Planning your estate and legacy for future generations including your charitable interests takes careful evaluation.
Discussing your charitable intentions with us can lead to a much better result than going it alone - and will ensure that your gift is used just as you wish. Act now to be a good steward of the resources you intend to leave behind. Please use the contact info below, or submit this form to get more information.
When you name Wesleyan University as a beneficiary in your plans, you will be welcomed into the Olin Society. Any planned gift grants you membership, joining a community committed to sustaining the future of Wesleyan by supporting scholarships, faculty development, campus improvements, academic opportunities, and more.
If you've included Wesleyan in your philanthropic plans or intend to do so, please let us know. Sharing your intentions allows us to help you choose the gift that's right for you.
Olin Society owes its name to one of Wesleyan's most honored trustees, Stephen H. Olin, who with his wife, Emeline H. Olin, nurtured the growth of the University into a leading institution. Olin Library, an architectural gem and wellspring of the University's intellectual life, was constructed largely with funds derived from an annuity agreement the Olins made with the institution in 1924.
Stephen Olin's bequest provisions for the University stemmed from a lifetime association with Wesleyan. Born on the campus in 1847 during his father's Wesleyan presidency, he graduated in the Class of 1866 and became a successful copyright law attorney in New York City. During his lifetime, Olin dedicated 45 years of service as a trustee to the University, assuming the post of acting president for the 1922-23 academic year.
Following her husband's death in 1925, Emeline Olin demonstrated her lively ongoing concern for the University. Residing in the brick house next to Eclectic, she took a deep interest in the construction of the new library, later endowing maintenance of the building with a major gift. Wesleyan awarded her an honorary degree in 1931.
The Olin Society has taken as its emblem the scallop shell found on the coat-of-arms of John Wesley. Used in heraldry to signify long journeys to far countries, the scallop shell is a symbolic link to the tradition of social service for which Wesleyan is well known. The much-traveled Wesley started a religious movement in 18th century Britain that stimulated a wide range of social reform movements, reaching full flower in the 19th century. Wesleyan University was founded in 1831 as an enterprise to educate youth for "the good of the world," a goal that endures today.
Olin Society members play an important role in the future growth and success of Wesleyan. We honor our members with:
In addition, we hope you will allow us to further express our gratitude in select publications. Olin Society members often inspire fellow alumni and friends to create their own legacies.
To receive an official welcome into the Olin Society, please provide one of our team members with documentation of your commitment, including purpose and amount, if possible. This will also allow the University to properly recognize and credit you for your generosity.
If you are working with a professional advisor, or advising a donor, here's a handy guide for including Wesleyan University in a charitable estate plan.