Continuing a Legacy
From grandparents to kids, the Pomeroy legacy runs deep at Washburn
The Pomeroys on a 2016 WUAA trip to the Mexican Riviera
For the last four decades, Washburn University has been an integral part of the lives of Duane, ba ’78, b ed ’79, and Debbie Pomeroy. The couple lives near campus and they often go for walks there. In addition to Duane, who coaches tennis at Topeka High School and served as a Topeka City Council member for 12 years, one of their two sons is also a Washburn graduate. They regularly attend cultural and sporting events at the university, and in their senior years, they have made a lot of friends and stayed connected.
“We love the community and the activities,” Debbie said. “We feel very grateful that we have Washburn right in our front yard.”
Their connection to the university runs even deeper through their familial ties with Dr. Eldo Bunge, who was Duane’s maternal grandfather and served as chair of Washburn’s English Department for many years. Bunge’s legacy lives on at Washburn through the Dr. Eldo F. and Evelyn E. Bunge Scholarship, which is awarded through the English Department. Bunge was known as a serious but much-loved professor who enjoyed Shakespeare, Milton and Chaucer. He also instilled in Duane his love of tennis and helped the Pomeroys’ sons when they were struggling in school.
“People say Dr. Bunge was their favorite teacher – he was kind of tough but he was still the best,” Debbie said. “We have great family heritage, and we want to keep the legacy alive.”
The opportunity to bolster this scholarship fund prompted Duane and Debbie to make a planned gift to the university through “I Will for Washburn: the Greenwood/McPherson Legacy Challenge.”
The Pomeroys in Prague, on a 2019 cruise up the Danube River with the WUAA
Greg, bba '88, and Jaena, ba '89, Greenwood and Bruce and Theresa McPherson started the challenge to inspire others to make Washburn a part of their will or estate plan. Anyone who documents a planned gift with Washburn will receive $10,000 they can direct to anywhere at the university. For the Pomeroys, this was the nudge they needed.
“We knew we wanted to donate, and the push was the opportunity to have additional funds placed into the scholarship by the very generous donors who put out that challenge,” Debbie said. “Thinking of Grandma and Grandpa and knowing how important Washburn and the English Department were to them, it is important that we continue this scholarship at as much capacity as we can.”
Duane and Debbie are also both aware of how valuable Washburn has been in their lives and the surrounding community. Even though Debbie is not a graduate, she is still a member of the Washburn University Alumni Association, and the pair frequently travel on WUAA cruises and trips, seeing the world – from Mexico to Vienna – alongside fellow Ichabods.
From the legacy of Dr. Bunge to their own lives in retirement, Washburn has often been at the center of everything. For these reasons, Duane urges other alumni to take advantage of the “I Will for Washburn” challenge.
“There are so many opportunities and different areas you can give to, but those who have gone to Washburn know how important it was in their lives,” Duane said. “And as a member of the City Council, I was even more aware of just how valuable an asset Washburn is to the vitality of Topeka.”
If you, like the Pomeroys, are interested in saying, “I Will for Washburn,” please contact Erin Aldridge at 785.670.4483 or PlannedGiving@wualumni.org.
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