HomepageNewsRecord-Setting #Giving2UCday Raises More than $500,000

Record-Setting #Giving2UCday Raises More than $500,000

Ursinus hosted its seventh annual giving day on December 1, 2020, with 2,045 donors contributing more than $500,000, making it the largest day of giving in college history.

The event is held in conjunction with “Giving Tuesday,” a national day of giving. With an emphasis on participation rather than dollar amount, the 24-hour challenge is aimed at raising funds and increasing giving participation and engagement among Ursinus’s community of alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents, and friends.

Each #Giving2UCday gift provides vital resources for students and makes an impact on Ursinus’s reputation among peer institutions and grant eligibility.

When we announced the largest gift in the history of the college in January, I mentioned this quote by John Bunyan: ‘You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you. Little did I or anyone else know how apt that quote would become in the year 2020,” said Jill Leauber Marsteller ’78, P’18, senior vice president for advancement.

As the college faced unprecedented challenges, especially financially, in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, our alumni, parents and friends responded to #Giving2UCday as never before. They did something that day for our students, faculty, staff and overall campus that cannot be repaid and yet will have significant benefit for the college. We are so very grateful to all of those who truly lived that day.

Donors from 46 states—as well as Washington, D.C., the United Kingdom, Germany, Puerto Rico, Canada, and Romania—helped the college surpass its goal of 2,020 participants. Among those contributing were more than 600 parents and more than 1,000 alumni, including nearly 250 GOLDs (Graduates of the Last Decade).

Contributions were also received from more than 200 students, and the Ursinus College Investment Management Company—which is managed by 37 students—contributed $2,020 of its investment returns to the college’s annual fund.

The day’s success can also be attributed to more than 80 volunteers who helped spread the word about the event, as well as the challenge donors who either matched gifts or provided incentives throughout the day:

  • Trustee Bill Barnaby ’64
  • President Brock Blomberg
  • Trustee Will Abele ’61
  • Trustee Christian Sockel ’93
  • Trustee Peg Williams ’80
  • Christy Barilotti ’01
  • Ann (Helfferich) Mackenzie ’77 and Trustee Graham Mackenzie ’74
  • Jake Kohler ’13
  • Dean Mark Schneider
  • UC Alumni Council

Last year, 1,953 participants raised more than $350,000 on #Giving2UCday in honor of the college’s sesquicentennial celebration, surpassing a goal of 1,869 donors that was set as a nod to the year the college was founded. The next #Giving2UCday will take place on November 30, 2021.

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