A Showcase of Love and Support for Beloit

“As a senior about to graduate this May, I have been able to feel and appreciate the positive impacts of Beloit’s incredible alumni support and donor generosity on my college experience.”

Shambhavi Upadhyaya’19 sent me this nice sentence a couple of days after she attended our annual Showcase event in May—a celebration of Beloit philanthropy that features the presentation of the D.K. Pearsons Award. It is an evening in which students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents, and friends of the college come together to celebrate the power of Beloit College in developing lives of purposeful consequence. Shambhavi goes on to note that “Showcase was the perfect platform to acknowledge the efforts of the college’s faculty, staff, trustees, and alumni in enriching opportunities for students to go beyond the classroom, practice their intellectual curiosity, and pursue their unwavering paths to excellence. What an uplifting way to reflect on my four years at Beloit!”

Lauren Glaser, a junior, added, “Showcase gave me the opportunity to see what a Beloit education can help me achieve. I had the chance to meet very successful alumni who made me feel much more connected to the broader Beloit community.”

Another senior, Melissa Pelkey, sent this to me: “Showcase connects current students with Beloiters who share a true appreciation of what this school does. These are the people who make it possible for the school to provide students like me a unique and meaningful college experience. It was empowering to meet a room full of people who truly believe and invest in the overarching values of Beloit. As a student it is encouraging to know that this community is standing behind the college to carry it through rough patches and celebrate its accomplishments, including an incredible class of graduates each year!”

And, let me share with you the voice of junior Kikie Odonkor: “I was there to be an embodiment of the student body, to fuel hope in our donors, and to make the college proud of the kinds of people they are impacting. Showcase was a chance to say thanks for the time, effort, and resources that are generously given towards my education and that of all students.”

Junior Mustafa Quadir adds, “I’m thankful for spending an evening with members of our community who believe in the mission of this college, the Beloit experience, just as much as our dedicated staff and faculty. These were members of our community who went out into the world and recognized the life-changing impact that a Beloit education has on a curious mind and have supported the same experience for more generations of Beloiters ever since.”

Add to that these comments from Shivangi Ambardar’21, “Showcase connected me with alumni who believe in Beloit and its mission after 10 and even more years of graduating. Beloit for them is still the same, no matter how much it has changed. It is still the place which proudly made them who they are. I love Beloit immensely. Attending showcase made me grateful for being a part of this tight-knit community.”

This year, Steve Mahle’67 and Kathi Austin Mahle’67 were singled out for the D.K. Pearsons award. Their giving to the college has been exceptionally generous, ongoing, and mission-driven. They talked about their appreciation for their time at Beloit, their pride in being Beloiters, and their satisfaction in being able to make a difference in the lives of students. And, as you have read, these sentiments echoed all around the room.

Let me return to Mustafa for a final thought: “I was reminded that my experience here is far more than the rigorous interdisciplinary education found in our classrooms. It’s also about belonging to a community who shares a deep love for a place that is now my home. I walked out of Showcase the proudest I’ve ever been to be a Beloiter. I got to meet the people who have generously stepped forward and supported my Beloit experience through their philanthropy. I hope that they walked out of Showcase knowing that they have supported a mission that has changed my life, and has given me and my peers experiences and relationships that are invaluable and irreplaceable.”

Turtles all the way down, indeed!

From here at Chapin’s desk.

President Scott Bierman
presidentsoffice@beloit.edu