Each year, we provide an opportunity for alumni and supporters to give students and programs a vote of confidence by making a gift to the Grebel Fund.
You may ask: Doesn’t the government fund Grebel’s programs? Don’t tuition fees cover the cost? Is Grebel really a charity? Does Grebel need my donation?
The Revenue pie chart in the annual report that is inserted in this issue of Grebel Now shows that only 25 percent of our revenue comes from a government grant. Over the last number of years tuition has become a bigger part of our revenue as the grant declines. This puts pressure on students and families as these fees rise faster than inflation.
In response to this situation, we have committed to growing our student support with increased scholarships and bursaries—more than $455,000 last year! More than half of these awards come from our operating revenue, including the Grebel Fund.
Donations to the Grebel Fund comprise 6 percent of our revenue. These gifts are partly used for student awards and financial aid, but also used “to make Grebel, Grebel.”
One thing that makes Grebel unique and hospitable is our strong student leadership development program, which includes a Chaplain and Campus Hosts. Our Music Department offers free Noon Hour concerts. The PACS Department supports students in internship placements around the world. Carol Penner, who teaches Practical Theology, mentors students in Supervised Experience in Ministry (SEM) placements. Grebel’s Archives and Library facilities are open to anyone interested in research in our areas of specialty.
All these aspects of our program are ways in which we show hospitality. We welcome your support in this work through a gift to our annual Grebel Fund.
Watch for an appeal in your mailbox, or go online today to make your tax-deductible gift to our students and programs!
Thanks for making Grebel a warm and hospitable community for our students!
Fred W. Martin, Director of Advancement
fwmartin@uwaterloo.ca
519-885-0220 x 24381
DONATE ONLINE: grebel.ca/giving
Estate gift establishes Pastoral Training Award
Recently Grebel received an estate gift from a Mennonite family through Abundance Canada. In dialogue with the family, the college has used this generous gift to establish the Pastoral Training Award endowment fund.
Interest earnings from the endowment will be used to support students in the Applied Studies option of the Master of Theological Studies program at the College who demonstrate an interest in exploring ministry and pastoral training. It will be focused on students who have declared an interest in pursuing an internship or Supervised Experience in Ministry (SEM) placement.
“We are so thankful for this award, which will support students training for ministry. The gift of this award really embodies a spirit of service,” noted Professor Carol Penner, who teaches Practical Theology.
New MPACS award inspired by Gandhi and Mandela
Kishor Gopal, his son Meenesh, and his extended family are hoteliers who emigrated to Canada from South Africa in the 1970s. Kishor became committed to peacebuilding and reconciliation through the examples of Mohandas K. Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. As Kishor said, “I have tried to follow their example in my life and my business.” The Gopal Family MPACS Award, an endowed scholarship, will be used to support students enrolled in the MPACS program who want to pursue an internship during their program of study, and who have an interest in peace in a global perspective. “We are thrilled to have another award for our growing graduate program,” noted PACS Director Nathan Funk.
Meenesh (left) and Kishor Gopal (middle) shake hands with President Marcus Shantz while members of the PACS Department look on.
