University of Hawaii Foundation Tallies $116 Million Total in Record-setting Four-year Campaign for Hawaii

University of Hawaiʻi
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Posted: Jun 1, 2001

The University of Hawaiʻi Foundation tonight announced the successful conclusion of its first-ever comprehensive fundraising campaign with $116.4 million in gifts, surpassing the fund drive's previously announced goal of $100 million.

The grand total includes an anonymous $8 million gift to the UH Cancer Research Center that was announced as a surprise to conclude the Foundation's victory party at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Campaign co-chairs U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye, First Hawaiian Bank's Walter Dods and former Bank of Hawaii head Larry Johnson all praised the outpouring of support for UH. "At the heart of this campaign," said Dods, "was the knowledge that the future of Hawaiʻi and its university system are inextricably linked. The response to our appeal demonstrates that the community recognizes this and is willing to step forward to provide private support."

The Foundation's plans for the campaign were first unveiled in 1997 with the naming of co-chairs. It stands as the largest sustained fundraising effort in the state's history, and represents a key element of the university's movement toward competing at the highest level of public education in the nation.

Last year, after substantial commitments of gifts were received during the so-called "quiet phase" of the campaign, the Foundation publicly announced that the final goal would be $100 million. With tonight's announcement, that goal has been exceeded by more than $16 million.

"The university's campaign has elevated the quality of the institution on all fronts," Johnson said. "The ultimate beneficiaries are the students, families, communities and businesses that the university serves. We're in the midst of institutional renewal, and the campaign will provide the foundation for substantial growth and achievement in the years to come."

In a videotaped message, Inouye thanked all donors to the campaign for their ready support that will, he said, "help UH prepare for its certain leadership role in the Pacific region and the new economy."

Outright gifts to the foundation make up about 75 percent of the total, with planned giving - from estates, bequests and the like - making up the remaining 25 percent. The largest share of gifts came from corporate and foundation sources, with individuals and other organizations making up just over 40 percent of the total.

"The response by alumni and friends of the university has been truly inspiring," said Foundation president Patrick McFadden. "Several large gifts from corporate and community leaders early in the campaign gave us an initial boost, but it's especially gratifying to note that more than 25,000 alumni gifts were also received."

UH President Kenneth P. Mortimer concluded the evening's program. "Four years ago," he noted, "this campaign began with the purpose of transforming the community's relationship with its university. We now emerge from this effort invigorated as a community," he said, "thanks to dedicated investments by the private sector that allow us to build bridges between people and their aspirations."

The Foundation's goals throughout the campaign have been to target endowment proceeds for student opportunities, educational innovation, faculty excellence and general university support.

President Mortimer added, "This has been a remarkable experience for the institution, and it has raised our awareness and expectations ofwhat can be done."