New York Times best-selling author William Trogdon, also known as William Least Heat-Moon, donated $1.5 million to the MU Libraries and $100,000 to the School of Health Professions.
Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin made the gift announcement in front of faculty and media in the morning of Sept. 11 in Ellis Library.
“Libraries still carry a cache of time and place,” Loftin said in his opening remarks. “Our library is a place that brings us together, as it is located in the center of campus.”
Trogdon and his wife Jan gave a $1.5 million pledge that will go toward preserving rare books and special collections in Ellis Library and other libraries across campus.
The Trogdons’ gift brings their total amount of donations to the MU Libraries up to $3.5 million.
They have also generously donated $100,000 toward scholarships in the School of Health Professions for students with physical disabilities who are aspiring to be health practitioners. The scholarships will help keep tuition costs low for SHP students to receive a tier-one education, which is, as Loftin pointed out, top priority for administrators at MU.
The Trogdons’ gift comes in the background of an [effort on the part of MU Libraries to raise funds through student fees](link). The libraries’ proposal for a student fee will be put to campus-wide referendum later this academic year.
After Loftin’s opening remarks, Trogdon himself took to the podium and reflected on his passion for reading.
“Library books open up for somebody a new world, they open up minds and for that reason, there is no greater place than where we stand today,” he said.
In the late 1950s when Trogdon was an undergrad at MU, tuition was a mere $79 per semester. Trogdon is now the owner of five MU degrees and an author of The New York Times best-selling book “Blue Highways.”
“I could never give away more than what this university gave to me,” Trogdon said.
Trogdon said he was very gracious and thankful to those who helped him get to where he is today, including his father, Ralph, whom the SHP scholarship will be named after.
Trogdon wrapped up his remarks by sharing a story from his college days. Late one night, he noticed a man in a wheelchair in downtown Columbia and offered a helping hand by wheeling him down Ninth Street to his destination.
“Lend a hand to the people of this great university,” he said. “Expressions of gratitude are good for the human heart.”