We are thankful for those who have made an estate gift to Michigan State University. Here are their stories.
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Helping Aspiring Scientists Live the Laboratory Life
Take a stroll through any campus research building on any given day, and you’ll feel it: an air of mystery. It surrounds the potentially groundbreaking science taking place in the labs that line the hallway, as much as it surrounds the people in the labs themselves.
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Linda E. Landon’s Legacy
Linda Eoline (Vought) Landon was born in New York in 1856 and later moved with her family to Niles, Michigan. There, she married Rufus W. Landon in 1877.
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Remembering Selma Hollander
A major patron and supporter of the College of Music, a friend to many, and a lively presence in Fairchild Theatre, Cook Recital Hall, at musicology lectures and throughout the community has passed away.
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Combining a Love of Horses With a Gift for MSU
Ruth Sotak was a student at MSU in the 1980s. But, it wasn't until four years ago that the horse enthusiast learned about Michigan State's horse farm. "Isn't it interesting that the one thing I really wanted in my life I didn't know Michigan State offered—the horse farm?" she says.
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A Scholarship Comes Full Circle
The year was 1955. John Hannah was at the mid-point of his long tenure, leading Michigan State through unprecedented growth. The school was celebrating its first 100 years of shaping minds, and 3,000 students were bestowed their undergraduate degrees, among them Margaret "Marge" Tangenberg of Grand Rapids.
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A Legacy 30 Years in the Making
If there has been one constant in University Advancement over the past 30 years, it has been Dan Chegwidden. He is the pioneer of what MSU knows today as the Office of Gift Planning, having served as the senior director for its entirety. As the Empower Extraordinary campaign came to a close in December 2018, so did Dan's committed and accomplished career at MSU.
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Committed to Community
MSU has played an important role in John and Ethel Anthony's lives. Gratitude defines their commitment to Michigan State and East Lansing.
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Building a Healthy MSU
Kurt and Mary Dunkel have made numerous short- and long-term commitments to MSU, including support to fund a residency and build a new critical care facility at the College of Veterinary Medicine.
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Finding Synergy With MSU
Paul Bishop and his wife, Barbara, created a family endowment to support an MSU program that provides safe water, health, sanitation, hygiene or education in developing countries.
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Transformed by Education
A scholarship allowed Jeanne Day to attend Michigan State University, where she later met her husband, Denver. To allow other students a similar opportunity, the couple created the Denver and Jeanne Day Endowed Scholarship Fund.
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The (Extraordinary) Fruits of Labor
Edwin L. Carpenter loved three things in life: working, agriculture and MSU. As a result of his lifelong commitment to work—and the fruits of a career that lasted through age 90—Carpenter was able to make a gift upon his death in 2014 that jointly honored his two other loves: a $1.6 million donation to the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
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