At the Heart of Giving

A gift of time

These loyal donors also have given of their time. Burt, Bob, and Lee have served on the Rice Board of Trustees. Burt notes, “It’s been an honor to serve on the board. Rice is a wonderful place to commit your time and effort.”

For Lee, all it took was a call from Charles Duncan ’47 to join the Rice board in 1994. “Charles was chairman of the board and a good friend,” says Lee. “ When he asked if I’d join the board, I thought, ‘Why would I go on the Rice board?’ But I like the Rice architecture, so I said yes!” Lee served on other committees but “was always involved with buildings and grounds projects,” she says. “I love the school, the campus. I love being involved.”

Lee currently serves as a board representative for the Wiess House renovation project. “Caroline Wiess Law was a dear friend of ours,” notes Joe. “Caroline’s mother and father gave that house to Rice, so it is important to us that the house be renovated and preserved.”

Bob, who has served on numerous boards, says that the Rice board is “a very active board and truly involved in the establishment of the policy of the institution.” He emphasizes that it was “invigorating to interact with other people interested in intellectual matters. We saw many changes.”

Houston Endowment not only provides financial support to Rice, but some of its staff and board members also give freely of their time.

D. Kent Anderson ’62, chairman of the board for Houston Endowment, is a member of the Rice Board of Trustees, where he serves as chairman of the building and grounds committee and the nominating committee. He also has co-chaired the Next Century campaign.

L. E. Simmons serves not only on the Houston Endowment board but also on the Rice board, where he is a member of the financial affairs committee. In addition, he is chairman of the Council of Overseers for the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management.

Joe Nelson served on the Houston Major Gifts Committee for the Rice: The Next Century Campaign and the governing council of the Shepherd Society.

Giving time and financial support is vital to the future of Rice. Fortunately for the university, many outstanding individuals and organizations do exactly that. Burt sums up his involvement: “I get energized working with the faculty, students, administration, and alums.”

—Kimberly Paisley

At the Heart of Giving - Janice and Bob McNair