Spring 2015 | Philanthropy

philanthropy U N I V E R S I T Y O F M A R Y H A R D I N - B AY L O R

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INSIDE: Students deliver playhouses to children of military personnel; plus meet a student whose grim situation was turned upside down after he received a scholarship

welcome

It’s exciting to see that gifts and pledges for the Momentum campaign have now surpassed $60 million By the end of March, $61.4 million had been given or pledged toward Campus Master Plan projects, scholarships, and endowments. Though these results have been achieved more quickly than initially anticipated, the campaign does not end with this great news. Still on the horizon is a new performing arts center, to provide a much-needed venue for opera, theater, and choral performances on our campus.

If you have ever wondered how the study of music can enhance students’ lives, turn to page four of this issue and read Jacob Burlingame’s remarkable story. Students like Jacob remind us about the ability of music to break down barriers, as well as how scholarships can make a profound difference in the direction of young people’s lives.

With the help of generous donors like you, UMHB is truly providing students with life-changing educational experiences.

Thank you for partnering with us in this worthy endeavor!

Students deliver playhouses to UMHB military families UMHB students made dreams come true for 12 Central Texas military families on March 7. As part of a service day called Reaching Out, the students delivered custom-built playhouses to the children of military personnel who are current students or spouses of students at UMHB. “It’s an opportunity for students, faculty, and staff to give back to our military community,” said Jeff Sutton, assistant director of Campus Activities, who helps organize the service day each semester.

Various campus organizations, groups, and offices sponsor the playhouses by providing building supplies and laborers to assemble and paint them.

“Through our actions we hope we are sending the message to recipients that we are thankful for them and the sacrifices they are making for our country,” Sutton said. “We want our military families to know that they are an important part of our Crusader community.”

Randy O’Rear President Front cover photo by Blair Dupre.

Philanthropy is published three times a year by the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor Division of Communications and Special Projects.

To share your comments, you may write to the editor at UMHB Box 8431, 900 College Street, Belton, Texas 76513; send emails to cdonahue@umhb.edu, or phone 254.295.4164.

For more information about giving to UMHB, please contact the Office of Development at 254.295.4601.

PHOTO BY BLAIR DUPRE

DINING BY THE NUMBERS AT THE

BAWCOM STUDENT UNION, RESIDENTIAL DINING SERVES

700 I T TA K E S

PIECES OF P I Z Z A DA I LY.

7,560 lbs.

OF CHEESE

1,512 gallons OF SAUCE

TO M A K E T H I S M U C H P I Z Z A OVER THE COURSE OF A SEMESTER. DUR ING A SINGLE SEMESTER, DINING HALL CUSTOMERS CONSU ME ABOUT

8,100 GALLONS OF SODA AND

1,080 GALLONS

Historic Hardy Hall to get makeover

OF BLUE BELL ICE CR EAM. The dining hall uses about

This equates to

of rice a week to prepare various dishes.

of rice used over the course of a semester.

250 lbs 4,500 lbs Chick-Fil-A Express SERVES

1,800

CHICK-FIL-A SANDWICHES AND

750 LBS OF

WAFFLE FRIES ON AN AVERAGE WEEK.

Work is proceeding this spring on a major renovation of Hardy Hall.

Originally designed as a dining hall and gathering place for students when it was built in 1929, the structure in recent years has also housed the Meadows Center for Academic Excellence. With the introduction of a new Doctor of Physical Therapy program approved for the 2015-16 school year, the building is being remodeled to provide classrooms, faculty offices, and clinical laboratory space for the program.

The renovation includes new electrical and plumbing systems, revamped heating and air conditioning, and a refitting of all windows with energy-efficient double-paned glass. The new academic space is scheduled for completion this summer, so it will be ready to open its doors when the physical therapy program welcomes its first students in the fall.

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setting the stage

for success

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LEFT TO FEND FOR HIMSELF AS A HIGH SCHOOL SOPHOMORE, JACOB BURLINGAME DIDN’T THINK COLLEGE WAS AN OPTION, BUT AFTER AUDITIONING FOR A MUSIC SCHOLARSHIP, HIS DREAM OF CALLING UMHB ‘HOME’ BECAME A REALITY.

IT DIDN’T TAKE LONG FOR FRESHMAN JACOB BURLINGAME to discover how special of an opportunity it is to attend the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor.

“Students, faculty, and staff really pour their hearts, minds, and souls into the student body and the various programs here,” Jacob said. “If I could describe UMHB in one word, it would be ‘more.’ My experience here has been more than I ever imagined.”

“For example, the other day I wasn’t understanding the material in my quantitative reasoning class, so afterward my professor stayed back for 30 minutes to work with me individually,” Jacob said. “The people on this campus constantly show God’s love for one another.”

But Jacob’s journey didn’t start out smoothly. “I come from a very broken family,” he said. “Since I was a young child my dad has had a drug problem and has been in and out of jail.” During his sophomore year of high school,

Jacob’s dad went to prison after using all of the family’s money to support his addiction. “My mom told me I needed to find a place to live because the only way she and my sister were going to make it was if she admitted them into a women’s shelter.”

So Jacob did just that.

“I ended up moving in and out of five different homes during the rest of my time in high school,” Jacob said.

“While I thought my mom being away would be a temporary solution, it ended up being permanent.”

During his senior year of high school, he was forced to take a hard look at his future. “I needed to find a way to support myself financially, which meant I would need to get a full-time job,” Jacob said. “I had always dreamed I would get to go to college after high school, but it seemed like there was nothing I could do about my situation. It was obvious I couldn’t afford an education.”

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“I’M TRYING TO GET A 4.0 TO MAKE DONORS PROUD OF HOW THEIR GIFTS HAVE BEEN USED.” ­ — JACOB BURLINGAME But out of the blue, everything changed.

“I had some free time, so for no particular reason I decided to audition for UMHB’s music department,” Jacob said. “Because of that, I received a tier-one scholarship.”

Music scholarships at UMHB are awarded based on students’ auditions.

“The audition requires that potential students perform two contrasting songs and a sign reading component, as well as complete an interview with music faculty members,” said Jonathan Gary, Department of Music chair. “The music faculty then decides to accept or not accept the candidate into the music department as a music major. The music faculty then ranks the candidate based upon a rubric to determine which scholarship amount to recommend to the Financial Aid office.”

While the music scholarship gave Jacob hope for a chance at higher education, it still wasn’t enough to cover the cost of attending UMHB. He tossed around different ideas—like getting a full-time job—but he knew balancing work with a full class load would be a difficult feat.

Around that same time, Jacob met Jonathan Gary, who took the prospective student under his wing and helped him work through different options. Over the next few months, Jonathan and Jacob found more scholarships, enough to fully fund Jacob’s education, as well as his room and board.

He started at UMHB in the fall of 2014. In a short amount of time, he became very involved in campus life. “Because 6 PHILANTHROPY | SPRING 2014

of scholarships, I can use the time I’m not studying or attending class to really plug into university activities,” Jacob said. This year he has participated in Student Government Association, Campus Activities Board, One Voice, and Cru Knights.

Jacob believes coming to UMHB spared him a dangerous future. “Before coming here, I had started going down some pretty rocky paths,” he said. “Once at UMHB, people began investing in my life and encouraging me in my walk with Christ.”

He added, “It takes a lot of people a long time to call a new place ‘home.’ But the first day I moved to campus I thought, ‘I finally have a home!’ I have a group of friends here that feel like family to me—they love me and want the best for me. It felt weird at first because I haven’t been in this kind of situation for a long time. At UMHB, I can really

relax and not sit on the edge of my seat wondering where I’ll have to go next if something bad happens.”

Jacob is humbled by the knowledge that he is a Crusader because of people’s sacrificial giving. “A lot of my friends whose parents are paying for their schooling are trying to make a 4.0 to make their parents proud,” Jacob said. “But my parents aren’t paying for any of my schooling—my education is being paid for by people who are willing to give to UMHB. So for me, I’m trying to get a 4.0 to make donors proud of how their gifts have been used.”

ABOVE: Jacob Burlingame sings with UMHB’s Concert Choir at the McLane Lecture featuring former president George W. Bush.

OPPOSITE: Jacob performs as a contestant at the annual Cru Knights contest.

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a song of hop

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FORMER MUSIC PROFESSOR AND HER HUSBAND LEAVE A MUSICAL LEGACY, INSPIRING STUDENTS PAST, PRESENT, AND INTO THE FUTURE

GLENDA BUNDICK HAS BEEN A PASSIONATE CRUSADER FAN for more than 40 years. As a talented musician, Glenda joined UMHB faculty in 1973 where she taught music history, church music, organ, and piano, as well as founded and directed the University Handbell Ensemble. Glenda retired from UMHB in 2006 after 33 years and was named a Professor Emerita, as well as an honorary alumna (1990).

“I was so thrilled,” Glenda said. “I could now stand with all the other alumni and sing “Up with the Purple.”

But Glenda’s love for UMHB hasn’t wavered since retirement. Although she is no longer in the classroom, Glenda is still making a difference in students’ lives through financial support—an effort she and her husband, Dorwin, began when Glenda was a UMHB employee. In 1983, Glenda began donating $20 monthly to the university. “It was all we could afford at the time,” Glenda said. “But we wanted to help however we could.”

The Bundick’s gift-giving steadily increased over time.

In 1996, the couple established an endowed scholarship to benefit students studying music. Then in 2014, the couple included UMHB in their estate. “It’s a way for us to do something for someone else down the road who might not be able to afford to go to school,” Glenda said.

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She remembers a young Brazilian lady who came to UMHB to audition for a scholarship in the 80s. “She didn’t have two nickels to rub together,” Glenda said. “One of my students pulled me aside and said, ‘Oh Mrs. B, you have to come listen to her play!’ I got so excited after hearing the young lady play that I contacted a university development officer and said, ‘I will beg you to do whatever you need to do to find this girl money to come to school here.’ And he did; he found her a donor and the money to attend UMHB.” Each semester Glenda contacted the development officer to make sure the money was still in place for the student. “I wanted to make sure her future was secure here,” Glenda said. She maintained her relationship with the student, even playing for her wedding years later. “My students are like my kids to me,” the former professor said.

Glenda and Dorwin are both passionate about helping people succeed in the long run. “I watched so many students come to Mary Hardin-Baylor simply on a song and a prayer,” Glenda said. “My husband and I are both graduates of Hardin Simmons University and know the significance a Christian university can have in a student’s life. It is important to us to help someone else have the experience we had at a Christian school.”

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GROUP PHOTO BY CHRISTIE BLEDSOE; ACTION PHOTOS COURTESY OF TEMPLE DAILY TELEGRAM.

More than 70 UMHB employees and their family members volunteered at this year’s faculty and staff service project, which supported the March 3 Kids Against Hunger packaging event. Participants helped prepare 18,360 meals, which were sent to children in Haiti.

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leading by

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example

UMHB employees and their families join the fight against hunger

ON MARCH 3, FACULTY, STAFF, AND THEIR FAMILY MEMBERS packaged 18,360 meals that were shipped to orphanages and schools in Haiti through the guidance of a local organization, Kids Against Hunger.

“The day was a huge success,” said assistant professor Christie Bledsoe, who organized this year’s event.

Volunteers assembled easy-to-fix meals from ingredients such as rice, soy, vitamins, and dehydrated vegetables.

Volunteers then took the meals to a local non-profit agency, Hope for the Hungry, which partners with Kids Against Hunger (a U.S.-based, food humanitarian organization) to feed children in Haiti.

UMHB became been involved with the effort four years ago after assistant professor Deborah Jones made initial contact with the organization to find out how UMHB employees could help join the international fight against hunger among children.

“I first joined the cause by raising money and packaging food with a group from my church,” Jones said. “I was so blessed by the experience that I recommended to the Christian Planning Committee that UMHB faculty raise money and package food as well.”

The Christian Planning Committee is a university committee that works with the university chaplain and student

organizations to plan university religious activities and service projects.

The food was paid for by donations from a different UMHB employee event held last fall, called Blue Jean Day. On Blue Jean Day, employees donated a minimum of $5.00 to Kids Against Hunger in order to wear blue jeans to work. While the event helped to raise funds, it also spread awareness of the devastating effects of child hunger, and promoted the March packing day, in which 73 employees and their family members participated. The ingredients for each meal they parceled cost $0.23.

“It was quite humbling to see a package of food cost so little and be intended to serve six people,” Bledsoe said.

“My teenage son could eat that much food by himself in one sitting. The cost of the food he eats certainly exceeds $0.23.”

University president Dr. Randy O’Rear believes activities like these are an important part of Crusader culture.

“It is evident that our faculty and staff members are very mission-minded and care about our community,” said Randy O’Rear, university president. “When UMHB employees make a difference in our local community, they are setting an example for our students of what sacrificial service is all about.”

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900 College Street • Belton, Texas 76513

This year’s spring enrollment of 3,643 students exceeded all previous spring enrollments for the sixth year in a row.