The Fund

Over the past year or so, Fran Fenn '37 spent a lot of time in Crosby Hall, the seat of Dartmouth's fund raisers. He may have spent more time there than some of the staff, the difference being that he wasn't earning a salary. The result of Fenn's volunteer labors was a Class of 1937 Alumni Fund gift of $385,124, a record for a 40-year reunion class and a mere 556 per cent more than '37 gave last year.

So there was joy in Crosby Hall and joy in the Fenn household.

In all, some 4,000 volunteers like Fran Fenn worked like the devil for the 1977 Alumni Fund campaign. What they did was raise $4,715,735 from 20,242 alumni, including themselves. The sum surpassed the goal of $4.6 million. For the first time since 1969, slightly more than 60 per cent of the alumni gave to Dartmouth.

As to particulars, the classes setting reunion records were 1922 ($43,000), 1937, 1942 ($221,870), 1962 ($166,000), and 1972 ($21,000). For the first time, three classes - 1952, 1937, and 1927 - exceeded the $300,000 mark. The leading class in the non-reunion category was 1953 ($96,000), which also led everybody with most contributors (530).

Last year's overall Alumni Fund effort, under the chairmanship of Charles Hood '51, won an award from the United States Steel Foundation. This year the Fund was led by Raymond Rasenberger '49, who didn't do so badly, either.

So there was joy all over.