Category: Donor Impact

“Carleton meant so much to me and set my life in a direction it wouldn’t have otherwise taken. I attach a great deal of importance to Carleton, and that’s why I’ve made a significant legacy provision for Carleton. This is one more way I can give back.”

With a gift to the Carleton tennis team, a St. Olaf graduate celebrates her parents, her daughter, and her former cross-town rival coach.

By endowing an internship named in memory of a fellow Carl, Tom Rock ’84 and Melissa Raphan stay true to their philanthropic beliefs.

Susan Gerstner ’81, P’17, P’20 and Dan Carlsen ’80, P’17, P’20
The Carleton Experience Enrichment Endowment

“We hadn’t considered that these opportunities weren’t available to all students, and that even with a full scholarship, they could still be out of reach,” says Dan Carlsen ’80, P’17, P’20. “It never occurred to us that this huge gap in discretionary income can create barriers to engaging in the Carleton experience.” 

By her count, Eva Grench ’19 is the 36^th person in her family to attend Carleton—a list that includes cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and even great-grandparents. Her parents, Dawn Scott Grench ’83 and Bruce Grench ’82, met in Myers Hall when they were first-year students. So because Carleton has meant so much to their family, Dawn decided to give back. 

Two generations of the Parker family show their love of Carleton through a newly created endowed scholarship.

Ann Hamilton ’70 remembers vividly the turbulent years she was a student at Carleton. The Vietnam War raged, Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy were assassinated, and the shootings at Kent State tore everyone apart. “It was a very intense time to be in our country and especially in college,” Hamilton said.