Verdehr Gift to Support Student Musicians, New Music Building
Campaign for MSU gift to the School of Music through bequests in their wills. The Shaw Society recognizes donors who have made cash gifts of at least $500,000 or planned gifts of at least $1,000,000.
 “We feel it has been a real privilege to teach at MSU all these years,” the Verdehrs say. “MSU has provided a wonderful environment for us to accomplish many different goals as teachers and performers. We have watched the astounding growth of MSU over the 40 years we have both taught here and have been very pleased to see the institution develop in the ways it has. It makes us very proud to be a part of this great university and we wish to show this in a tangible way, one that will benefit future generations of students and teachers.”
The Verdehrs’ planned gift, which is directed primarily to establishing endowed named fellowships in violin and clarinet, will serve as a tremendous future recruitment tool to ensure these areas continue to attract the most musically talented graduate students. The Verdehrs also plan to direct a portion of their estate gift toward the construction of the much-needed new building for the School of Music.
“The School of Music and Michigan State University have greatly benefited from the lifetime commitment the Verdehrs have made to this institution,” says James Forger, director of the School of Music. “Through their teaching and example, they leave a legacy of talented musicians who keep music vital through participation and leadership on university faculties and in symphony orchestras around the world. Now they will be leaving a most generous financial legacy, which will help maintain MSU as a leading center for the study of clarinet and violin by providing financial support in perpetuity for future generations of talented music students.”
Simon Gifts Benefit School of Music, Look to the Future
The next generation of musicians will reap the rewards from gifts to the Michigan State University School of Music from President Lou Anna Kimsey Simon and Roy J. Simon.
 At the annual President’s Brunch in October 2006, David Porteous, chairman of the MSU Board of Trustees, announced that the Simons made a “dramatic momentum” planned estate gift. This gift will, along with their prior gifts, elevate them to the newly formed Clifton R. Wharton Society, which recognizes top-level donors who have contributed cash gifts of $2.5 to $5 million or planned gifts of at least $3.75 million. The latest gift will be used to fund two existing scholarships and establish a third.
The couple’s cash gifts to the School of Music total more than $350,000 as part of $550,000 in cash gifts to the university generously given through 2007. These include a gift of $170,000 to fund scholarships for talented music majors with a special focus for those in jazz studies. This support is directed to an endowed scholarship that will last in perpetuity, providing scholarship support for generations of talented young musicians studying at MSU. Additionally, a portion of their gifts was designated to the proposed new facility for the School of Music, and includes naming the director of jazz studies office/ studio and the director of Spartan Marching Band office/studio.
“The Simons once again lead by example,” Charles Webb, vice president for development, said. “Their continuing generosity will have a lasting and profound effect on our university. Major gifts like these are essential and will be appreciated even more by generations to come.”
“Our commitment of dollars reflects our commitment to our alma mater,” said Roy Simon, director of MSU Telecommunication and Transportation Systems. “While our gifts always have been in gratitude for the past, they more importantly are evidence of our enthusiasm for the future – and for those who will shape that future – as MSU sets about the ambitious goal of going from land-grant to world-grant.”
Of the total of the new Simon gift, 40 percent will be added to the Drs. Lou Anna K. and Roy J. Simon Scholarship Fund. The Simons chose to continue to increase the endowed fund that provides financial aid to students in the School of Music, especially those in the jazz studies area. An additional 30 percent will be added to another existing scholarship established by Roy Simon’s parents, the Mary Jane and Theodore B. Simon Endowed Scholarship Fund, which supports students majoring in business or engineering who also work at the Physical Plant Division, where Theodore “Ted” Simon worked and headed for years, from the post-war until 1984.
The remaining 30 percent will establish a new scholarship in the School of Music. The Drs. Lou A. and Roy J. Simon Endowed Marching Band Scholarship will help recruit and retain exceptional students in the MSU Marching Band.
The jazz studies area within the School of Music is of special interest for Roy Simon. Early in his career at MSU, he began his undergraduate studies as a music theory, composition, and conducting major, before going on to receive a BA. in Financial Administration in 1969, an MBA in Marketing in 1970, and a Ph.D. in Educational Administration in 1979. He serves on the School of Music Advisory Council and is an avid fan of the Spartan Marching Band and jazz studies.
“These exceptionally generous gifts of Drs. Lou Anna and Roy Simon to the School of Music are a testament to their desire to ensure access and excellence,” School of Music Director James Forger said. “Their significant continued support of the Simon Scholarship Fund will enhance the growth and quality of a signature program in jazz studies and provide access to talented students from across the nation. The establishment of their named scholarship for students in the Spartan Marching Band will provide needed financial support to a wide-range of talented and worthy students from all core colleges in the university.”
A Passion for Music and Love of MSU Inspires $1 Million Gift
Dick and Ruth Charles shared attributes of many alumni couples. Both grew up in Michigan. They met at Michigan Agricultural College (MAC) when she was in her junior year studying music and he had just returned from the service. And they shared a passion for music – she played the piano and organ, he played the saxophone.
In February 1947 during her senior year, Ruth accepted a position as director of music
 education in Upland, California. Dick proposed, they graduated; and not knowing a soul in California, headed west along Route 66 in a red convertible. They settled in Glendale.
Thus began the California-Michigan connection for Dick and Ruth Charles. During the first three years after their arrival in California, the couple offered private music lessons to supplement their income from teaching. In 1950, their entrepreneurial instincts and musical talents gave them the courage to quit their jobs teaching, expand their business and open the first Charles Music Store.
Their lives were full, growing the business and increasing their involvement in community life. Ruth raised two children while developing a successful business and career. The couple continued to perform as a piano-saxophone duo making many friends and connections throughout California.
Over a four-decade period, the Charles Music Store became the largest owner-operated music store west of the Mississippi.
Throughout their lifetimes, Dick and Ruth carried with them a commitment of sharing the richness of the arts with all people, sharing their talents and resources with their community and their alma mater, Michigan State University. And for more than 40 years, the home of Dick and Ruth Charles became the gathering point for many alumni settling in California.
When Dick passed away in 1994, an outpouring of gifts from friends, family, and colleagues created the Dick Charles Scholarship in Saxophone Studies, the first scholarship in this area in the MSU School of Music. A few years later, the Ruth Minks Charles Scholarship in Piano was established. These scholarships complement the musical duo Ruth and Dick represented throughout their lives together, preserving a legacy for future generations of MSU students.
In addition to her many other commitments, Ruth serves as a charter member of the West Coast Regional Council and the College of Arts and Letters Campaign Committee for MSU. In 2001, she was the recipient of the MSU College of Arts and Letters Distinguished Alumni Award. She maintains close contact with faculty, staff and students on campus, particularly in the School of Music.
Thus when considering her gift to The Campaign for MSU, Ruth wanted to continue her support of the MSU School of Music and has made a $1 million bequest to the proposed new facility with their names, Dick and Ruth Charles, associated with the next phase in the increasing prominence of the School of Music.
“As I approached my 80th birthday,” Ruth said, “it was a time of revelation and reflection on my life and that of my husband. In the year of our alma mater’s 150th anniversary and also the year of my 80th birthday, and in celebration of Dick’s life and love of music, people and good food, I have selected the Jazz Bistro in the new music facility to be named the Dick Charles Jazz Bistro. As MSU alumni and friends, our support of this project is paramount to help strengthen the School of Music, which we all care about so deeply.”
School of Music Director James Forger remarked, “Ruth Charles is a fabulous musician, person, and alumna, who has been a steadfast friend to the School of Music and MSU. She has opened her home on many occasions for a variety of university events, she has supported endowments that have provided access to MSU for more than 20 students, she has donated music collections and instruments, and her generosity continues with a lead gift to support a new state-of-the-art music facility. She has made a tremendous impact on our program for which we will always be grateful.”
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