Acts of Generosity

Alec Lugo ’16 was about 11 when he saw his first live stage performances.

Little Shop of Horrors was a Halloween production in his community that year: “There was gore and blood and singing, and it’s happening right in front of me. It’s a spectacle,” he said. “I told my dad, ‘I want  to do that.’”

By Christmas of that year, Lugo had landed a role as Bob Cratchit in a community production of A Christmas Carol. More than a decade later, the acting bug persists.

At Pacific University, Lugo double-majored in theatre and media arts. Today, he is performing professionally and works as a graphic designer, videographer and media consultant for Portland area theatre companies.

“I thought of (my two majors) as two sides of myself. The media side was the business aspects of my life. Theatre was the creative,” he said. “Now, they’ve kind of merged into one.

“I couldn’t ask for a better job. It’s a combination of everything I studied at Pacific.”

That education, however, wouldn’t have been possible without tremendous support, Lugo said.

“We could not afford to send any of us to school without scholarships,” said Lugo, who grew up as one of three children in a lower-middle class family in Hawai‘i. “Pacific was really generous.”

Donors are instrumental in supporting the work of Pacific University. Generous supporters contribute to scholarships, fund faculty positions, enhance cocurricular opportunities, and grow Pacific’s four campuses through capital campaigns.

Pacific recognizes its most generous donors with membership in the 1849 Society, honoring those who have contributed at least $1 million, and the President’s Circle, honoring those who have given at least $100,000.

This year, Pacific is proud to induct seven new members into the President’s Circle.

IRENE PRICE

Alec Lugo’s Pacific University education was funded, in part, by five endowed scholarships at Pacific. Among those was the Henry F. Price Memorial Scholarship, which covered much of his senior-year tuition.

Henry Price was a faculty member who taught mathematics and engineering at Pacific from 1920 to 1953. The current mathematics building on the Forest Grove Campus is named for his legacy — as is the scholarship that his granddaughter Irene Price has largely funded.

A retired tax attorney, Irene Price has made significant contributions to Pacific as a former trustee and through the scholarship.

“Scholarships are an incredibly powerful way of supporting our students and affording them new opportunities,” said College of Arts & Sciences Dean Lisa Carstens. “We are so grateful for the generosity of people like Irene Price.”

LOREN & DOTTIE WALTZ

Longtime Forest Grove residents Loren & Dottie Waltz are active members of the community, particularly the United Church of Christ congregation just across the street from Pacific’s campus.

And, they are tremendous supporters of the university.

The Waltzes have fostered a lifelong interest in promoting peace, endowing a fund to support the Pacific University Center for Peace & Spirituality.

They also have a generous history of supporting the Pacific Excellence Fund, Boxer athletics, the Performing Arts Series and Pacific’s music program.

“Support from Loren and Dottie Waltz has provided the Center for Peace and Spirituality, Pacific’s newest center, the ability to hit the ground running,” said the Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie, university chaplain and director of the center.

“With their help, we have brought in nationally known speakers to discuss religion, peace and justice. Without their giving, we would be far behind in a time when our center is so needed.”

LESLEY HALLICK & CANDY HARDIN

Dr. Lesley Hallick has been president of Pacific University for seven years. During that time, she has overseen significant growth in enrollment and in programs in the arts and sciences, education, health professions and optometry programs, as well as the establishment of the College of Business.

Dr. Hallick and her partner Candy Hardin have made key gifts to many campus priorities. Almost a third of their gifts have supported student success through the Pacific Excellence Fund.

In addition to her contributions to Pacific, Dr. Hallick serves on several area boards, while Candy operates a small farm with a menagerie of cattle, Icelandic horses, chickens and ducks, Australian shephards, and assorted rescued critters.

Dr. Hallick is the first Pacific president to be inducted into the President’s Circle for her philanthropic contributions.

“The level of Dr. Hallick’s contributions to Pacific University, in terms of her vision, leadership and commitment toward moving Pacific forward as an institution of higher learning, are without question second to none,” said Jerry Yoshida ‘73, chair of the Board of Trustees.

“What is perhaps less known, and what we recognize by her induction into the President’s Circle, are her very generous financial contributions to Pacific, for which we are extremely grateful.”

BI-MART CORPORATION

The Bi-Mart Corporation is an employee-owned chain of retailers in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Since 2006, the corporation hs supported Pacific University through the Bi-Mart Pharmacy Scholarship Fund, providing merit-based scholarships to pharmacy students who exhibit an interest in community pharmacy practice.

CAMBIA HEALTH FOUNDATION

The charitable branch of the Portland-based Cambia Health Solutions, Cambia Health Foundation partners with organizations to transform the healthcare system to be person-focused and economically sustainable. Cambia has provided philanthropic support for Pacific’s Interprofessional Diabetes Clinic, where students and faculty from the colleges of Health Professions and Optometry provide comprehensive care for underserved patients.

ELSA U. PARDEE FOUNDATION

Created to “promote the control and cure of cancer,” the Elsa U. Pardee Foundation often directs its nationally competitive grant funding to organizations such as the Mayo Clinic or Harvard Medical School. In 2016, however, the foundation granted Pacific University School of Pharmacy Assistant Professor Ashim Malhotra $108,000 to support his promising research into the treatment of  pancreatic cancer.

SPIRIT MOUNTAIN COMMUNITY FUND

The Spirit Mountain Community Fund is the charitable foundation of The Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde, focusing on improving the quality of life in Northwest Oregon through community investments consistent with the tribe’s culture and values.

The fund has supported several Pacific initiatives since 2004, including the Library, the Pacific EyeClinic in Cornelius, and the College of Optometry’s Community Outreach EyeVan.

DONOR HONOR ROLL

Pacific honors all of its donors in its annual donor honor roll, available online and, by request, in print. Thank you for your tremendous support of Pacific. ■

This story first appeared in the Winter 2016 issue of Pacific Magazine. For more stories, visit pacificu.edu/magazine.