Our Donors & Their Gifts
Why I Give To Yale
Randall R. Eley '74
"Some of my earliest memories are of my grandmother talking about the importance of leaving something tangible behind to help others have better lives. She and my parents were the inspiration for me to make a gift to establish the Eley Family Scholarship early in the Yale Tomorrow campaign.
"Yale was very generous to me, and so I feel a responsibility to assist future generations of students. I remember how confident and grateful I was when I completed my Yale education: thanks to my scholarship, I knew I wouldn't be burdened by loans.
"Last year, I began to consider a "succession plan" for my family's scholarship and for my own future. By making additional contributions to the scholarship through deferred gift annuities, I have found a way to continue to contribute to the fund that has a relatively low impact on my overall financial situation. I am able to give back to Yale and look forward to a strong financial future at the same time. "I consider my annuities a kind of pension from an institution whose stability is unquestionable. I don't want to be dependent on one source of income in retirement, so my deferred gift annuities offer a way to diversify and add a fixed income component to my portfolio. They will begin to pay me a steady stream of income when I reach my seventies. The tax benefits are valuable to me now, and I've created an additional gift annuity for my mother, who was my first investor when I started my own company years ago.
"Yale played a role in my own accomplishments and successes. I am proud of Yale's commitment to ensure that the University remains accessible to all students, regardless of their financial means, and pleased to make a contribution to that undertaking."