About
Class of 1974 50th Reunion
Class of 1974 50th Reunion
Dear classmates,
On behalf of the 50th reunion committee, I invite you to join us October 11-13 for Homecoming 2024, with the theme of the Homecoming of Champions! The Homecoming of Champions is a nod to both the 2024 Olympics, and to the American legend and Grimes Lecture speaker, Dave Wottle. Dave is a 1972 Olympic gold medalist who later became the track and field coach at Bethany, as well as the director of enrollment. The Grimes Lecture is an annual premier event at Homecoming featuring a distinguished speaker that both educates and inspires attendees.
Our class will kick off our reunion activities at 4 p.m. on Friday, October 11, in Phillips Lounge, where we have a reception specifically for our class. Other activities will include a special invitation to a VIP tailgate area at the endzone during the football game, an alumni celebration dinner, and football game after-party. We hope we can use all of these events as a chance to gather, reminisce, and share what we’ve been doing and where we’ve been for the last 50 years! The weekend is action-packed and will conclude Sunday with the traditional Scroll Breakfast at Oglebay. View the schedule and register today!
In the meantime, we hope you will check out our fundraising project—addressing deferred maintenance on the historic Oglebay Gates.
Built and donated by Earl Oglebay in 1910, the Oglebay gates have a true historical significance to Bethany College and its students and alumni. Each student will walk through those gates twice in their lives; once as they begin their journey at Bethany College, walking through them on their way to Commencement Hall to sign the matriculation book. The second time will be out of the gates on their way to graduation.
The gates, opened only three times a year (the beginning of fall semester– the beginning of spring semester — and graduation), were refurbished once, led by emeritus trustee Robert Ewing ’59 from Wheeling, WV, in 1987. While structurally sound, some basic maintenance is needed to keep the gates looking beautiful and in good shape.
The classes of 1974 and 1999 have teamed up for their 50th and 25th class reunions to help do some of this cosmetic and maintenance work. These classes are aiming to raise $25,000 to make a real difference at this historical and meaningful area on campus. An added element this year is that we will be competing for a Class Cup—recognizing the class that has the biggest number of supporters (not money—but participation). Join me in bringing home the cup for the class of 1974!
Best,
John DeBlasis
Class of 1974 Reunion Committee Chairman
Committee Members
John DeBlasis
Dean Lesiak
Dan Harry
Vips Toohill-Alpizar
Cathy Rohrback-Gallagher
List of Donors
James H. Moyle
Stephen D. Ratcliffe
Jeffrey L. Stolz
Nancy S. Fox
D. Lynn L. Snider
Jane Snider
Paul J. Bergman
Bonnie Thurston
Frank P. Christy
Elizabeth Edwards
Mary K. Cowell
John F. DeBlasis
William J. Dumbaugh
Fletcher C. Hutcheson
Caroline Russom
Cathy Rohrback Gallagher
Katherine Westerholm
Ernest Teitell
Sara M. Mineo
Dennis J. Pavan
Paul A. Kohl
Donna L. Smith
Elizabeth A. Kohl
S. D. Lesiak
Treasure Your Bethany Memories
Take a stroll down memory lane, and look through Bethany’s 1974 yearbook!
Ways to Give
Gifts of Cash
- Cash contributions may be made by check, money order, or credit card (Visa, Master Card, Discover, American Express) through one gift or installments. Gifts may be doubled or tripled through matching gift plans with employers.
- Click here to make a gift online today!
- Mail a check to
Bethany College
c/o Liz Short
31 E Campus Dr
Bethany, WV 26032 - Please include a note or ‘class of 1974 project’ in the memo
Gifts of Securities
- Appreciated stocks, bonds, closely-held stock in family businesses or other property may be given to Bethany.
- The value of the gift is determined by the average market value of the stock on the date the gift is transferred to Bethany. Donating securities that have been held for a year or more offers the potential for a double tax benefit—a full fair market value tax deduction and elimination of capital gains taxes.
- For further details, contact your broker and a member of the Bethany Development Staff.
- Stock Certificates and Stock Powers
- If you send a stock certificate that is in your name, a letter of intent must be included. Under separate cover, please send a signed stock power. The College does not recommend sending signed certificates. Stock powers are available from the Office of Institutional Advancement or from any broker. On the stock power, your signature is the only item that is needed. If the certificate is in the College’s name, no stock power is needed. The process for re-registering stock certificates (transferring the certificate into the College’s name) can take from two to four weeks. Stock certificates should be sent to:
- If the certificates have been re-registered to Bethany College, a letter should be included identifying the donor and the purpose of the gift.
- Donor Advised Funds (DAF)
- Making a gift from a Donor Advised Fund means that you can receive immediate charitable deduction and possibly avoid capital gains tax.
- Donor-advised funds (DAFs) offer several benefits, including:
- Tax benefits: Donors can receive an immediate tax deduction for the full fair-market value of their donation, up to 30% of their adjusted gross income (AGI). They may also be able to eliminate or maximize capital gains tax on long-term appreciated assets.
- Flexibility: Donors can contribute a variety of assets, including cash, securities, mutual funds, real estate, and business interests. They can also build a philanthropic strategy and recommend grants when they’re ready.
- Community impact: DAFs can help donors design a giving strategy that creates a meaningful impact.
- Privacy: DAFs offer anonymity.
- Legacy of giving: Donors can make a bequest in their will to donate any remaining assets in their DAF to their chosen charities after they die. They can also pass the assets to heirs so they can continue giving grants to charities.
- No minimum balance: There is no minimum balance required to maintain a DAF account.
- IRA Qualified Charitable Distribution (aka “IRA Charitable Rollover”)
- Donors aged 70.5+ requests transfers of up to $105,000 directly from IRA custodian to qualified nonprofits(s).
- No charitable deduction is received but no income tax is paid, because no income has gone to donor.
- Gifts can be directed to special purpose or fund.
- For couples, each IRA owner can make a Qualified Charitable Distribution of up to $105,000.
- It may fulfill all or part of the Required Minimum Distribution for donors ages 73 and above.
- Electronic Transfer
- Giving stock through electronic transfer is the easiest method when a donor maintains holdings in a brokered account. Depository Trust Company, or DTC, is the clearinghouse for electronic security transfers. Each brokerage firm has a specific DTC number. When you wish to make a gift of stock, provide the following information to the transferring broker
- Acct Name: Trustees of Bethany College
FBO NFS Acct: # WHQ-017566
DTC: 0226
Clearing Broker: Hazlett, Burt & Watson
Reference: [Donor’s Name] - Please alert the Center for Institutional Advancement at Bethany College, before the transfer so that the College can make arrangements with its broker to receive the stock. The College cannot retain an unidentified security. At the same time, please indicate the purpose of the contribution, such as an annual gift to a school, a pledge payment, or funds for a planned gift.
- If sent by U.S. Postal Service:
- Center for Institutional Advancement
Bethany College
31 E Campus Dr
Bethany, WV 26032 - If the certificates have been re-registered to Bethany College, a letter should be included identifying the donor and the purpose of the gift.
- For more information, contact Liz Short at lshort@bethanywv.eduor 304.829.7281.
- Center for Institutional Advancement
Gifts of Personal Property / Real Estate
- Bethany accepts gifts of art, jewelry, antiques, rare books, manuscripts and similar property. Should you choose this type of gift, you will need to secure an independent appraisal of the value for tax purposes.
- Real estate may provide a convenient way to support the College. You may contribute real estate as an outright or deferred gift. For example, a donor can make a gift of a home or farm while retaining life tenancy. Contact a member of the Development Staff for further information.
The Order of the Bronze Bison
- The Order of the Bronze Bison serves as the highest recognition bestowed by Bethany upon those individuals who have included the College in their long-range financial planning.
- Membership is conferred upon alumni and friends who help underwrite the future of Bethany College in their wills or through an alternate planned giving program.
- The late Pearl Mahaffey, a revered long-time professor at Bethany, was honored as the first member of the Order of the Bronze Bison. Each year since Professor Mahaffey’s induction in April 1968, Bethany has recognized those who have been received into membership
- If you would like to know more about including Bethany in your estate plans, please contact a member of the Development Staff.
- For more information, contact Deno Emili at demili@bethanywv.eduor 304.829.7633.
- Bequests
- Bequests are the most common form of planned giving. With a bequest, you make provisions for Bethany in your will, designating either a dollar amount or percentage of your estate to the College. Whatever the amount, bequests to Bethany are free from federal estate tax and the estate and inheritance taxes of most states. Bequests should be drawn and executed with your attorney’s advice.
- Gifts of Life Insurance
- You may assign Bethany as a beneficiary or co-beneficiary of your life insurance policy. When Bethany is named as the owner of the policy and/or the irrevocable beneficiary, the cash value of the policy may be deducted on your income tax return. Premiums paid thereafter also are income tax deductible.
- For more information, contact Deno Emili at demili@bethanywv.eduor 304.829.7485.
- Bequests
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