April 24, 2001

WKU Gerontology Outreach Enhanced Through Gift

Bowling Green, Ky. - Lester and Dorothy Reeves of Panama City, Fla., formerly of Bowling Green, recently made a $100,000 commitment to create the "Lester and Dorothy Reeves Instructional Fund for Gerontology Outreach."

According to Karen Adams, dean of Western's College of Educational and Behavioral Sciences, this fund will award the "Lester and Dorothy Reeves Instructional Graduate Assistantship" to support outreach activities for individuals and families who are planning for their own aging process or the aging of a family member or friend.

"The contributions of gerontology faculty, students, and staff in the areas of public service, teaching and research have made a significant difference in the lives of older Kentuckians and their families," Adams said. "The only limitation on the growth of the program has been a lack of sufficient faculty time to provide leadership."

Adams said the "Reeves Instructional Graduate Assistantship" program will attract qualified students from a variety of curricular backgrounds such as nutrition, recreation and sociology. The selected students will present workshops and provide support for faculty involved in presenting other outreach programming.

Tom Hiles, WKU's vice president for Development and Alumni Relations, said: "We are so appreciative of the Reeves' continued support of Western. This gift, coupled with the endowed professorship the gerontology program received last year, will provide Western with resources to study the critical issue of aging."

Lester Reeves, chairman of Jr. Food Stores Inc., said Western has long been an important part of his family's life. He, his wife and three of their children are WKU alumni, and a granddaughter and daughter-in-law are currently attending the University.

"Dorothy and I have strong ties to Western and have closely followed Western's contributions to many that have received an excellent education from its very qualified faculty," he said.

"We are proud of Western's goal of becoming one of the finest universities in the United States and are glad that we can play a small part in its reaching that goal," Reeves said. "We believe that Western's recognition of the value of new programs like gerontology outreach make a positive contribution to older people."

The Reeves have also made numerous contributions to the College Heights Foundation at Western.

Dero Downing, chairman of the board for the College Heights Foundation, said the Reeves established the "Dorothy and Lester Reeves Scholarship Fund" within the College Heights Foundation in 1973 as an expression of their devotion to Western and their belief in the importance of education.

"We are grateful for the generous support which they are giving in the continued development of this perpetual trust that serves as a lasting source of assistance and encouragement for deserving students enrolled at Western," Dr. Downing said. "It is one of many ways in which these loyal Westerners have contributed to programs and activities that benefit their alma mater."

For more information, contact Tom Hiles at (270) 745-6208. More WKU news is available on the World Wide Web at www.wku.edu. If you'd like to receive WKU news via E-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.