Williamsonian To Come Out Twice A Year
To the Williamson Community:
Beginning with the 2017-2018
school year The Williamsonian will
be printed two times a year instead
of the current three times a year.
The first issue will come out in the
fall and the second will come out in
the winter.
Don’t worry, it will be expanded
by four pages and will still cover all
the news about Williamson, keep-
ing everyone up to date on the lat-
est at the school.
And, you can always keep in
touch with what is going on at Wil-
liamson by visiting our website,
Facebook page, and by subscrib-
ing to Trademarks, our electronic
newsletter. These news outlets are
constantly updated as events take
place.
There are several reasons for this
change. One is financial. Printing
and distributing The Williamso-
nian is very expensive. There will
be substantial savings by eliminat-
ing one issue and the news will still
get out.
Another reason is the ever-in-
creasing productivity of the Of-
fice of Institutional Advancement,
which is raising contributions, host-
ing events, and engaging in public
relations and communications that
help the school meet its mission.
The efforts of the Advancement Of-
fice not only keep the school going,
but make possible improvements
and expansions of our educational
offerings. Increasing our public re-
lations efforts will assist us in the
execution of our fundraising and
recruitment goals.
We thank you for your under-
standing and acceptance of this
change.
Former Eagle Inspires At Convocation
Kevin Reilly, a former captain for the
Philadelphia Eagles, opened the 2017-
18 school year at the 127th Convocation
with an inspirational talk.
Reilly’s NFL career was cut short when
he was diagnosed with a rare desmoid
tumor, resulting in the amputation of
his left arm and shoulder and four ribs.
Depressed at first, when told he would
never be able to tie a tie, run, or play
sports, he replied, “We’ll see about that.”
Now, 38 years since his operation, he
has run in five and a half marathons and
broke 90 in golf. He said, “The human
spirit is stronger than anything that can
happen to it.” As he spoke these words,
he untied his tie and tied it.
Addressing the students, he said “You
have been given a tremendous opportu-
nity to be at this school. Don’t underes-
timate the learning you are getting here.
Take advantage of it and pay it back.”
He said, “When it comes to leader-
ship, people don’t care about how much
you know until they know how much
Kevin Reilly demonstrates that he
learned to tie a tie with one hand.
you care. You need to show you care
about them as people. Take care of your
fellow man. What guides my life is faith,
family, friends, and fortitude.”
President Michael Rounds presented
Reilly with a keepsake box with a ren-
dering of Rowan Hall.
Joining The Wanamaker Society Helps The School That Helped You
When Dick Dunlap 6W5 was a young
man growing up in Philadelphia, his
high school guidance counselor told
him he wasn’t college material because
of his weak math skills.
He thought Williamson might be a
good option after learning of the school
through a drafting instructor.
“When I got my acceptance letter I
was so excited. I had no plan ‘B.’ I wasn’t
college material, but I thank God I was
Williamson material.”
After learning the painting trade,
Dunlap had a successful career as a
model maker at Ewing Cole in Philadel-
phia, which allowed him to live a very
good life with his wife, Marsha, and
their three children.
Now, as he looks back, he says, “I owe
every thing to Williamson. If it wasn’t
for Williamson, I don’t know what I
The Williamsonian
USPS (684-860)
Fall 2017
Vol. 81, No. 1
The Williamsonian is published in
the winter, spring, summer, and fall,
by Williamson College of the Trades.
Editor
Carl A. Vairo
Sports Editor
Dale H. Plummer
Copy Editor
Michelle Martella
Periodicals Postage Paid at
Media, Pa., Post Office
Postmaster, send change of address to:
The Williamsonian
Williamson College of the Trades
106 S. New Middletown Road
Media, PA 19063-5202
would have done with my life. I owe the
school a debt I can never repay.”
For years, Dunlap has been work-
ing hard to help the school — cooking
cheesesteaks for Wing Night, going on
15 service trips with Williamson groups
to the Dominican Republic to build a
hospital, serving on Capital Campaign
Steering Committees, helping the Aux-
iliary, working phonathons and other
fundraisers, and even painting.
Of all the help Dunlap has provided,
perhaps the most significant is joining
the Wanamaker Society.
“In my will, I have taken care of my
family and also am leaving a portion of
my estate to Williamson. I want to see
other young men get the same chance I
got. It seems like the least I can do.”
His classmate, Fred Espenship 6W5,
also became a member of the Wana-
Main Switchboard
610-566-1776
Office of Institutional Advancement
610-565-1095
Williamsonian email:
[email protected]
Change of Address email:
[email protected]
Web addresses:
www.williamson.edu
www.williamsonalumni.org
Williamson College of the Trades prepares
deserving young men to be useful and respected
members of society. To accomplish the mission,
Williamson gratuitously provides students with
academic, trade, technical, moral and religious
education, and a living environment based on
the Judeo-Christian perspective that fosters the
values of faith, integrity, diligence, excellence,
and service.
Williamson is certified under the Pennsylvania Association of
Nonprofit Organizations’ Standards for Excellence program and
awarded the Standards for Excellence Seal.
maker Society to help the school that
helped him.
As Espenship was going through high
school in Chester, he had no plans for
the future. His parents were divorced
and he was living with his mother, so
money was tight and going to college
was not an option. He recalls his exhila-
ration the day he received his accep-
tance letter from Williamson.
As a power plant technology student,
he learned much about the power in-
dustry and also learned about being a
person who is responsible, accountable
for his behavior, and who plays by the
rules.
After graduating, he had a long and
successful career in the power industry,
working for Combustion Engineering
and two other companies, and, ulti-
mately, as the owner of his own busi-
ness, a manufacturer’s representative
firm in Denver, Colo.
His career gave him a good life and he
was able to support his wife, Carol, and
two children. Espenship says the foun-
dation Williamson provided, gave him
the opportunity to be successful and he
now feels a need to pay back a debt.
“I joined the Wanamaker Society to
help the school that helped me. I don’t
understand why every graduate doesn’t
join. We all received a great education
that helped us in life. I included Wil-
liamson as a beneficiary of my will after
providing for my family and when I did
this, it felt good.”
The Wanamaker Society is comprised
of alumni and friends like Dunlap and
Espenship who have made a commit-
ment to the long-term future of Wil-
liamson through wills and bequests,
gifts of life insurance, charitable re-
mainder annuity trusts, and gifts of real
estate and property. These gifts help en-
sure Williamson will have the financial
resources to provide an education to
young men for generations to come.
Gift size is not a factor, the amount
of a gift and the method of giving are
determined by personal circumstances
after providing for loved ones.
A benefit of planned gifts is that the
donor supports Williamson while also
meeting personal financial planning
goals, providing the donor with extra
income in retirement or helping fund
personal needs, honoring a loved one,
or saving money on income, gift, and
estate taxes.
Whatever form your planned gift takes,
it will significantly help the school that
helped you. By joining the Wanamaker
Society, you will impact Williamson’s
future by setting an example for others
to also join and by funding scholarships
for generations of students to come.
For more information on the ben-
efits of the Wanamaker Society, con-
tact Michael Treston, director of major
and planned gifts, at 610-566-1776 or
[email protected].
Dick Dunlap (left) and Fred Espen-
ship at 6W5’s 50th reunion.
3