Donor Stories

Event Honors Humboldt Legacy Donors

Cal Poly Humboldt legacy donors gathered Thursday, March 2 at Baywood Golf & Country Club for the inaugural 1913 Legacy Society luncheon, a celebration of those who have designated Humboldt in

Leaving a Legacy of Environmental Education

For more than four decades, Robert Gearheart has been dedicated to understanding wetland systems and sharing his wisdom and passion with others. He’s reached hundreds of students over the years. 

Mary & Foster Keller Endowment Continues to Support Students

To ease the financial burden for Cal Poly Humboldt students and honor her parents, Jennifer Keller established the Mary & Foster Keller Endowment in 2012. The endowment created the University’s first-ever Presidential Scholarship and awards student recipients $4,000 annually for four years.

‘Boldly Rising,’ an Ambitious new Fundraising Campaign

Cal Poly Humboldt has publicly launched the most significant fundraising effort in its history, aiming to raise at least $50 million in support of students and campus programs. It’s called Boldly Rising: the Campaign for Cal Poly Humboldt.

Giving and Going Back to Humboldt

To Jacob Furgatch (‘82, Nursing), graduating from the Nursing program at Humboldt was about more than getting a bachelor’s degree. His Humboldt experience became the foundation for everything that came after – his wife, family, and a successful career.

First Endowed Professorship at Cal Poly Humboldt

Inspired by the Cal Poly Humboldt professors who played pivotal roles in his life, Dave Shaffer (‘67, Psychology, ‘68 M.A., Psychology) has made a generous gift that will support a Psychology faculty member. 

Lumberjack Arena Court Renaming Effort Underway

Coach Tom Wood built men’s basketball program into what it is today. To honor him and to support student-athletes, the Cal Poly Humboldt Foundation and a group of community volunteers are working to raise at least $350,000 to rename the court inside Lumberjack Arena ”Tom Wood Court.”

Scholarship Honors Couple Who Lived Their Values

To honor her parents’ commitment to environmental responsibility and to continue their tradition of giving to environmental causes, ” Sara Woodhull and her husband Craig Fuget have given $31,000 to establish the Joan G. and Joel Woodhull Memorial Scholarship fund. 

The Gift of Practical Plant Experience

Cal Poly Humboldt’s Dennis K. Walker Greenhouse boasts one of the largest teaching collections of living plants in California. Now, thanks to a generous gift from the facility’s namesake, Professor Emeritus Dennis K. Walker (‘60, Botany), the iconic campus facility will get an injection of TLC this semester with funding to hire a permanent assistant manager.  

Documenting the Past and Preserving the Future

Inspired by their passion for Humboldt, history, and lifelong learning, Jerry and Gisela Rohde have made a transformational gift to the Cal Poly Humboldt Library and its Osher Lifelong Learning

Being a Student and an Agent of Change

She saw friends and family who were changed by the criminal justice system. They entered juvenile detention and left an angrier person.  Inspired by restorative juvenile justice, Destiny Turner

For the Love of the Land and Humboldt

As a kid, Aidan Mullin was never into super heroes. His interests lay in the outdoors. He went camping, hiking, and fishing. He also gravitated to science -- dirt and plants in particular.“He was