Julia Sommer is no stranger to the influential power of music. From briefly playing cello with the Rogue Valley Symphony to singing with Southern Oregon Repertory Singers since 2006, Julia has found significant joy in music and the performing arts. She performed with the San Francisco Symphony Chorus for many years.
Dale Vidmar’s engagement with SOU spans forty years—first as a student and then as a long-time faculty member in Hannon Library. His early experiences at SOU were pivotal in shaping his worldview and played an important role during his career.
A two-degree alum of SOU, Bernie believed in the powerful opportunity that education offers, especially as he experienced it in SOU’s closely knit and nurturing community.
Sue and Mike Collins are driven by a commitment to community, education, and philanthropy. Their journey is a blend of shared experiences, professional accomplishment, and a genuine desire to make a positive impact on the world around them.
Bryan DeBoer ’89, values the deep-rooted significance of a regional public university like SOU. He understands the out-sized role it can play in a geographic region, recognizes the importance of having a thriving school from which to draw future employees, and leans into “the possible” when organizations come together to solve larger issues.
Southern Oregon University and Medford-based Lithia Motors announced in September of 2022 a philanthropic partnership that will serve as the bedrock of future innovations at SOU. Lithia’s commitment exceeds $12 million and is the largest-ever single gift to the university. The contributions from Lithia Motors (NYSE: LAD) create the Lithia & GreenCars Momentum Fund, which will be used “to propel the university forward by investing in people and programs to implement the university’s and the company’s shared vision of sustainability and diversity.” The fund will also become a catalyst to invite other companies and individuals to participate in making a significant difference in both social and environmental change.
Semi-retired surgeon Ron Worland, M.D., believes that supporting SOU is an investment in the entire southern Oregon region. “This is our university and our community. It is important to support the students because that will benefit every one of us,” said Worland. Ron and his wife Lou created an endowment for student-faculty research and enabled the purchase of state-of-the-art equipment.
It was arguably no surprise to those who knew SOU wrestling coach Bob Riehm that he bequeathed a significant portion of his estate to the university’s men’s wrestling program. Riehm had a reputation for generosity. When a wrestler didn’t have money to go to his father’s funeral, Riehm gave the young man a credit card and the keys to his own car to allow him to attend the funeral. That was the kind of coach and person Riehm was to hundreds of student-athletes.
In a single act of giving, Todd Elworthy honored his mother, his grandmother, and his family’s long history of service by creating a financial path for motivated ROTC cadets at SOU to complete their degree. “I wanted to make a contribution to education and support students who may not have the means,” said Elworthy.
Before George “Keith” Bayne passed away last year, he endowed the Alice Bayne Scholarship in Education, ensuring that his late wife would be remembered and that their shared love of learning would continue to encourage and support future educators.