October 17, 2007
Bowling
Green, Ky. - A Bowling Green couple has made a second challenge gift to raise scholarship support for Lady Topper Basketball at Western Kentucky University.
Mike and Belle Hunt have made a second $200,000 challenge gift in support of endowed scholarships for the women’s basketball program, bringing the total number of Lady Topper Scholarships to seven. The Hunts made an identical gift in 2006, which enabled to WKU to raise support to endow the “starting five” scholarships—a distinction that is shared by just a few top-notch women’s basketball programs such as Tennessee, Oklahoma and UCLA.
“Our goal for Lady Topper basketball is fully endow all 15 scholarships,” said WKU Athletics Director Wood Selig. “Mike and Belle Hunt stepped up in a major way to assist us in our efforts to endow our first five, and now they have set the stage again for a successful effort to endow our next five scholarships. Few schools in the nation are as fortunate as WKU to have such generous benefactors as Mike and Belle Hunt who continue model the way for all others.”
Belle Hunt, a Lady Topper fan since 1980, is excited about the challenge. “We’d love to get the 10 endowed scholarships,” Belle Hunt said. “Once we reach that goal, then we’ll work on the next five.”
Lady Topper Head Coach Mary Taylor Cowles said she cannot begin to express how grateful the program is for the support the Hunts have provided. “They have been very generous with their financial support, and we are truly thankful,” she said. “As we continue to strive toward our goal of having 15 endowed scholarships, we appreciate the fact that Mike and Belle believe in our vision for Lady Topper Basketball and understand the importance of private donations.”
Belle Hunt said they love being involved with the Lady Topper program and supporting the student-athletes. “This is our joy,” she said.
More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you’d like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
For more information, contact Tom Hiles, Vice President for Institutional Advancement, at (270) 745-6208.
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