Georgia Southern President Kyle Marrero welcomed the crowd and expressed his gratitude for the audience’s unfaltering support for the University. With the support of the dedicated donors in attendance, the University is poised to reach its goals of graduating career-ready students, catalyzing economic development in the region, advancing Georgia Southern’s public impact research agenda, and elevating athletics.
“The people in this room represent Georgia Southern’s most loyal alumni, friends, faculty, staff, corporations and foundations — those who have given $25,000 or more to the University, equipping our mission of helping students reach their academic and career goals,” Marrero said.
“Because of supporters like you, more than $5 million in scholarships were awarded this year. Over the past few years, we have also experienced record years of charitable support, proving that our alumni and friends believe in what Georgia Southern is doing and the impact it will have on our campuses, communities and state.”
The Legacy Award: Fred and Dinah Gretsch
Fred and Dinah Gretsch, executives with the Gretsch Company, which is known worldwide for its iconic guitars and drums, have spent their careers as major figures in the music business. They are also passionate about continuing the legacy of educating musicians, who may want to teach, conduct, perform, compose or become leading music producers, engineers or songwriters.
In 2021, Georgia Southern’s School of Music was renamed the Fred and Dinah Gretsch School of Music, a milestone for the University’s program. This change has made a profound impact, providing funding for faculty, students and the University as a whole. The partnership with the JW Marriott Plant Riverside District in the creation of That Great Gretsch Sound!, a permanent display of music memorabilia highlighting more than 140 years of Gretsch history, has also given Georgia Southern extensive visibility in the downtown Savannah community.
Fred and Dinah were presented Honorary Doctorates of Fine Arts from Georgia Southern at the 2023 Spring Commencement.
The evening concluded with a "Together We Soar" campaign announcement from Marrero, Trip Addison, vice president of University Advancement and president of The Georgia Southern University Foundation, Inc., and Leonard Bevill, campaign chair.
The fundraising campaign, which was launched in October of 2022 with an ambitious goal of $125 million by June 2026, has secured more than $123 million. As such, it was announced that the campaign has been extended to 2030 with a new goal of $300 million.
To learn more about the award recipients visit the Gratitude Gala web page here.
