Gordon '67 and Motoko Deane
Gordon '67 was a lifer at Country Day, starting in 1954 when his father, William R. Deane, moved from New York to Cincinnati to be closer to family in Indiana and to commence his long tenure teaching upper school math at Cincinnati Country Day. While Gordon never returned to Cincinnati after getting his BS in Physics from Oberlin College and a MS in Environmental Science from Harvard, he resumed his lifelong commitment to Country Day as an Annual Fund contributor starting in 1986.
For Gordon and Motoko, it's all about giving back and making the world a better place. "As a faculty brat, I was blessed with free education at a great school for 13 years," Gordon writes "which I calculate cost around $10,000 in then current dollars but was priceless in terms of what it gave me as a foundation."
For his 50th reunion at Country Day, Gordon served as the cornerstone, along with Craig Maier '67, to challenge their classmates to contribute to the Richard O. Schwab '67 Middle School Fund and to name the Middle School office in Dick Schwab's honor.
Recently, Gordon informed Country Day that it is named in their trust documents for a significant 6-figure sum. As Gordon explained "If both of us were to perish tomorrow, 80% of our estate goes to charity. We cannot use the money when we are gone, so funds should go where they are needed, and good work can continue. With luck, we can live long enough to make that a 7-figure sum." The funds would become part of Country Day's endowment and be used to establish a scholarship fund for students with financial need, with preference given to those students whose parents did not receive a college education.
To make the world a better place, Gordon is still active developing renewable energy projects and serves as Chair of the Board of the National Tropical Botanical Garden, the only garden in the US with a Congressional Charter, and on the Board of the Brain Chemistry Labs, looking for causes and treatments for neurodegenerative diseases like ALS, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's. Motoko has been on the Board of Oberlin College for 10 years and on the Board of the South Shore Conservatory, the largest community arts school in New England, for 16 years. Their good example continues through their two daughters who take active roles in fundraising for their alma maters.
Country Day is grateful for its alumni, parents, past parents, grandparents, and faculty that recognize the value that is provided from a great education and continue to give through life, and like with the Deanes, after life. If you are interested in learning about the 1926 Society and the different ways to support CCDS, please contact Peter A. Fossett '80, Associate Director of Alumni and Legacy Giving, [email protected], 513-979-0283.