Alumni gift will enhance Cornell College endowment
MOUNT VERNON – A $500,000 gift from Cornell alumni Dick and Beth Brubaker will help grow the Cornell College endowment fund, bring speakers to campus, create more opportunities for student off-campus study, and improve athletic facilities.
Dick Brubaker, a 1955 graduate and the founder of Richwrap Inc., is in his third year as chair of the Cornell College board of trustees, and his 11th overall.
“This campaign is one of the most important events in the history of the college,” said Brubaker. “It is deserving of my support and my wife’s.”
After graduating from Cornell in 1955, Brubaker returned to the school for four years to work as an admission counselor. In 1964 he went back to school, earning his MBA from the University of Iowa before finding his way into the gift wrap industry. From there, he founded Richwrap in 1970, a company that manufactures and distributes gift wrap specialties, especially for the industrial gift market. His wife, Beth, graduated from Cornell in 1961.
The largest portion of the gift will increase the Cornell College endowment and annual funds. The remainder of the gift will supplement the Class of 1955 Travel Fund for off-campus study, the Beta Omicron Distinguished Alumni Visitors Fund, and renovations and expansions to Cornell’s wrestling and weight rooms.
“We are extremely thankful to Dick and Beth for their financial commitment to our campaign and for their service to Cornell,” said Cornell College President Les Garner. “Their gift demonstrates the leadership and vision they bring to our mission and will impact students for years to come.”
The Brubakers’ gift is part of Cornell College’s comprehensive campaign Extraordinary Opportunities: The Campaign for Cornell College which will continue through December 2009. The campaign will enhance the Cornell experience by increasing the college’s endowment, upgrading its facilities, and enhancing the academic program.
For more information about the campaign or making a gift, visit cornellcollege.edu/campaign.
