Photo / Courtesy, University of Maine
From left, UMaine Foundation President/CEO Jeff Mills, UMaine President Joan Ferrini-Mundy, Labat Estate Executor Joanne Bruno and UMaine Director of Athletics Jude Killy.
Updated: October 21, 2024
UMaine receives $16M gift, largest single donation to the school's athletics
Photo / Courtesy, University of Maine
A recent $16 million donation to the University of Maine Foundation is the largest gift from an individual to support the school's athletics facilities and programs.
A $16 million donation to the University of Maine Foundation is the largest gift from an individual to support the school's athletics facilities and programs.
The donation was made by the estates of alumnus Pierre Labat, class of 1962, and his wife, Catherine Clair Labat.
The gift will be used to establish the Pierre D. Labat and Catherine C. Labat Athletic Leadership Fund, designated to support student-athletes and athletic facilities, said Jeff Mills, president and CEO of the foundation.
According to the terms of the gift, it can be used for purposes such as enhancing student success, recruiting and retaining coaches, capital expenditures and support of the UMaine Athletics Department.
The university’s athletics director, Jude Killy, will determine the specific allocation of funds, according to a news release.
Pierre Labat earned a bachelor’s degree in history at UMaine and was a member of the university's football team. Following his graduation in 1962, he served as a U.S. Army officer in Vietnam, earning several medals and reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel at the time of his military retirement in 1986. He died in 2023, two years after his wife Catherine's death.
“His University of Maine education forged his love of football and provided him leadership and services opportunities via the college’s ROTC program,” said Joanne Bruno, Labat Estate executor.
The gift will also help UMaine move closer to meeting the $38 million match necessary to leverage a $170 million UMS Transforms grant from the Harold Alfond Foundation.
Joan Ferrini-Mundy, UMaine’s president, has approved naming the university’s softball complex after the Labats. In addition to the UMaine team, area youth and high school teams use the complex, and it allows the university to host state, conference and regional championship events.
The $9.5 million, 90,000 square-foot complex opened in 2022. A dedication will be held at the first home softball game in 2025.
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