Campaign for Mississippi State tops second goal

The largest fund-raising effort in state history has attracted more than $127 million in gifts, pledges, and deferred gifts to Mississippi State.

Ending June 30, 1997, The Campaign for Mississippi State shattered a goal of $110 million, set after an original $78 million target was achieved almost three years ago.

National general campaign chair James K. Ashford announced during Super Bulldog Weekend in April that the campaign had topped $127 million.

James K. Ashford, center, is recognized by President Donald Zacharias for his volunteer contributions to the university's successful major gifts campaign. As national general chair of The Campaign for Mississippi State, Ashford has provided leadership for a network of campaign volunteers, and, along with his wife, Jacque, left, also pledged $500,000 to the campaign to support scholarships in the College of Business and Industry. In 1993, the Ashfords provided funds for construction of the university's Walk of Honor.

"This is another historic day for Mississippi State," said Ashford, a 1958 accounting graduate and Naples, Fla., resident. "We've come a long way in the past five years and for that we are thankful for our thousands of supporters.

A native of Starkville, Ashford is retired as chief executive officer of Case Corp.

The campaign began July 1, 1992, and was publicly announced in April 1993 with $42 million in commitments already in hand. The initial goal was surpassed in September 1994.

Of the commitments by mid-April, $73.7 million, or 58 percent, is in the form of outright gifts and payments on pledges. Another $38.8 million, or 31 percent, is in the form of deferred gifts that will be realized in the future. About $14.2 million is in pledges payable over a five-year period from the date of the commitment.

Some $24 million has been contributed for scholarships, including $4.5 million from the estate of Joseph Henry Barrier of Yazoo County and $6 million from the estate of John P. "Polly" Hosmer of West Point. A Washington, D.C., tribute given by the university for retiring U.S. Representative G.V. "Sonny" Montgomery netted another $1 million for a scholarship fund to honor the 1943 business graduate.

Bricks-and-mortar projects have been the most visible products of the campaign, with about $22 million donated for that purpose. Among others, the building projects include:

• The $19 million Joe Frank Sanderson Sr. Center, an indoor recreation facility now under construction. A substantial portion of the cost of the facility will be covered by a gift from Sanderson, a 1947 alumnus from Laurel and retired chairman of Sanderson Farms.

• The John H. Bryan Sr. Athletic Administration Building that opened in 1995 thanks to contributions from the family of the late West Point businessman and Bryan Foods founder.

• The Dave C. Swalm Chemical Engineering Building. Ground recently was broken for the $18.6 million facility that is being significantly funded by Swalm, a 1955 chemical engineering graduate and founder and former owner of Texas Olefins Co. in Houston, Texas.

• The historic university cafeteria, now Perry Cafeteria, currently is being renovated and preserved with the aid of a gift from Jane Perry of Spanish Fort, Ala., in honor of her late husband, former Alumni Association president George D. Perry.

Other campaign gifts have renovated and modernized laboratories, established electronic classrooms, and enhanced library holdings, as well as helped expand the university's endowment from less than $50 million to nearly $120 million since the campaign began.

Some 45,000 Mississippi State alumni and friends have made contributions. Nearly $2 million in support was contributed by faculty, staff, and administrators.

A Walk of Honor containing the names of those campaign donors who contributed $500 or more during the five-year effort is permanently displayed on the historic Drill Field. Located in the heart of campus, the Walk of Honor has more than 4,800 bricks.

Editor's Note: While final campaign totals were not available at press time, gifts, pledges, and deferred gifts to The Campaign for Mississippi State had topped $135 million by mid-June. The final campaign total will be announced in the fall issue of Alumnus.