Get Involved
5 T's of Philanthropy
You are invited to engage with St. Thomas in ways most meaningful to you.
Get Involved
You are invited to engage with St. Thomas in ways most meaningful to you.
In the Tommie Network, there are many opportunities to be an engaged alum, and every connection matters.
For some, engagement means mentoring a student. For others, it’s sharing professional expertise in a classroom panel, making a gift, telling your St. Thomas story or bringing together two people who should know each other. And sometimes, it simply means showing up.
At the University of St. Thomas, we call these ways of connecting the “5 T’s” of philanthropy: time, talent, treasure, testimony and ties. Together, they offer an invitation to engage in ways that fit your life, your interests and what matters most to you.
For Nancy Lewer ’10, the gift of time is especially impactful because it is limited and fleeting.
“Time is the most valuable to me because it’s the one resource you can’t get back,” Lewer said. “I find value in investing time in things that make a difference.” For her, that means volunteering, mentoring students and supporting them as they navigate their career paths.
Her reason for giving time to St. Thomas highlights the ripple effect of giving: “Someone gave their time to me at some point, and this is my way to give back.”
After experiencing much of her St. Thomas education remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic – working from her couch, in her pajamas, virtually attending classes – Maureen Michels ’22 values giving her time in person.
“My favorite events are the ones where I can connect with others – whether it’s current students, alumni or faculty,” Michels said. “I love events like Homecoming, happy hours or being asked by a professor to speak to a class – anything that connects me with people.”
Your St. Thomas experience gave you more than a degree. It gave you knowledge, perspectives and experiences that can benefit Tommies treading the same path. Sharing professional expertise, offering advice or helping a student navigate a career are some ways to give your talent.
Founder of Lorenz Clinic of Family Psychology, Dr. Chad Lorenz ’04, ’06 MA, ’10 PSYD, ’14 MBA, CEO, and Colleen Fitzgerald Lorenz ’04, ’18 MBA, COO, note that they hire St. Thomas students for a variety of roles in their practice, including clinical placements for students who are in that stage of their professional development.
“Hosting students from St. Thomas at our clinic is one of the highest honors of my career,” Chad Lorenz said. “It’s the primary way I feel like I am able to give back.”
Once a student in the service-focused Ciresi Walburn Scholars program, Mykal Howard ’22 is now a full-time program manager for the Ciresi Walburn Leadership Fellows. He gives through sharing his talent, empowering student leaders to plan events and cultivate new ideas, while forwarding the program’s mission of leadership, service and social justice.
“As a student, the program helped me build community and find my sense of belonging on campus,” Howard said. “Now, as program manager, I’m creating opportunities for students to grow academically and professionally.”
A financial gift is another way to invest in today’s students. Every gift helps expand access to a transformative St. Thomas education and shows students that their Tommie community believes in them.
As a first-generation college student, Brad von Bank ’95 notes that he and his family relied greatly on the generosity of others. “Without scholarships, my brother and I would not have been able to attend St. Thomas,” he said. “And, more than the financial side, I think the hope and the belief that people had in us that we could actually thrive in college was also a great benefit. Being a scholarship recipient has changed my life.”
von Bank pays forward the support he received as a St. Thomas student; he is driven to help students access education and fulfill their dreams. The 2017 opening of Dougherty Family College, a two-year college for students who aspire to earn a four-year degree, was a spark moment for von Bank. It not only reengaged him with St. Thomas but also inspired his giving. “I'm so excited about the future of St. Thomas and the impact it's going to have on so many lives,” he said.
For Barry Lau ’93, sharing his St. Thomas story is one of his most natural ways to stay connected.
“I have so many great experiences from St. Thomas. I love to share my story with other Tommies as well as future Tommies,” Lau said. His experiences with liturgical choir shaped who he is today and continue to influence his life through his involvement with music and choirs, which have even allowed him to travel the world.
Like Lau, Gabriel Riegert ’25 has seen firsthand how powerful a simple conversation can be. While volunteering at a hospital, a woman noticed his St. Thomas shirt and asked about the university for her high school-aged son. Riegert told her about his experiences with business competitions, a math professor who made an impact on him, and how St. Thomas helped drive his career and the creation of his company. “You never know where a conversation can go,” Riegert said. “We’ll see if her son enrolls!”
Introducing people and bringing others into the St. Thomas network can create opportunities that might not otherwise happen. And you don’t need to live near the St. Thomas campuses to keep the Tommie spirit alive and build relationships.
As a Marine Corps veteran and student at St. Thomas, Peter Watson ’18 spent time with classmates in the Paul and Sarah Karon Veterans Resource Center, a place that brings people together around something in common. When his career path took him to Washington, D.C. to be an analyst for the U.S. State Department, Watson felt a strong need to connect in a city where he didn’t know many.
“Moving to a new city is hard,” Watson said. “I love bringing together Tommies, giving them a place to gather and a network they can lean on.”
Michaela Kronlage ’04 sees engagement as a way to strengthen the connections that make the Tommie community distinctive. She noted, “There has never been a more important time than right now for us to continue to foster human connection.”
Kronlage notes that connection to St. Thomas doesn’t end at graduation. “We’re forever part of this community that shaped us and gave us so much,” she said.
For Lewer, the sense of community is at the center of being a Tommie. “We are stronger together,” she said.
And that community has a responsibility to keep moving forward. “Someone did it for us. Now it’s our turn to give back.”
Choosing engagement that feels most meaningful to you is at the heart of the 5 T’s. Riegert noted, “Before you can build a snowman, you have to start with a snowball. It’s the little things that can make a big impact: connecting with other classmates, volunteering or making a donation to support student scholarships.”
As St. Thomas looks toward the future, every alum has a role to play in creating a university that is brilliant and bold. Whether you’re deeply connected today or haven’t been back in years, there’s a place for you in the Tommie community.
What's your T?
