NCWC News: 23rd Annual "Day for Wesleyan" Total Sets New Record

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September 24, 2004

23rd Annual "Day for Wesleyan" Total Sets New Record

Volunteers who took part in Wesleyan’s 23rd annual Day for Wesleyan fundraising drive on Tuesday, September 14, raised a record of $463,759. The amount was announced at a 5:30 p.m. celebration at the home of Wesleyan president Dr. Ian Newbould and Carla Newbould.

Last year’s event raised a record-setting total of $449,684.

During Day for Wesleyan, nearly 100 volunteers called on almost 1,000 area businesses and individuals to ask for donations and pledges to support ongoing basic expenses of the college, such as scholarships, library resources, teaching materials, and computers. Alumni across the country also were invited by mail to donate to this year’s Day for Wesleyan.

A Rocky Mount brother and sister who graduated from Wesleyan teamed up with a Wesleyan trustee to head this year’s fundraiser. Jan Pittman, a May 2004 Wesleyan graduate, and her brother, Jim Pittman, a 1992 graduate, joined Wesleyan trustee A.P. (Sandy) Thorpe III to lead the fundraising volunteers.

Jan Pittman majored in business administration and received Wesleyan’s Outstanding Senior award and Internship Award and was involved in many campus activities. She is employed in Rocky Mount by The Nottingham Company in client relations.

"Wesleyan has enriched my life with valuable skills that I not only use in the career world but in my personal life as well," she said. "I can honestly say my education at Wesleyan is priceless."
Her brother, Jim Pittman, played golf at Wesleyan and was on the 1989 baseball team that won the NCAA Division III national championship. He is vice president of Premier Warehousing Services, Inc., in Rocky Mount.

"As a student, I benefited from the generosity of alumni and friends who made gifts to the College’s Annual Fund." Pittman said. "As an alumnus, I am happy to give back to my alma mater to maintain this important tradition and provide a quality liberal arts education to students today."

Trustee A.P. (Sandy) Thorpe III is president of Thorpe and Company, Inc., in Rocky Mount. He was former president of Thorpe and Ricks, Inc., and past president of the Tobacco Association of the United States and the Leaf Tobacco Exporters Association. Active in community affairs, Thorpe is a director of the Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce, a Kiwanis Club member, and a former director of Centura Bank. He received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill.

Thorpe said, "I have seen first-hand that the College is growing and strengthening its ability to educate men and women—many of whom will live and work in North Carolina as leaders in their communities and beyond. I urge the community to join me in helping Wesleyan continue to educate and serve effectively."

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