“He has a lot of friends at the college,” says Walter Gallo '58, retired vice president for endowment of Saint Anselm College.

Joseph Jean said he was gratified to become a member of the Golden Anselmian Society in 2003. At that time, he said, his Class of 1953 ranked third in overall alumni giving, with around $1 million in gifts.

He belongs to several other college organizations, including the Chancellor’s Society. He has worked on phone-a-thons and other fund-raising activities, helped pioneer matching donations and donations of securities, and in 1986, he established the Father Arthur O’Leary Endowment Fund. His generosity helped restore the bells to Alumni Hall and provide the Dana Center stage. A classroom in the New Hampshire Institute of Politics was named for his late brother Robert.

A donor to the Geisel Library, he often is found in the periodical room there or dining with friends and relatives at Davison Hall, particularly before attending college sporting and theatrical events.

When he started college in 1949, he recalls, Saint Anselm had an apple orchard where the NHIOP now stands. The college also maintained livestock and, until as recently as 1970, a vegetable farm.

Joseph Jean said he has been impressed with the changes the college has undertaken since then. He cites the construction of new dormitories, the growing prestige of the nursing department, and the work of NHIOP. He recognizes that the college’s ability to meet new challenges requires a continuing source of donations. It is a cause he supports enthusiastically.

“Saint Anselm College is big enough to provide the students with proper preparation for graduate school, future employment, and a fruitful family life,” he said. “And yet it is small enough to react rapidly to a changing world environment.”

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