Successful “Legacies” Campaign Concludes with Record Total

HOLLAND - The "Legacies: A Vision of Hope" comprehensive campaign at Hope College has successfully concluded as the largest single fund-raising effort in the college's history.

Hope has raised more than $137 million from more than 3,300 donors through the campaign, well above the college's goal of $105 million. The college also raised nearly $15 million through its annual "Hope Fund" effort from 2000 through 2004, for a combined total of more than $152 million, making it one of the largest fund-raising efforts by a non-profit organization in West Michigan history.

Hope announced the successful end to the multi-year campaign on Friday, Jan. 28, in conjunction with the January meeting of the college's Board of Trustees.

"By any measure, this was a wonderfully successful capital campaign," said Dr. James E. Bultman, president of Hope College. "That the money was raised during a period of economic recession in our country and especially in western Michigan makes the amount even more remarkable."

"It's very humbling and gratifying to have this level of support from our constituency, and we thank our alumni and our friends who have been so faithful and generous in their support," he said. "And we acknowledge also God's grace and goodness to us as an institution."

Joel Bouwens, chairman of the college's Board of Trustees, agreed, citing the lasting role that the campaign will play at the college. "These gifts will enable Hope to have a positive impact on the lives of students for many years to come," Bouwens said.

"Hope's alumni and friends are very generous, and we're extremely grateful for the support that Hope has received, not only locally but also nationally," he said. "This level of giving suggests the Hope community is supportive of its mission; they believe that the college carries out its mission effectively and efficiently; and they are confident the college will continue to hold true to its mission."

Bouwens also expressed appreciation for the campaign's three co-chairs and the college's presidential leadership, as well as the efforts of the college's advancement staff.

"Our three chairs, Peter Cook, Peter Huizenga and Phil Miller, provided great leadership for this campaign," he said. "[Former President] John Jacobson started out with a strong vision, and President Bultman built on that vision and met the challenge of bringing it to a successful conclusion. All the members of the fund-raising team, under the leadership first of Bob DeYoung and then of Bill Anderson, also deserve to be commended for their outstanding work."

The "Legacies: A Vision of Hope" comprehensive campaign featured four primary initiatives: building a new science center and renovating the Peale Science Center; increasing the endowment to provide on-going support for college operations and programs; building the Martha Miller Center for Global Communication and making a variety of campus improvements; and building the DeVos Fieldhouse.

The college announced the campaign in October of 2000 as an $85 million effort including the first three components. The DeVos Fieldhouse, anchored by a $7.5 million leadership gift from the Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation, was announced as a separate fund-raising initiative in March of 2001, and was made a part of the campaign in January of 2002, bringing the total goal to $105 million.

Work on all four components proceeded even as fund-raising continued.

The science center project included construction of both a new, 85,900 square foot building and the renovation of the existing, 72,000 square foot Peale Science Center. The new building opened in August of 2003, and the renovation of the adjacent Peale building was completed in August of 2004. The combined structures house the departments of biology, chemistry, geological and environmental sciences, nursing and psychology. The project totaled $36 million.

The college broke ground in late April of 2004 for both the Richard and Helen DeVos Fieldhouse and the Martha Miller Center for Global Communication. Construction on both continues, with the Martha Miller Center expected to be ready for the 2005-06 school year and the DeVos Fieldhouse scheduled to open during the fall of 2005.

The Martha Miller Center will house the departments of communication and of modern and classical languages, as well as the offices of international education and multicultural life. The 49,000 square foot building is named in honor of the late Martha Miller, who died in 1999 at age 96, in recognition of a $3 million leadership gift her family made on behalf of the project through her estate. The project totals $12 million.

The DeVos Fieldhouse will house offices for the department of kinesiology and the college's athletic training program, and will become home court for the volleyball and men's and women's basketball programs. Owned and operated by Hope, the fieldhouse will serve as a community resource for local events, helping to meet an area-wide need for such space. Among other uses, it will be a home court for Holland Christian men's basketball.

The 102,000 square foot building is being built on Fairbanks Avenue south of Ninth Street. Particular emphasis has been placed on the fieldhouse site itself, with extensive use of green space intended to create a park-like setting designed to help enhance the visual appeal of the main eastern gateway to downtown and campus.

The fieldhouse is being named for Richard and Helen DeVos in honor of their foundation's leadership gift. The total project cost is $22 million.

Additional campus projects already completed include the construction of new weight and exercise rooms, and of two new dance studios, in the Dow Center, and the restoration of the stained glass windows and mortar joints of landmark Dimnent Memorial Chapel. A major restoration of the historic Skinner organ in the chapel began at the beginning of January and is expected to continue through the fall. Projects remaining include the renovation of Graves and Lubbers halls, both of which will likely begin in 2006, after some of the buildings' occupants have moved to the new Martha Miller Center.

Gifts in support of endowment have totaled more than $52 million. The campaign added 167 new endowment funds, including 138 new scholarships and four new endowed chairs.

The total raised through "Legacies: A Vision of Hope" more than doubles the previous high for a single fund-raising effort at the college. An earlier campaign, "Hope in the Future," concluded in June of 1994 having raised $58.1 million, surpassing its goal of $50 million.

-30-