Class of 1966 gives $2.5million,meets participation goal
On hand for the Class of 1966 50th Reunion were Linda Bosserman Dodson (left), Carol Robertson Campbell, Sissy Spencer Dunton and Frances Heath Scott.
Members of the Class of 1966 like to say that the “Red Class always wins,” so it’s not surprising that their recent fundraising efforts were successful.
Coming into its 50th Milestone Reunion in April, the group was three donors short of the number needed to meet its 45 percent participation goal. The graduates of 1966 were undeterred.
“They went around that weekend and got five more donors, which gave them a participation rate of 46 percent,” said Katherine Bulifant ’13, M.S. ’14, director of campus philanthropy.
The class also surpassed its $80,000 goal for its 50th reunion gift by nearly $2.5 million. The result of a five-year fundraising effort, the check the alums presented in April was for $2,569,877.50.
“We are so proud of the Class of 1966 for reaching both goals,” said Bulifant. About 120 alumni from the Classes of 1966, 1961, 1956, 1951 and 1946 attended the two-day Milestone Reunion, and they would tell you it was about more than fundraising.
Thanks to a first-time format called “Choose Your Own Adventure,” which included shuttle service, alums sampled an array of activities.
They painted portraits of the Rotunda while enjoying a glass of wine (the instructor was Kathy Lee ’80); took in a softball game; viewed the senior art show at the LCVA; toured the Moton Museum; and learned about the U.S. Vice Presidential Debate and the Master Plan.
“Everyone had so much fun,” said Nicole Perkins ’05, associate director of campus events for the Office of Alumni Relations and Career Services.
Wilma Register Sharp ’66 chaired the reunion committee. Other members were Carol Robertson Campbell ’66, Connie Parkins Carwile ’66, Sissy Spencer Dunton ’66, Frances Heath Scott ’66, Carolyn Hammer Smith ’66, Anne King Taylor ’66 and Jane Brown Whitaker ’66.
—Kent Booty