KU to present to Bob Dole $40K check for Sept. 11 victims' scholarship fund

WASHINGTON -- The University of Kansas on Tuesday will present to former Kansas Sen. Bob Dole a check for more than $40,000 that it raised for the Families of Freedom Scholarship Fund to provide educational assistance for family members of victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Janet Murguia, executive vice chancellor for university relations at KU, will present the check for $40,179.83 to Dole at his Washington, D.C., law office.

Dole, a KU alumnus, and former President Bill Clinton serve as co-chairs of the scholarship fund. The fund drive so far has raised $90 million, with a goal to raise $100 million by Sept. 11, 2002.

"The children of firefighters and police officers, flight crews and passengers, World Trade Center and Pentagon workers -- all of the victims of the attacks -- have lost so much," Dole said. "This scholarship fund will provide broad opportunities for these families and for the young people -- the next generation of our nation's leaders. Our thanks to the university community at KU for its generous support and concern for these families."

Murguia said the university wanted to contribute to the relief effort for victims' families. "The response has been overwhelming," she said. "I am very pleased to present Senator Dole with a heartfelt gift from the heartland."

To raise money for the fund, the university in October 2001 revived its spirited "Fighting Jayhawk" mascot of 1941-46, created by the late Dr. Gene "Yogi" Williams of El Dorado. T-shirts with the historic Jayhawk along with the U.S. flag and the phrase "United We Stand" were sold, with proceeds of the $10 T-shirt going to the Families of Freedom Scholarship Fund. The Fighting Jayhawk was the university's official mascot when Dole was a student at KU.

The shirts were sold at KU Bookstores on the Lawrence, Edwards and Medical Center campuses and their Web sites; at KU Athletic Corp.'s KUStore.com Web site; and at Memorial Stadium and Allen Fieldhouse. In addition, all tailgating participants at KU home football games last fall were asked to contribute to the fund, either directly or by purchasing a T-shirt.

The shirts sold out, but a $3 lapel pin featuring the Fighting Jayhawk is on sale at KU Bookstores, with all proceeds going toward the scholarship fund. Information about the lapel pin is available at www.jayhawks.com.

While in Washington, Murguia also will attend the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and Industry's annual Congressional Summit. Murguia and more than 40 Kansas business leaders will meet with the Kansas congressional delegation June 19 and 20, said Terry Leatherman, vice president for legislative affairs at KCCI.