Institutional Advancement are hiring a Temporary Annual Giving Assistant to help out with Give to the Max Day. This position will be working alongside the Senior Director of Advancement, Advancement Communications Specialist and the Give to the Max Day fundraising project managers to make this Give to the Max Day our best one yet.
The position will involve:
Orchestrating one-on-one interviews with Augsburg faculty, staff and student leaders.
Serving as lead project coordinator for up to 20 projects.
Completing necessary marketing collateral for projects including website registration and design.
Editing and sending email and mail copy.
Setting fundraising goals for individual projects.
Manipulating spreadsheets with donor data.
Assisting in the planning and execution of donor recognition events in coordination with various project managers.
Think that you would make a great Annual Giving Assistant? You can apply here.
Legendary Augsburg College athlete, coach and instructor Edor Nelson ’38, who led the Auggie football and baseball teams during a four-decade span, died last week. He was 100. President Pribbenow shared news of Nelson’s passing with the campus community. We were sad to learn this news after having enjoyed such a wonderful celebration of his life on Aug. 18. The family released the details of the memorial service, and we wanted to share them with you.
A memorial for Nelson will be held on Friday, Sept. 5, at Nokomis Heights Lutheran Church in south Minneapolis (5300 10th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55417). Visitation will be from 12 to 1 p.m., with the memorial service following at 1 p.m.
The Augsburg Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) program is currently seeking alumni to serve on the MBA Alumni Advisory Board. All alumni are welcomed and encourage to apply.
In conjunction with the MBA Office, the advisory board provides resources and opportunities to engage alumni with the college and each other through consistent communication, inclusive programming, input into curricular design and content, and intentional relationship building.
Did you know that 93% of Augsburg students receive financial aid? Or that student support services like tutoring, the Writing Lab, and the CLASS office are available at no extra cost? Financial aid, student support programs, faculty-student research and more are all made possible, thanks to generous donors to Augsburg. Each year, more than 2,400 alumni, parents, and friends give more than $1,000,000 to The Augsburg Fund. Philanthropy Week is an opportunity to teach current students about how their education is supported by donors, and thank current donors for their generosity.
Here are a few ways to get involved:
Share what you love about Augsburg and why you support the College on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #auggiesgive.
Join us for a special Philanthropy Week lunch on Wednesday, April 2, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., to help thank donors for their support and encourage them to make a gift this year (RSVP to Ben Krouse-Gagne at 612-330-1179 or krousega@augsburg.edu).
By spring 2015, Katie Lindenfelser ’02 hopes to break ground for Children’s Lighthouse Minnesota (CLM), the first children’s hospice and respite home in the Midwest, and only the fourth children’s hospice facility in a nation that has over 4,700 such facilities for adults.
Having chosen Augsburg for its Music Therapy program and the option to study abroad, Lindenfelser found an “incredible mentor” in Professor Roberta Kagin, who encouraged her interest in pediatric music therapy, and suggested she spend a semester in Melbourne, Australia. She did so, and fell in love with Melbourne. She also discovered that more of Australia’s music therapists worked in pediatric care than was true in Minnesota. Later, in her work as a music therapist in a Minnesota children’s hospital, she found herself repeatedly asked by parents about other places outside the hospital where they could take their child when exhausted and needing more support—a place to feel like a kid, to get a nice bath and a good night’s rest, and a place to meet other families in similar situations. Was there such a place in the region—a place for respite and end-of-life care, a sacred place for family when a child is dying? Basically, no.
She returned to the University of Melbourne to complete a Master’s in music therapy. While there, she also completed a study investigating bereaved parents’ experiences of music therapy while their child was dying, and connected with a pediatric palliative and hospice facility, Very Special Kids (VSK), to which she would return in 2008 to work. It became increasingly clear to her that VSK was the kind of facility thousands of U.S. families had been seeking.
Left to right: Matt and Nadine Gregerson, Katie Lindenfelser and Matt Christensen
When she returned to the U.S., her husband, Matt Christensen ’03, asked, “Why would you keep going to Australia to work at a children’s hospice? Why not just work at one here in Minnesota?” When she told him there was none, he said, “Let’s build one”—and the dream began to unfold. They, along with Matt Gregerson ’02 and his wife Nadine, did research on what, if anything, had already been done, and what would be required to build and sustain such a facility. They forged a relationship with Harmon Killebrew’s widow Nita, to join forces on an issue that had been dear to the heart of her late husband and baseball legend—a man who had been a grateful recipient of hospice care, and who felt deeply about dignity at the end of life. An advisory group for a CLM Fund in his honor—comprised of families with names such as Oliva, Molitor, Morris, Carew, Blyleven, Hays, Smith, St. Peter, Doepner and LeDoux—began helping to raise awareness and the $10 million needed to both erect a building (where families can stay without charge), and to fund the first two years of operations.
On May 17 (the third anniversary of Killebrew’s death), the Minnesota Twins will provide an opportunity to contribute, as they did last spring. By simply calling Luis at the Twins office (612-659-3575) to purchase tickets for the day’s game, you can mention CLM and $10 per ticket will benefit CLM.
Living in the Twin Cities with husband Matt and their son Daniel (and awaiting child #2), Lindenfelser welcomes wholeheartedly your leads on businesses, organizations, or individuals who may have interest in supporting this mission. Reach her at Katie@ChildrensLighthouseMN.org or at 763-587-1152.
Feed My Starving Children – Augsburg Alumni Packing Session
Saturday, March 15, 2014
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Join the Augsburg College Alumni Board at Feed My Starving Children to help pack meals for hungry children in 70 countries. Augsburg alumni, parents, staff, students, and friends may volunteer.Register online with the Augsburg Alumni and Friends group at www.fmsc.org (click “join existing group”).
Registration code: 436490
Feed My Starving Children are excited to have us, please take time to read their “what to expect” letter (Click Here).Chanhassen location is located at 18732 Lake Drive East, Chanhassen, MN 55317
For more information, call DJ Hamm at 612.330.1329 or email alumni@augsburg.edu
The Augsburg College Associates is a service auxiliary of volunteers whose mission includes fundraising for special projects and scholarships in support of the College. The Associates’ commitment to the College is evident in their ongoing support through fundraising events including estate sales, Velkommen Jul, and the Scandinavian boutique. The funds raised throughout the year support special projects and scholarships.
On Thursday, September 26, the Augsburg Associates Board elected three alumnae to its board.
Emily Crook ’07 of Duluth, Minn., graduated from Augsburg College in 2007 with a BA in psychology. While at Augsburg she participated in softball, worked in admissions, and served as an orientation leader welcoming incoming Augsburg students. Emily, a fourth grade elementary teacher, is currently finishing her thesis for her master of arts in education at Augsburg.
Kathleen Gabrielsen ’80 is part of an Augsburg family which includes her late husband, Stephen ’63, daughter Elizabeth ’89, an artist, and son Joe ’91, a computer programmer. She is a former preschool teacher and is an artist working in jewelry and clay sculpture. Kathleen, who has served on the board for six years before, is joining our board again in appreciation of her husband, “Dr. Gabe.” The Stephen “Gabe” Gabrielsen Memorial Scholarship is being established in 2013 to honor his memory and celebrate his life’s work.
Olivia “Livi” (Bylund) Smith attended Augsburg three years with the class of ’64. One of her three children, Heather (Wagner) Rand, is a 1985 Augsburg graduate. Livi was the children’s librarian in the Cloquet Public Library for 12 years. She has resided in the Cloquet and Duluth areas of Minnesota for the past 37 years.
The Associates offer experienced volunteers to help people move through life’s changes. They evaluate, set up, and manage sales and disposal of remaining items in Twin Cities homes and apartments. All proceeds are donated to scholarships at Augsburg.
Contact Becky Waggoner at Augsburg College, 612-330-1085, for further information.
Feed My Starving Children – Augsburg Alumni Packing Session