“You see that the more people care, the better the institution can become.” Dan Bergeson ’74

I’ve lived in Northfield most of my life, so I know the benefits that the colleges give to the community.

I work at Carleton, but my roots to St. Olaf are actually deeper because my family is now on our third generation of St. Olaf students. There is really a twofold reason for my giving that comes from that. It’s a way of showing appreciation for the gifts we’ve received as a family, but it’s also to help St. Olaf continue to offer an excellent education to future generations.

I am also interested in [contributing to] the show of support that non-profits and grant makers look for when they are considering giving to an institution. That’s a good motivator. Alumni participation is one of the top criteria that philanthropic organizations look at when determining funding.

I’m a Class Fund Agent Team Leader volunteer for the Class of ’74, which is helpful because you can see what motivates other people. There is sort of a group-think that comes into play when you see that the more people care, the better the institution can become.

I think my class was probably the lowest givers in history! But we have a couple of real fireball leaders in Becky Ringham Odland and Jill Gavic Klanderman. They came up with the team concept, which has just snowballed. We divide the country up into geographic regions and have local teams contact classmates for gifts in that area, rather than relying just on people who call from St. Olaf. At our 30th reunion, our class had achieved the highest percentage of giving for any 30th reunion class in St. Olaf history!”

“St. Olaf had such an influence on my calling in life.” Lillian Osterhus Cole ’51

My dad said, ‘I don’t think you’ll be happy at St. Olaf…’

I said, ‘Why?’ He said, ‘Because they don’t allow dancing.’ And I love to dance! But I decided to go there anyway, and it’s had a profound influence on my life.

I heard about St. Olaf while I was growing up in Brooklyn, New York. Our community was heavily Lutheran and Norwegian. My
father and my mother both came from Norway, and my dad learned his English at St. Olaf Academy [the precursor to St. Olaf College] when he was a young man.

My junior year, I was asked to be a counselor for the freshmen in Mohn Hall. I was delighted with that, and it influenced my choice of career as an academic, personal, and vocational counselor for students, faculty, and staff at North Dakota State University, and for the community.

The whole idea of students committed to service really impressed me during those years. The biblical saying ‘From those to whom much is given, much is required’ has always been part of my philosophy, and also a statement from Winston Churchill: ‘We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.’

My husband went to St. Olaf; we married at St. John’s Lutheran Church (it was before Boe Chapel existed), and we had our reception in Thorson Hall. Our first son graduated from St. Olaf. I was on the alumni board, and when they asked me to be a Class Fund Agent, I was very happy to do it.

St. Olaf has had such an influence on my calling in life, and use of my time, talents, and treasures! I think we need to continue the tradition. There were those who gave before me, and I need to give to those who are coming after me.

“I wondered how I would stack up against some stiff competition….” Isaac Townsend ’03

I think about it as an umbrella….

The overall umbrella is that I want to support St. Olaf and keep it around for future students. And under that umbrella, there are three reasons why I think St. Olaf is an institution that has a place in our educational sphere.

Number One: St. Olaf’s unique culture and community allow people to develop personally and meet people who have thinking heads and strong values. St. Olaf has been extremely beneficial to my personal development and to my life as far as finding friends who share similar values. Here I am, about four years removed from St. Olaf, and some of my best friends are Oles, I’m married to an Ole, and so on it goes.

Number Two: St. Olaf’s academics are excellent. I just completed my MBA at the University of Chicago, which is typically ranked in the top five or so business schools. And I wondered how I would stack up against some stiff competition But I found I could go to bat, one for one, with anybody there, and I graduated with honors. I sat through a regression class, known for its analytics, and it was a breeze because of the statistics and math training I received at St. Olaf. St. Olaf teaches you to think comprehensively about issues, to question appropriately, and it definitely helped me excel in graduate school.

Number Three: St. Olaf is continually progressing to be a stronger institution, and I want to support that by showing that I’m a happy alum. Step by step, we see the incremental improvements: the green initiatives; the Science Complex; the Center for Innovation in the Advancement of Liberal Arts…and I plan to support St. Olaf in an increasing manner as my resources allow.

“We all feel a newfound attachment to St. Olaf.” Joleen Baker Chambers ’74

I had not given to St. Olaf in years….

I married an Ole, but we moved out of state right after my graduation and now we live in Texas. We felt that we could not donate enough to make an impact when we were also investing in our further education, our children, our community, etc. Several '74 Ole women got together to celebrate our 50th birthdays, and Becky Ringham Odland and Jill Gavic Klanderman (Partners in Annual Giving gurus for the Class of '74) asked if I would be willing to contact a few people from the U.S. Southwest region and become a Partners Team Leader. I have been so gratified to re-acquaint myself with my Ole classmates!

The Partners in Annual Giving ‘ask’ is so gentle and reasonable that most respond immediately with a gift. My classmates understand that it is the regular annual donation participation that is our goal. We all do feel a newfound attachment to St. Olaf through Partners in Annual Giving. We are grateful for our experience on campus and wish that for the next generation of Oles. I wish I had known years ago that an annual gift of any size has impact and does make you a Partner in Annual Giving!