Class Project

      

 

 

October 9, 2023

Our 45 year reunion will be October 20-22, 2023!  Our 50 year reunion is five short years away. 

Traditionally 50 year reunion classes make a significant gift to the Academy in remembrance and gratitude for our years and development as a class during our cadet days and beyond.

To select a gift which best reflects the appreciation of our class, the gift committee has been expanded to include the reunion committee members. We have met several times since August. Here is an update about our progress so far:

  • We have set a goal of Seven Hundred and Eighty Thousand Dollars:  $780,000.  In years past we have met and exceeded the goals that have been set through your generosity.  This has totaled in excess of $600,000 since 2003!  Thank you!
  • Several alternative gifts are being evaluated. These include:
  • An endowment for innovative cadet projects that address challenges faced by the Coast Guard.
  • A statue of a historically significant Coast Guard officer such as Captain Michael Healy.
  • An endowment for practical life skills learning for cadets including financial, wellness, and spiritual development
  • A project recognizing the contributions of our class towards diversity in the officer corps.

Also being considered is a combination of a physical gift (statue, etc.) and combination of endowments for cadet development.

If you wish to comment or discuss these alternatives, please contact a member of the gift committee directly.Our website, www.uscga78.org, includes a “Message Center” for sending private messages between members of our class.  Click here to send a message: https://www.uscga78.org/member_messages_list.cfm

Whether or not you are an Association Member, please plan to participate in our 50 year gift campaign.  Although the total amount of our contributions is a good measure, our primary goal is 100% Class participation.  We can get there if we all give at least a little.

IMPORTANT: For efficiency and flexibility it is best to designate contributions for the 50 Year reunion project to the Class of 1978 Endowment Fund and note that the gift is for the 50 Year reunion gift.  The Class Gift Fund is being used for current and past projects and is accounted for separately.  For questions about this recommendation contact Kerry Watterson or any member of the Gift Committee.

'78 is Great!

Gift Committee:  Iain Anderson, Bruce Black, Chris Bond, Manson Brown, Joe Castillo, Bryon Ing, Mike Lucia, Mike Vincenty, Kerry Watterson, & Brooke Winter