I had already designated a gift for the University in my estate, but I looked at the Charitable Remainder Annuity Trust as a win-win. The University gets the money and I get income.

Wendy Beneviste (’73 BS Retailing), who created the Wendy L. Benveniste Faculty Excellence Fund, to benefit SoHE

UW Foundation Fast Facts

130 people are employed at the University of Wisconsin Foundation, including 42 directors or senior directors of development.
110 students also are hired to place calls during evening hours to alumni and friends to ask for gifts to specific projects. In addition to their pay, they get free pizza most Friday evenings.
44 phone lines are available for student callers and 1,100 contacts can be made each night.
In 2006, the UW Foundation received 126,090 gifts, totaling $193,010,650.10. $3.8 million of that was raised by student callers.
The building is unusual in design and construction. The exterior is made of a five-layer aluminum sandwich of polyurethane paint, aluminum, plastic polymer core, aluminum and poly paint. The exterior finish is so slippery that graffiti wipes off easily.
Our staff uses a computer bulletin board to share news with each other or post items for sale. Common items are basketball tickets, although some staff have offered free kittens or have asked to buy a pinball machine.