USF Athletics to Announce Major Gift | Mumas makes $3 Million donation

[Brad]

Today at 4 p.m.

[af_bull05]

I saw some pics of Kawika Mitchell and his family at practice on Friday.  Maybe he made a donation.

http://southflorida.scout.com/2/740072.html

[bull2saintleo]

Hmmmmm, wonder what we're getting now...LOL ;D

[Brad]

The gift is from gift from Pam and Les Muma.  Les Muma, from personal experience in business (our competitor), is the guy that drove the company FiServ to an industry leader.  Les Muma graduated from USF and has made major gifts in the past.

[Griggsy]

Is it a $250 million donation?  Muma Memorial Stadium? ;D

[Brad]

Previous involvement:

http://hscweb3.hsc.usf.edu/health/now/?p=61

[KB]

April 2005

Pamela and Leslie M. Muma:

Together, a True USF Team

Pamela and Leslie Muma’s is a true USF love story - for each other and for the USF College of Business Administration (COBA).  Inside the new COBA addition, the “Pamela and Leslie M. Muma Teaching Auditorium†is a physical reminder of the commitment both have to their alma mater.  The $500,000 gift that helped fund the high-tech auditorium is an indication of how the Mumas embark on all major commitments: together. “We’ve been a team from the start, and it’s always been that way,†Les said.

The Mumas met at Winter Haven High School, and each year they fund four USF scholarships for Winter Haven students who are interested in business or technology.  Their donation is one of the largest annual scholarship awards given by the College of Business Administration.  Both Les and Pam enjoy following the students’ academic careers, and they reminisce about their own time at USF with laughter and thoughtful recollection.

Les remembers some of his most beneficial classes as being COBA ones.  A mathematics undergraduate major, he took classes at COBA after graduation and believes they served him well.  As Co-Founder and current President and CEO of Fiserv, Inc., he keeps the business foundations he learned at COBA close. “I have been very fortunate in life and in business, and a lot of that success I attribute to the COBA experience I had,†Les said.

Wisconsin-based Fiserv, Inc. provides information management technology and associated services to banks, credit unions, insurance companies and other financial institutions around the globe.  The company employs over 22,000 individuals in an empire that grew from Les’s lifelong interest in data processing.

Les will officially retire as CEO of Fiserv effective June 2006.  He looks forward to working more and more out of his Tampa office until his retirement, as he and Pam anticipate spending more time in their new Belleair home.  Pam is on the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center’s Board of Directors and is involved with numerous other charities in the Tampa area.  And, of course, there’s the allure of COBA.

The Muma brand of commitment includes Les’s three-year involvement as part of the USF Foundation board.  A former speaker at COBA’s annual Free Enterprise Dinner, he hopes to someday speak to students about entrepreneurship or growth by mergers and acquisitions. “Now that we’re going to be spending so much more time in Florida, I would really like to be an adjunct professor of sorts, or Executive in Residence,†he said.  Les enjoys speaking about USF and what the school has done for him.  “We’re awfully proud to be associated with COBA,†he said.

"We're awfully proud to be associated with COBA."

The Muma connection to COBA is perhaps most special because of the lifelong bonds they formed while students at USF.  Some of those bonds are still strong.  In the case of former COBA Associate Dean **** Bowers, a friendship flourished from the very beginning.  Pam remembers Dr. Bowers when he was a Physical Education leader at USF who encouraged her to follow through on her commitments.  The couple remains close friends with Bowers to this day.

“I was always trying to get out of his physical education class,†Pam remembered, laughing about the firm reaction that elicited from Bowers. “He taught me that when you make a commitment, you follow through,†she said. The commitment COBA employees have for their school continues to inspire the Mumas to give.  “The passion COBA employees have for USF is contagious,†Pam said.

According to current COBA Director of Development Larry Wall, another Muma friend, that commitment is as strong as ever.  He recounts a Wisconsin friend telling the story of Pam and Les’s final “going away†fundraiser for Junior Achievement.  A person stood up and declared that he wanted to start a “scholarship fund†in Les and Pam’s name.  Minutes later, people in the room had raised over $150,000 for the cause. “They are a magnificent couple,†Wall said, “and we honor their generous gifts, time, and caring friendships.â€Â

[Big_Hairy_Bull]

According to Brett's blog.

The Muma’s multi-million gift will go towards the construction of a new basketball practice facility.

[Bullschmutz]

Guess we gotta wait on the Dining Hall and the Practice Fields

[Economics_Nerd82]

According to Brett's blog.

The Muma’s multi-million gift will go towards the construction of a new basketball practice facility.

Sounds good to me.