Giving Societies
Giving to Furman ensures that every student can receive The Furman Advantage and guarantees every student an unparalleled education that combines classroom learning with real-world experiences and self-discovery.
Annual Giving Society
Bell Tower Society
Furman depends on the steadfast generosity of its most committed leadership donors. We have created the Bell Tower Society to recognize all Furman alumni, parents, and friends with cumulative fiscal year giving of $2,500 – $99,999. In appreciation of their individual and collective impact on Furman students and the greater campus community, members will receive invitations to exclusive events. Recognition throughout the year is based on the donor’s giving level.
Young Benefactors Society
The Young Benefactors Society embodies Furman’s strategic priority on young alumni and celebrates those donors with special invitations to exclusive events and unique perks throughout the year. The giving tiers listed below outline the annual giving levels for young alumni to reach in order to qualify as a Young Benefactor:
2023-2024 giving levels by graduation year are below:
- (0-3 years post-graduation) 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020: minimum gift of $250 annually or $21 monthly
- (4-6 years post-graduation) 2019, 2018, 2017: minimum gift of $500 annually or $42 monthly
- (7-9 years post-graduation) 2016, 2015, 2014: minimum gift of $750 annually or $63 monthly
- (10-14 years post-graduation) 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009: minimum gift of $1,500 annually or $125 monthly
- (15 years post-graduation) 2008: minimum gift of $2,500 annually or $209 monthly
Lifetime Recognition Societies
White Oaks Society
Furman recognizes donors with a lifetime giving total of $1,000,000 or greater with an invitation to the White Oaks Society. The society received its name from the Furman presidential mansion built in 1957 and located near Furman University.
- Benefactor: $1,000,000-$4,999,999
- Sustainer: $5,000,000-$9,999,999
- Visionary: $10,000,000+
- John Pope Abney and Susie Mathews Abney
- Thomas M. Bailey ’22 and Elizabeth White Bailey ’20
- Gordon Battelle
- Irwin Belk and Carol Grotnes Belk
- Gordon Lyles Blackwell ’60 and Cecilia Watson Blackwell
- Christopher R. Borch ’78 and Andrea W. Borch
- Mamie Jolley Bruce
- William K. Bryan, Sr. and Frances Jones Bryan
- Robert H. Buckman and Joyce A. Mollerup
- John C. Cothran ’54 and Jeanette Watson Cothran
- Waco F. Childers, Jr. ’47 and Elaine Duffy Childers ’43
- Ravenel B. Curry III ’63 and Elizabeth Rivers Curry
- Charles E. Daniel and Homozel Mickel Daniel
- Camille Dreyfus and Henry Dreyfus
- James Buchanan Duke
- David G. Ellison ’72 and Frances DeLoache Ellison
- Thomas Spann Farmer ’50 and Elizabeth Young Farmer
- Henry Ford
- Louis Gerald Forgione ’49
- Rose Juliet Forgione ’48
- Douglas K. Freeman ’72 and Patricia Slate Freeman
- Alester G. Furman, Jr. ’14 and Janie Earle Furman ’14
- Alester G. Furman III and Mary Simms O. Furman ’39
- Allen J. Graham
- James L. Hamrick ’50 and Peggy Cater Hamrick ’50
- Thomas S. Hartness and Edna Gladden Hartness
- Walter J. Heacock ’43
- Ralph S. Hendricks and Marion F. Hendricks
- Gordon R. Herring ’65 and Sarah Weaver Herring ’66
- William R. Hewlett and Flora Lamson Hewlett
- David Rufus “D.R.” Hill and Eleanor Southern Hill ’20
- Robert E. Hill, Jr. ’83 and Margaret Platt Hill ’83
- Herman N. Hipp ’35 and Jane Fishburne Hipp
- John D. Hollingsworth, Jr. ’39
- William B. Howes ’59 and Mary McCall Howes
- Howard R. Hughes, Jr.
- Robert E. “Red” Hughes ’38 and Mary Cary Hughes
- Christian A. Johnson
- William R. Kenan, Jr.
- Carl F. Kohrt ’65 and Lynne McCartney Kohrt
- Sebastian S. Kresge
- Herman W. Lay ’30
- Adam J. Lewis
- Eli Lilly
- R.E. Littlejohn ’35 and Marion West Littlejohn
- Andrew W. Mellon
- Buck Mickel and Minor Herndon Mickel
- Eugene W. Milford ’11 and Louise Henry Milford
- Raymond P. Newsom ’65 and Carol Capell Newsom ‘66
- James M. Ney ’64 and Carol Nichols Ney ’67
- Charles W. Patrick, Jr. ’76 and Celeste Hunt Patrick ’77
- Bony Hampton Peace, Jr. ’30 and Dorothy Pedrick Peace
- John Piper and Ethel W. Piper
- Jean Timmons Pelham ’42
- Mabel Dorn Reeder ’29
- R.L. “Penny” Richardson ’20
- Kathleen A. Riley ’37
- David B. Rinker and Leighan Roberts Rinker
- Vera Lea Keesling Rinker and Marshall Edison “Doc” Rinker
- Daniel S. Sanders and Emilyn Childs Sanders
- Frank R. Shaw ’61 and Susan E. Shaw
- David Emory Shi ’73
- Angela Halfacre-Shi ’92
- Susan Thomson Shi ’71
- John I. Smith
- Harold T. Southern ’37 and Mildred F. Southern
- Charles Sterling ’49 and Mary Peace Sterling
- Eugene E. Stone III and Allene W. Stone
- Fred W. Symmes
- A. Alexander Taylor II ’75 and Susan Shulman Taylor
- Charles M. Timmons and Kathryn Wells Timmons ’48
- William R. Timmons, Jr. ’49 and Connie Jackson Timmons
- Charles Hard Townes ’35 and Frances Brown Townes
- David J. Trone ’77 and June Malament Trone
- Lettie Pate Whitehead
- George G. Willis, Jr. ’48
- Richard N. Wrenn, Jr. ’74 and Ruth K. Wrenn
- C. Ray Wylie and Ellen Rasor Wylie
- Melvin K. Younts ’50 and Dollie Isgett Younts
Rose Garden Society 
Furman recognizes donors with a lifetime giving total between $100,000 and $999,999 with an invitation to the Rose Garden Society. The Rose Garden Society is named after Furman’s spectacularly beautiful Janie E. Furman Rose Garden.
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Give today to ensure every student can have access to The Furman Advantage.