John and June Rogers Announce Two Matching Gifts — Each at $50,000 — to Encourage Additional Support in the Last Weeks of the Campaign.
One Purpose volunteers celebrate the fund drive’s most productive week so far, with $131,000 in pledges reported for Week 5 alone.
One Purpose volunteers from across the community and campus were motivated this past week by a matching contribution of $50,000 by John and June Rogers, chairs for the fund drive. They announced early in the week that the matching gift would be awarded to the One Purpose division with the greatest number of dollars pledged for scholarships during the fifth week of the campaign.
That motivation paid off, as volunteers made Week 5 the most productive yet, bringing in $131,000 in pledges and raising the campaign total to $373,200. George and Karna Petrulakis led their division of volunteers to a reported total of $51,351 in pledges to earn the matching contribution from John and June Rogers’ motivational challenge.
“Having so many volunteers make a commitment to One Purpose shows that this is a community that values education and has a desire to keep students in the area after they graduate,” June Rogers said. “We felt that we needed to give this important campaign a kick and really get the volunteers motivated to bring in those pledges of support.”
A high number of CSU Stanislaus graduates live and work in the area, and one of the goals of One Purpose is to provide scholarships based on academic achievement that will attract the region’s best and brightest students to pursue their education locally at CSU Stanislaus.
“It’s about the students,” John Rogers said. “We want to encourage the people in this community who really care about education to give to One Purpose.”
John and June Rogers also announced that they will provide another $50,000 matching contribution for the most productive division of volunteers in the upcoming week — the sixth and final week of the One Purpose fund drive.
“John and June Rogers exemplify the energy and enthusiasm of our volunteers, and their generous matching gifts have provided important motivation to bring in pledges of support,” said Jacqueline Holt, director of annual giving at CSU Stanislaus. “We are stronger when we come together with the goal of supporting student success, and thanks to John and June Rogers, we will head into the final week of the fund drive with the support to succeed.”
This week’s success was also strengthened by three contributions at the $5,000 level from JKB Energy and Buchanan Enterprises, reported by volunteer James Brenda, and an anonymous pledge reported by volunteer Cleopathia Moore-Bell.
Frank Borrelli, CSU Stanislaus support services manager, is leading a team of volunteers that include University staffers, alumni and community members. He said volunteers have been motivated to become a part of One Purpose because of the focus on outstanding students and their potential to transform the region.
“Providing scholarships to encourage students to work hard directly benefits our community,” Borrelli said. “Those students become the best employees in our future workforce.
“The people at CSU Stanislaus are amazing — you will never find another place with people who are so supportive and positive. And we are united as one team to make the student experience the best it can be.”
Those interested in more information — or in giving to One Purpose — can contact the Division of University Advancement at (209) 667-3131 or visit www.csustan.edu/one-purpose.