ATOS Endowment Fund Reaches $1,000,000

Col. Jack Moelmann has noted several times since last January that the ATOS Endowment Fund was just short of $1 million in its principal amount.  He wanted ATOS to hit that magic target, and took matters into his own hands at the 2011 Convention in Providence. 

Jack put out the word that he would match any gift until we reached a grand total of the $43,000 needed, and the responses started pouring in.  His first taker, or rather, giver -- Fr. Tom Early -- popped out a check for $1,000 and we were off and running.  Jack received two gifts of $5,000, with several other big and small gifts along the way. One member even dug into his pocket and pulled out a $20 bill.

John Ledwon was selling a 1964 telephone booth, which Jack bought on the promise that John would donate the proceeds to the effort. John was certainly glad to do so, knowing that it would amount to twice the price! 

More than once during the convention, the question was asked, "How much is Jack in for now?" as the daily tally kept mounting. 

On July 21, that second $5,000 gift pushed the total donations to $22,155. With Jack matching $20,845, (including John’s proceeds from the phone booth), the ATOS Endowment Fund hit the one million dollar mark, a remarkable achievement.   

When one looks back not even two years ago to find the Endowment Fund principle was less than $250,000, this explosive growth is phenomenal. The Kenelm M. Lufkin gift sent $600,000 to the Endowment Fund, followed by the $100,000 from the Robert Mertz gift.  Now, Jack Moelmann's "Million Dollar Match" pushes ATOS "over the top." 

A big thank you to Col. Jack Moelmann, and to all of our members whose generous donations, large and small, resulted in this great milestone for ATOS.