Become an advocate – voice your support with community and business leaders; encourage others to join the conversation; offer your prayerful support for this project and for EMU students, faculty and staff.

Pledge your support – consider a multi-year commitment to achieve a gift of significance; consider a gift of appreciated securities to leverage your impact for this campaign. Make a one-time gift – contact us at 540-432-4203 or visit our giving page at .

A variety of naming opportunities are available, and can be used to honor a loved one, a family, or a beloved professor. For more information, contact Kirk Shisler, vice president for advancement at 540-432-4203.

As a 31-year-old first-year law student, Robyn was older than most of her fellow students. Her road to Washington and Lee was unconventional—she had taken a break from college in 1986 to raise the two sons she had with her husband, David, then working as a title examiner. In January 1992, Robyn started attending college classes at night, earning a degree in English from the University of Washington.

But Robyn’s English degree did not put her on a satisfying career path. So she set her sights on being a lawyer. Adept at test-taking, Robyn walked in “cold”—without preparation—to take the LSAT, the admissions test that most aspiring lawyers dread. She did astonishingly well, scoring 175 out of a possible 180 points, which put her in the top 1% of test takers.

Today, Robyn smiles and shrugs at this accomplishment: “Two parts of the test—the reading comprehension and analytical reasoning parts—tend to be easier for most people than the third part, the ‘logical reasoning’ section. A lot of law students sweated the logic questions. But doing logic problems has been a hobby of mine since I was in high school. So I enjoyed that part of the LSAT and did well on it. But I don’t believe high test scores are a good way of determining who will be successful ultimately.”

Her high LSAT scores won her admission into Vanderbilt, William & Mary, and the five other law schools to which she applied. Washington and Lee sweetened its offer with a $10,000 per year scholarship. That, plus the attractiveness of Lexington, Va., for raising children, caused her and David to choose Washington and Lee.

As a mother, Robyn was an anomaly in her law class. Only eight of her peers had children, and all but one of them were men whose wives were the children’s primary caregivers. Robyn learned to be highly disciplined with her time—maximizing every study opportunity during the day, so that she could spend some time with her husband and sons in the evening.

After graduating, she worked with two private law firms in Richmond, Va., representing non-profit organizations and doing charitable estate planning. She next spent several years as divisional planned giving director for the Salvation Army in the Washington D.C. area.

She responded to EMU’s advertisement for a planned giving officer early in 2011, because she liked the Christian values and overall ethos that she found on EMU’s website. When she interviewed with executive director of development Phil Helmuth, her interest was further kindled: “He stressed the importance
of relationships and of protecting our donors, of making every effort to ensure that they are not harmed by their giving. It must be a win-win situation, where they are helped by their gifts and EMU is too.

“EMU would never let someone, for example, put all their assets into a gift annuity with us,” she said. “It would be a fixed income for them and they wouldn’t be able to get to what they needed if they had an unexpected change in their life circumstances. The annuity is a wonderful way to get some secure and stable income, but we would want them to keep some of their money out of the annuity.”

Robyn visits EMU supporters to give them information about estate planning and to answer their questions, without charge. She helps them to understand ways that they can, for instance, simultaneously provide for themselves or their spouses, derive tax benefits, and make a contribution to EMU. But she always recommends that they double-check her advice with independent legal and tax advisers.

Phil grew up in Arcola, Ill., where his father owned a farm-machinery business. He enrolled in ��ݮ���� (EMU) for 1972-73, married fellow undergraduate Loretta Kuhns in August 1974, and soon left EMU to hold a paying job (he marketed potato chips for six months while Loretta finished her degree in elementary education).

In early 1975, Phil became director of development at Lancaster Mennonite High School and that July he and Loretta became parents.

After a couple of years on that job, Illinois Mennonite conference approached Phil about being a pastor. Phil agreed “to test the whether I wanted to be a pastor or not” by arranging to be the quarter-time associate pastor for East Bend Mennonite Church in Fisher, Ill. He initially shadowed the lead minister, but eventually he did his own preaching, visitations, weddings and funerals. The remainder of his time he worked as an  assistant manager for his father’s business, which entailed a two-hour round-trip between the church in Fisher and the business in Arcola, Ill.

Phil felt comfortable in his pastoral role—as a teenager during the Jesus-movement era, he led Bible studies in high school and had helped start weekend coffee houses. He had taken Bible classes at EMU.

Just before the end of his second year at East Bend, Phil accepted a senior pastor position at Science Ridge Mennonite Church in Sterling Ill., a comparatively large congregation with 250 to 275 active members. After two years, he often preached twice on Sunday mornings, adding a message for a small congregation on the opposite side of town.

His last role as a full-time pastor was at Olive Mennonite Church in Elkhart, Ind., for four years, charged with working at church growth.

After 11 years of being a minister, Phil headed back to EMU in 1987 to be a fundraiser for the college that he had not yet graduated from. (He finished his bachelor’s degree in management and organizational development through EMU’s Adult Degree Completion Program in 2002.)

“For me, it was a short leap to go from the ministry to development,” he says. “Having grown up in a business-oriented family, I feel comfortable with money matters. I know there is a place in God’s kingdom for people who have the ability to make money. And I value people who have been good managers, good stewards, of their resources.”

Phil says he acts as a facilitator for people to apply their resources to satisfying ends: “I am not just going out and begging for money—I help people to articulate what’s deeply important to them. I try to help them align their dreams and goals—their stories—with those of an organization that also has the common good at heart.”

Not a person to “preach and not practice” his views, Phil is a major donor of volunteer time and his personal money to many causes, including EMU, Park View Mennonite Church, Mennonite Central Committee, and the United Way.

For more than seven years, Phil has chaired the annual Virginia Mennonite Relief Sale at the Rockingham County Fair Grounds on the edge of Harrisonburg, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars each year for Mennonite Central Committee’s work. From 1996 through 2001, Phil worked part-time as MCC’s North American Relief Sale coordinator, helping to launch 11 new sales, many in urban communities.

“I love what I do,” Phil says. “I think fundraising for a worthy cause—one in which you deeply believe—is one of the best jobs anyone can have. You get to meet wonderful people and to hear their stories. What better way to spend your time?”

Phil has been named “2011 Fundraiser of the Year” by the Shenandoah chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.

Video by: Lindsey Kolb and Kelby Miller

Total contributions were $5,627,312, up $744,555 from fiscal year 2010.

“We are pleased that giving to the University Fund has remained strong, even as donors have begun making significant capital commitments to our campaign for the new Suter Science Complex,” said Dr. Fred Kniss, provost and acting president of EMU. “We are also quite fortunate to have an especially loyal core group of alumni and donors who persisted with steadfast support amidst continuing softness in the economy,” Kniss added.

Contributions to the University Fund totaled $1,818,000, an increase of nearly two percent over last year. EMU’s University Fund provides annual operating support for the institution as well as merit and need-based financial aid to students.

According to Kirk Shisler, vice president for advancement, EMU received several substantial gifts that made the difference in total giving for the fiscal year. “We successfully completed a $2.5 million theater and fine arts campaign.  Over $520,000 of these funds were received during the year.  This includes naming gifts for a new studio theater, art gallery and advanced media lab,” said Shisler.

Several substantial contributions were also received in support of a campaign to raise funds for a new science facility at EMU. “We are in the early phases of fundraising, and anticipate that several years of intensive effort will be required to reach our goal for this major project,” said Shisler.

It was also a strong year for bequests at EMU.  Gifts from the estates of 19 donors  amounted to nearly $1.1 million, an increase of 57 percent over the previous year.

“We are very grateful for the continued strong support for EMU in the midst of difficult economic times.  We view this as an affirmation of the importance of our university’s mission,” said Kniss.

In 2011, you can make a gift to EMU from your Individual Retirement Account (IRA) tax-free, helping shape the education of future generations of peacebuilders, service workers, and leaders of meaningful change in the world.

And you could save from 20¢ to 40¢ on the dollar.

Rules for 2011 IRA rollovers

• You must be age 70½ or older to request a rollover from your IRA to EMU.
• Gifts must be made from a regular IRA or a Roth IRA. Gifts from a SEP IRA are not eligible.
• Checks must be made payable directly to EMU by your IRA custodian. [Caution: Please do NOT have the check issued in your name.]
• Checks can be mailed to EMU or directly to you. It is preferable to have the check sent directly to EMU. This assures a more timely delivery.
• The maximum amount that can be given in one year by an IRA donor is $100,000. This can be one gift to one charity or the total of multiple gifts to several charities.
• Your gift can be used to fulfill a pledge.
• Please inform EMU about a pending gift since your custodian may send a check without including your name.
• You cannot give from your IRA for charitable gift annuities or for charitable remainder trusts.
• You cannot give to a donor advised fund.
• The Mennonite Foundation is not eligible to receive these gifts.

Other gift information

1. Send a to your IRA custodian giving them instructions for sending your gift to EMU, 1200 Park Road, Harrisonburg, VA 22802. [EMU’s EIN number is 54-057581]
2. Either send a copy of that letter or a separate notification to EMU for our records.

Have questions?

Sure you do! Be in touch with development program directors, listed below, or call the university development office toll-free at 800-368-3383 at your convenience.

• Art Borden, Director of Planned Giving: 540-746-5127 (direct line) or art.borden@emu.edu
• Phil Helmuth, Executive Director of Development: 540-746-2068 (direct line) or phil.helmuth@emu.edu

Total contributions to EMU, including restricted gifts and grants, totaled $4,857,757 compared with $6,194,442 in 2009.

"The decrease in total giving is largely due to a windfall bequest of $1 million EMU received last year," noted EMU President Loren Swartzendruber. noted.

"In recent years, total philanthropic support has hovered around $5 million per year, so this past year has been more typical in that regard. Overall, it was a good year for EMU, especially given the continued softness of the economy," the president said.

Over $3 million in restricted gifts and bequests was contributed in support of special projects in both the undergraduate and graduate programs as well as for endowment.

According to Kirk L. Shisler, vice president for advancement, EMU received several substantial gifts that made the difference in total giving for the fiscal year.

"We successfully completed a $2.4 million theater and fine arts campaign with nearly $500,000 of these funds received during the 2009-10 fiscal year. This includes $146,000 that was contributed to establish a studio theater in memory of EMU alumnus Lee Eshleman," Shisler reported.

EMU’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) was the recipient of several large grants this past year, including $200,000 in special project support from the Kellogg Foundation for the ", a program focused on racial reconciliation among descendants of slaves and slave owners.

EMU’s endowment fund also received a boost in new contributions of $667,000 during the year. Scholarship support for business and science students were among several program areas that benefited from these new contributions to the endowment fund.

"We are extremely grateful for the widespread support EMU received in what has been a very challenging economic environment for fundraising," Swartzendruber said.

“We are extremely grateful for the widespread support EMU received in what has been a very challenging economic environment for fundraising,” said EMU president Loren Swartzendruber.

Gifts to EMU’s annual fund – known as the University Fund – totaled $1.73 million compared with $1.85 million in 2008 for a decline of 6.9% in unrestricted support. “The shortfall in annual giving is cause for some concern,” said Dr. Swartzendruber. “However, given the larger picture it is very understandable. A number of our alumni and donor friends have experienced economic hardship, and so naturally some have felt compelled to reduce their support.”

In a show of support for EMU students, 126 faculty and staff made extra contributions during the year to help offset some of the losses in endowment revenue. Together with some 60 alumni and trustees, $128,000 was given and pledged to establish an Emergency Student Aid Fund. Proceeds from this fund will be awarded as financial aid to students during the 2009-10 academic year.

In the area of designated gifts and grants, EMU had one of its best years in the past decade. Nearly $3.4 million was contributed in support of special projects in both the undergraduate and graduate programs as well as for endowment.

According to Kirk Shisler, vice president for advancement, EMU received several substantial gifts that made the difference in total giving for the fiscal year. “A gift of $971,000 from the estate of Dr. Paul Hill of Virginia was the single largest gift to EMU this past year,” Shisler said, noting that the Hill gift will support EMU’s endowment fund as well as provide financial aid to pre-med students in EMU’s science program.

EMU’s Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) received nearly $800,000 in special project support from a variety of sources, including Church World Service, Fetzer Institute, Kellogg Foundation, The Ploughshares Fund and Compton Foundation. Substantial grants were made to other EMU programs as well, including an award of $132,000 from The Virginia College Fund and $117,000 for EMU’s nursing program from the Lettie Pate Whitehead Foundation.

Additional restricted gifts and grants in the $25,000 to $50,000 range benefited EMU’s music and scholarship programs as well as two new programs at Eastern Mennonite Seminary to provide online instruction and an Hispanic studies initiative.

“It is a special privilege to walk with our students as we prepare them to serve and lead in a global context,” Swartzendruber said. “Our mission simply could not be fulfilled without the involvement of those who are excited about what our graduates are doing all over the world.”

“Peacebuilding and development” and “environmental sustainability” will offer students hands-on opportunities to prepare to be agents of change in their local communities and around the world, motivated by their commitment to Christ.

Peacebuilding and development

This new major is a combination of the “justice, peace and conflict studies” major and the “applied sociology” program, with its international development and environmental sustainability emphasis.

Peacebuilding and development studies are geared toward intentional social change around issues of conflict, poverty, inequality, sustainability and social justice.

The new major offers students the chance to combine the theory of justice and conflict studies with the practice of peacebuilding and sustainable development in communities far and wide.

“Peacebuilding and development go hand in hand,” says professor Gloria Rhodes, who will be leading the classes along with fellow prof Terry Jantzi. Learn more…

Environmental sustainability

Rhodes and Jantzi will also work closely with the biology department to offer a new major focusing on forward-thinking sustainability practices.

Students who major in environmental sustainability will choose between two tracks of study:

• the traditional environmental science track with courses from the disciplines of ecology, chemistry and physiology
• the new environmental and social sustainability focus, which combines traditional environmental science coursework with revised applied sociology courses emphasizing international and community development and conservation.

“Traditional” environmental science courses, offered by biology professors Dr. James A. (Jim) Yoder and Dr. Douglas Graber Neufeld, have been revised and augmented over recent years with hard looks at local and global sustainability and hands-on research projects. Learn more…

Kirk L. Shisler, vice president for advancement, reported that contributions of $1,857,265 to the University Fund set a new record, surpassing the 2007 annual fund total of $1,764,068 by $93,197 or 5.3 percent.

“We are very grateful to our loyal alumni and friends for their increased support, especially in the midst of an uncertain economic climate,” Shisler added.

In addition to a successful year for EMU’s annual fund, Shisler reported that giving to EMU’s endowment fund was also up. Gifts to the endowment totaled $1,102,162 representing an increase of 46 percent over the previous year.

According to Shisler, this was the second year in the past ten when gifts to the EMU endowment surpassed the $1 million mark.

A combination of outright gifts and bequests from donors’ estates accounted for the contributions to EMU’s endowment fund. For example, EMU’s seminary benefited from a gift of $338,000 to establish an endowed fund for its clinical pastoral education program, which prepares students to serve in a hospital ministries.

Among the bequests EMU received this past year was an estate gift from the late Dr. Daniel B. Suter, who pioneered EMU’s biology and pre-med program. Suter’s bequest of $77,325 has been added to the Daniel B. Suter Chair in support of scholarships for biology majors at EMU.

During the 2007-08 fiscal year, EMU also received over $2.1 million in restricted gifts and grants. These contributions supported a broad range of EMU programs and projects as specifically designated by the donor. Both academic and athletic programs benefited from these restricted gifts.

“We are extremely grateful to our alumni, friends, faculty-staff and special partners whose generous contributions resulted in another record year of annual support for EMU,” said Loren Swartzendruber, EMU president.

“EMU benefits from an especially loyal group of donors whose passion for the university and its mission is consistently reflected in generous giving to undergraduate, graduate and seminary programs.”