Cavalier Corner is the publication just for UVa sports fans!
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Dear Cavalier Friends, As we move into the season of thanksgiving and the last several weeks of the year, I am once again struck by the overwhelming generosity of our donors. We are grateful for the contributions we have received thus far from thousands of donors and proud of the results from these investments. This fall we have had several opportunities to highlight and recognize special donors to our program. In late September, we honored more than 300 donors who made their 40th consecutive contribution in 2010. These donors, listed in this issue of the Cavalier Corner, attended a dinner in their honor and were recognized at halftime of the Southern Mississippi football game on Sept. 24. The camaraderie of this group and dedication to Virginia athletics were truly gratifying to witness. In 2012, we will recognize donors who joined this "40-Year Milestone" group in 2011. At each home game this football season, we have recognized a "member of the game." Each of these donors demonstrates a tremendous loyalty to our program. Donors who have been recognized so far include: Byron and Mae Ford of Waynesboro, Va., Shawn and Ellie Brydge of Charlottesville, Va., Larry and Nancy Tuskey of Richmond, Va., Walt and Meggan Derey of Roanoke, Va., and Cleve and Michelle Wright of Williamsburg, Va. We will continue to recognize donors at the remaining home football games and throughout the basketball season. We have enjoyed highlighting each donor's relationship with our program and hope others have enjoyed seeing individuals who are helping build the foundation of Virginia athletics. There were 1,456 donors who accepted our "10% challenge" and increased their 2011 gift by 10% over their 2010 annual gift. We are thankful for the generosity of so many donors. With the end of the year comes the end of our 2011 annual campaign. As in athletic competition, finishing the fourth quarter strong goes a long way. We are tracking at approximately the same level of fundraising as last year but hope to finish the year reaching our goal of $14.1 million. This achievement would equate to a 3% increase over last year. Our primary annual funding challenge remains to meet our scholarship commitment to the university, which increased nine percent this year and is scheduled to increase 6.5% in 2012. We cannot continue to fund the scholarship commitment rising at a 6.5% rate with an annual fund that doesn't match or exceed that rate. These increases, above the rate of growth of our annual fund, have required the use of endowment cash reserves to meet our scholarship and other funding commitments for the athletics department. Our Board of Trustees and our staff are hard at work to reverse this trend. The good news is that we continue to have a dedicated number of donors who support VAF each and every year, With the end of the year comes the end of our 2011 annual campaign. As in athletic competition, finishing the fourth quarter strong goes a long way. making investments in the program that truly return a lifetime of dividends for our student-athletes. I close with this final highlight from the fall that took place over the Oct. 15 weekend (which coincided with a remarkable football win over then 12th-ranked Georgia Tech). We hosted more than 300 student-athlete alumni for our sixth annual All-Sports Reunion. These former student-athletes have a lifetime connection to the university and the athletics program, in no small part due to the generosity of VAF donors. The stories shared and affection shown towards the program were truly amazing. Thank you for continuing to be an integral part of Virginia athletics and for being the foundation for a lifetime of successes and memories. Sincerely, Dirk P. Katstra Executive Director DECEMBER 2011 ◆ 3