You know what they say: “you can’t take it with you.” So it’s not uncommon, even for people of modest means, to set up legacy endowments for important causes they wish to eventually support. Rich and Linda Turco have taken a different approach. They are giving now – to the extent they can – and enjoying the joy of celebrating the brilliant work of dedicated faculty and graduate students.
As a young graduate student himself at the University of Illinois in the 1960’s, Rich lived for a time on campus in a Quonset hut leftover from the World War II era. “Graduate life can be pretty spartan,” he says, without regrets. Now paying forward, he and Linda – both of a like mind – are setting up endowments that support students and the campus more broadly.
The Turcos’ foray into philanthropy was motivated by Dean Miguel Garcia-Garibay’s visionary commitment to match contributions earmarked for student support.
In 1988, Rich joined UCLA’s Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (AOS). He was on the UCLA faculty for 25 years, and at one point, took the role as Founding Director of the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability (IoES). Upon retirement, Rich and Linda sought opportunities to support outstanding academic programs at the UCLA campus. Their first significant donation established an endowed graduate student fellowship, and a research publication award, in AOS. This year, with the completion of their second endowment, the Turcos are looking forward to the inauguration of the first AOS Faculty Term Chair. Notably, Rich and Linda are also planning to fulfill – over the next few years – a pledge that will initiate an IoES endowment to help both undergraduate and graduate students.
The Turcos’ foray into philanthropy was motivated by Dean Miguel Garcia-Garibay’s visionary commitment to match contributions earmarked for student support. With a limited budget at their disposal, the Dean’s initiative provided a path for Rich and Linda to help students in a meaningful way on their journey to a successful career. The fellowship they endowed supports two new graduate students per year, each with a two-year stipend. One current fellowship holder, Alex Chang, for example, has focused his studies on understanding the role of the Amazon rainforest in global climate change. Over the last several years, the Turcos have delighted in meeting each of the new fellows, as well as publication awardees, and hearing about their important research.
It was Linda who emphasized the main reason they have kept giving – joy. “We soon understood the wonderful feeling you get when you see students thriving, and hearing their stories. When you can speak with them face-to-face and learn about their lives and their work. That is a kind of joy that is hard to describe.”