enhancements.

• $14.8 million for college and annual support.

The campaign’s key initiatives — an Academic Center to house classrooms and faculty offices for business, education, theology and philosophy; Mary’s Grotto built into the hillside above the student union; and annual support - drew the bulk of the campaign’s gifts. In all,

more than 12,000 Benedictine College alumni and friends contributed toward the effort; nearly 50 percent were first-time contributors.

The campaign began July 1, 2005, with a “silent” phase and was publicly announced in February 2008 with more than $30 million already committed. The Investing in Excellence campaign sparked six of the highest giving years in the college’s 150-year history.

Among the highlights: • The single largest financial commitment in Benedictine College history, a $4.5 million gift from benefactors James and Elizabeth Ferrell for the Ferrell Academic Center; • The Atchison Hospital property valued at $7.8 million was the largest corporate gift in the school’s history, acquired just in time to accommodate the campus enrollment surpassing 1,500 students.

• An endowment gift of $4.3 million from the life insurance policy of Benedictine College friend and benefactor Mary Kay McAllister who passed in 2008.

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Excellence BY THE NUMBERS The story of the Investing in Excellence campaign is made up of the stories of donors — Ravens who stepped up gave Benedictine College a bright future. But the raw data shows just how impressive that contribution was.

Previous Capit al Campaigns, Monies Raised 1981-1983

1989-1991

1991-1996

1999-2002

Odyssey of Excellence Campaign

$3.7 M

Faithful to the Story Campaign

$3.4 M

Soaring on to Glory Campaign

$11 M

Faithful to the Story Campaign

$15.2 M

Investing in Excellence Campaign

$70 M

2005-2011

0

10M

20M

30M

39

40M

50M

60M

70M

Gif t Designations The donations made throughout the campaign fell broadly into one of three categories: capital projects, annual operations and endowment; designations made by the donor.

Expendable - $21M Operations - $21M Endowment - $12.2M Endowment - $12.2M Capital - $37.1M Capital - $37.1M

CAMPAIGN STATISTICS Endowment Designations Through cash and expectancies over $12 million was raised for the endowment. Donors designated their gifts in the following manner:

Unrestricted - $5.4M Unrestricted - $5.4M Scholarship - $5.2M Scholarship - $5.2M Capital - $.1M Capital - $.1M Athletics - $.1M Athletics - $.1M Academic - $1.5M Academic - $1.5M

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Gif t Planning Endowment is critical to sustaining our future. There are many vehicles donors use in their estate plans to remember Benedictine College. We are grateful to them for establishing their legacy with us.

Bequests Bequests and and estates estates (pledged) (pledged) -- $6.7 $6.7 M M Bequests Bequests and and estates estates (realized) (realized) -- $5.3 $5.3 M M Charitable Charitable Remainder Remainder Trust Trust -- $.5 $.5 M M Charitable Charitable Gift Gift Annuities Annuities -- $.4 $.4 M M Life Life Insurance Insurance -- $1.1 $1.1 M M

Total Dollars Contributed

$70,309,266.85 Donor Type Alumni Alumni -- $35.5 $35.5 M M Corporations Corporations -- $12.4 $12.4 M M

Our Benedictine Family includes faculty, staff, students and alumni and friends, parents, organizations and corporations who support our mission.

Donor Donor Advised Advised Funds Funds -- $1.4 $1.4 M M Faculty Faculty and and Staff Staff -- $1.3 $1.3 M M Foundation Foundation -- $6.4 $6.4 M M Friends Friends -- $12.1 $12.1 M M Organizations Organizations -- $.2 $.2 M M Parents Parents- -$1.0 $.1 M M

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$5000 and under

12031

$3.8 M

29% OF ALUMNI GAVE A GIFT OR PLEDGE $5,000+

208

$1.3 M

$10,000+

155

$2.2 M

$25,000+

83

$2.6 M

$50,000+

39

$2.4 M

$100,000+

38

$5.5 M

$250,000+

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$14.0 M

Donor s by Giving Levels $1,000,000+ The college

13 to$17.0 M is grateful all donors who joined us in this endeavor. Each and every gift is treasured.

$2,500,000+ $5,000,000+ $5000 and under $5000 and under

2

$7.8 M

2 $13.6 M 12,031 $3.8 $3.8 M 12031 M

$5,000 + $5,000+

208 208

M $1.3 $1.3 M

$10,000 + $10,000+

155 155

M $2.2 $2.2 M

$25,000 + $25,000+

8383

M $2.6 $2.7 M

$50,000 + $50,000+

3939

M $2.4 $2.4 M

$100,000 + $100,000+

3838

M $5.5 $5.5 M

$250,000 + $250,000+

M 2828 $14.0$14.0 M

$1,000,000 + $1,000,000+

M 1313 $17.0$17.0 M

$2,500,000 + $2,500,000+

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$5,000,000+ $5,000,000 +

2 2 $13.6$13.6 M M

0

5M

10 M

15 M

20 M

0

5M

10 M

15 M

20 M

M $7.8 $7.8 M

Annual Cash R eceipts The Investing in Excellence Campaign sparked six of the highest giving years in the college’s 150-year history. Total cash receipts represent fiscal years from July 1 to June 30 of each school year.

10 M $9.1M

$9.0M

8M

$5.9M

6M

$5.4M $4.4M

4M $3.1M $2.2M

10 M 2M

8M 0

$9.1M

FY06

FY07

FY08

FY09

$9.0M

FY10 $5.9M

6M

$5.4M $4.4M

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FY11

FY12 to 12/31

The incredible success of our Investing in Excellence Campaign is the launching pad for a bold, visionary plan to take Benedictine College to a whole new level. www.benedictine.edu/2020

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