Gerald Gentry (2009 - present)
Gentry to chair President's Council board, 2009-2010
When Gerald Gentry (’68 agronomy) and his wife, Joan, left their farm outside of New Castle, Ind., and came to Purdue University with a 1- and 2-year-old in tow, they couldn’t afford a telephone. He worked 20 hours a week during school and full time all summer. They lived in Married Student Courts, borrowed enough money to pay the rent and earned enough to buy groceries.
“That was it,” Gentry says. “We had zip.”
Today “zip” has been transformed into a lucrative career on the Chicago Board of Trade and a deep-felt gratitude for his Purdue education. Meanwhile, the once struggling freshman is poised to take over as the new chair of The President’s Council Leadership Board in October.
Gentry says he was “quite surprised” to be chosen to lead the Board. “It’s a privilege and honor, and I’ll do the best I can.”
Gerald and Joan have endowed five agriculture scholarships for undergraduates at Purdue. They also support Convocations, the Purdue Musical Organizations and Purdue athletics.
As chair, Gerald will head the organization whose members account for the vast majority of all private giving to Purdue. The Council serves the dual role of raising money for the university and providing a social connection for Purdue’s alumni and friends.
“You make lasting friendships that you otherwise wouldn’t have had if you weren’t in an organization like this,” Gentry says. “We have met friends from all over the country. We e-mail back and forth and have telephone conversations all the time. It’s a lot of fun.”
However, the most fulfilling aspect of Gentry’s new role at the President’s Council is getting the opportunity to tell Purdue’s story to prospective donors and helping to bring financial support to the university. Donating to Purdue is vital, he says. State support for higher education is decreasing at the same time that the stressed economy is making Purdue’s innovations and highly trained graduates more important than ever before.
The first person in his family to attend college, Gentry earned a master’s degree in agricultural economics from Pennsylvania State University. He received the Agronomy Achievement Award in 2001 for his contributions to Purdue and the community.
Gerald and Joan were high school sweethearts who have been married for 47 years. Their children have followed in their father’s Purdue footsteps. Son, William, and daughter, Angela, both earned degrees from Purdue. Their son-in-law and daughter-in-law also received degrees from Purdue. The couple have five grandchildren.