Foundation

Foundation/Development

NMSU Foundation recognizes donors

New Mexico State University honored donors for their giving to both athletics and university programs at the annual President’s Associates Recognition Ball in early March.

NMSU recognizes donors for their cumulative giving at several levels: University Ambassadors, $10,000
to $24,999; President’s Council, $25,000 to $50,000; Regents Associates, $50,000 to $100,000; Crimson Society, $100,000 to $250,000; Circle of Excellence-Bronze, $250,000 to $500,000; Circle of Excellence-Silver, $500,000 to $999,999.

This year the university created a new recognition level, Circle of Excellence-Gold, for donors with cumulative giving of over $1 million and honored six donors at this level.

University Ambassadors: Rick and Laurie Baish, Dr. and Mrs. Edwin Benjamins, Bohannon Huston Inc., Ben and Janis Boykin, Doris and James Cassan, Peter and Jeanne Culbertson, Ammu and Rama Devasthali, the Dona Ana Chapter of Certified Public Accountants, Joe and Susan Ellington, Alma and Paul Feil, Barbara Funkhouser, Jack and Rebecca Groves, Dr. Bill and Kaylynn Holloman, Denton and Sandra Holmes, Arturo and Maria Elena Jurado, Mr. and Mrs. Chris Knackstedt, Eric Liefeld and Trina Witter, Dorothy M. Lockman, the Gordon McMillan family, David and Janie Orr, Ray and Betty Sadler, Alvy Ray Smith, Sunrise Lions Club, John and Romayne Thomas, Bob Vitolo, Clint F. and Robin W. Welsh and Janet A. Zingale, D.D.S., and Michael J. Zingale, D.D.S.
President’s Council: Mr. and Mrs. Dan Antes, Bank of the Rio Grande, Ralph and Betty Boone/Boone Transportation Inc., Joan Stanley Brown, Lee Cheves, C.O.R.E., Sally and Glenn Cutter, Dona Ana County Associated Sportsmen Inc., Les and Renai Fletcher, Harlan D. Gerardy, NovaCare Outpatient Rehabilitation, Paulina U. Salopek, Patricia and Louis Sisbarro, Mrs. Lilian Steinman and Texaco.
Regents Associates: Mr. and Mrs. Robert Davis, Robert E. Neligan, Johanna H. Jennings and retired Air Force Col. Leonard R. Sugerman. Crimson Society: Dr. and Mrs. Lonnie Abernethy, Carl and Andrea Everett, Fabian A. Samaniego, Agilent Technologies, Marion Monical Trust and Jerome and Joyce Cutler Shaw.
Circle of Excellence-Bronze: Jim and Gloria Ikard, Citizens Bank of Las Cruces, John J. and Elizabeth B. Monagle, the estate of Eugene and Mable Wemlinger and the Manasse Family Trust.
Circle of Excellence-Silver: Boeing Co., PACE Partnerships, General Motors Foundation and Public Service Co. of New Mexico.
Circle of Excellence-Gold: Aggie Scholarship Association, Noble Jones Estate, Phillips Petroleum, Stan Fulton, Ulysses McElyea family and Mr. and Mrs. Herbert A. Zuhl.

CIRCLE OF EXCELLENCE-GOLD

Charter members of the Circle of Excellence-Gold donor recognition group, who have made gift of more than $1 million to New Mexico State University, are pictured with university President Jay Gogue at the President’s Associates Ball. From left are Herb Zuhl, Joan Zuhl, President Gogue, Stan Fulton and Angeliki Fulton.

UNIVERSITY AMBASSADORS

New members of the University Ambassadors donor recognition group assemble with New Mexico State University President Jay Gogue at the 2001 President’s Associates Ball. From left are Eric Liefeld, Trina Witter, Rama Devasthali, Michael Zingale, Ammu Devasthali, Janet Zingale, Arturo Jurado, Sandra Holmes, Denton Holmes, Maria Elena Jurado, President Gogue, Janis Boykin, Jean Culbertson and Ben Boykin.

Photos by Michael Kiernan

Les Davis, 1919-2001

Longtime Aggie booster Les Davis, a Cimarron, N.M., cattleman, died in May after a long illness related to injuries sustained during World War II.

Although he was not an NMSU alumnus, he sent his four sons, Warren Mitchell, ’77; Randy, ’80; James Kirk, ’81; and Bruce, ’82, to the university.

He hosted or attended all Aggie alumni events in north-eastern New Mexico and opened his home to presidents Thomas, Halligan and Gogue when they were in the area.

Les’s wife Linda is a member of the NMSU Foundation Board. The couple were recognized for their financial support of NMSU as members of the University Ambassadors at the recent President’s Associates Recognition Ball.

In 1941 Davis found his way to the family-owned CS Ranch in northeast New Mexico following graduation from Dartmouth College. He said he “fell in love with ranching” and returned after service in World War II that earned him three purple hearts. He became general manager of the CS Cattle Co. in 1946 and president in 1964. His six children and seven grandchildren are actively involved in CS interests.

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS
G. Carl Everett Jr., ’73, his wife Andrea Everett and Dean Danny Arnold stand in a computer classroom named in Everett’s honor in the College of Business Administration and Economics on April 6. Everett is a retired senior vice president of the Personal Systems Group of Dell Computers. He donated more than $78,000 to remodel a room in NMSU’s Business Complex and donated 36 computers for the classroom.

Photo by Michael Kiernan

Samaniego

Fabian Samaniego, ’64, grew up in Las Cruces in a family of six children. Even with limited financial resources, his parents stressed the value of education to their children.

With the help of a $500 NMSU engineering scholarship, Samaniego enrolled at the university. In his second year he changed his major to math and then to Spanish. After graduation he continued his studies at the University of Iowa, earning a master’s degree in Spanish. He taught at Utah State for five years and also worked for three summerss language director of the university’s Bolivia Peace Corps training program, preparing trainees in Aymara, Quechua and Spanish. From there he taught for 24 years at the University of California-Davis where he served as teaching assistant supervisor and coordinator of the first-year language courses. He retired in 1994.

“I always wanted to pay back my parents for their encouragement and NMSU for that first scholarship,” Samaniego said.

This year he did just that, creating the Fabian and Virginia Samaniego Endowed Memorial Scholarship fund for the Department of Languages and Linguistics. This endowment provides full-tuition scholarship support for Hispanic students majoring in Spanish.

“I have always been interested in Hispanic students,” Samaniego said. “My goal is to help them in the way that others helped me.”

In retirement he is focusing on his other career: writing Spanish language textbooks for native and non-native speakers. Nationwide, his textbooks are used by about 30 percent of the students studying Spanish in junior high school and high school. His books for native Spanish speakers command about 75 percent of the market.

Samaniego now finds more time for his other passion – world traveling. He recently returned from a 37-day cruise that went from Hong Kong to Greece with several stops along the way.

Ann M. Palormo