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Why we are such avid PLU supporters

By Q Club Board of Dirctors Members Becky and Ernie Bianco

Ernie and Becky Bianco, who both work as Q-Club Board of Directors members.

Friends have asked us how we ever became so closely related to PLU and the Q Club. Quite a valid question, since neither of us are alums, our kids never went to PLU and we’re not even Lutheran. Simply put, we have been, over the years, very impressed with what PLU stands for as a community institution. When asked to serve as Q Club Directors, we were especially honored. How could we have said no?

We started out as Choir of the West groupies. Our first exposure came during a chance attendance at their First Presbyterian concert in Seattle about 12 years ago. We were moved, to say the least. To this day, we have followed that remarkable organization’s concerts from Portland to Japan. While the music serves as a connection, our bond with PLU goes far beyond that.

What has been most impressive to us is the exemplary quality of the PLU leaders and advocates we have met over the years. We’ve been struck with the intense support for and pride in the school evidenced by our PLU connections: the pleasance and sincerity of President Loren and MaryAnn Anderson in their community-related efforts; the integrity and fellowship of faculty emerti Dick Moe (and, of course, Marcia); the ever-present smile and enthusiasm of Director of Alumni Relations Lauralee Hagen. Not to mention our fellow Q Club Directors and the PLU alums we’ve come to know and work with and whose friendships we cherish. We’ve found a common trait in all our Q Club connections: an obligation to hold high the image of PLU as an institution of learning, and even more essentially as a resource for value-based education.

Our Q Club mission is to sustain that image through financial support for its students. Still, we need to do more. We’re 2,100 strong now, but we can strengthen our collective investment in PLU by seeking more members and increasing our contributions. Show your support and pride in PLU—join Q Club and invest your enthusiastic support in it.

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT Q CLUB, AND OTHER METHODS OF GIVING, GO TO www.plu.edu/encore.