Pam Buckley graduated from Babson in 1989, following in the footsteps of her father, Raymond J. Acciardo Sr. MBA’69. She has enjoyed a successful career in banking and compliance, and currently lives in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with her husband, Tim, and their college-bound twins. Buckley has been donating to Babson since 1996, and for the past two years has been volunteering as a class agent for the Class of 1989. Buckley also is a member of the Reunion Committee, having just enjoyed a very successful 30th reunion!

Pam Buckley ’89 and her father, Raymond J. Acciardo Sr. MBA’69, who also celebrated a milestone—his 50th reunion, joining the ranks of the Half-Century Club.
Photo: Paige Brown

What’s your favorite way to start the day?
Generally, with a cup of coffee and often a spin or TRAIN class at B/Spoke, when not immediately jumping on the laptop and getting right into my work day. I wake up, greet my family, read the Daily Skimm, and then hit the ground running. I’m a morning person, so I like to get right into the day!

Your twins are in the middle of the college search right now. Has that process given you a new perspective on Babson?
Absolutely! It’s been so fun touring colleges and universities around the country, realizing how fortunate I am to have attended Babson. The College always provides great opportunities to network, learn from others, engage with alumni, and connect with current students. The Babson community is unique in that it attracts so many interesting, intelligent, and ambitious people from around the globe.

What motivated you to become a class agent?
As a cancer survivor, I’ve always believed in giving back and the importance of volunteerism. It’s core to who I am. Before my husband and I had children, I dedicated 10 years to the Jimmy Fund Council of Greater Boston, serving as treasurer and secretary. Tim and I also rode in the Pan-Mass Challenge eight times, raising money for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where I was treated for Hodgkin’s disease in 1990 (shortly after graduating from Babson). This was an exciting time to re-engage with Babson’s Centennial with my 30th Reunion in sight.

You’ve been donating consistently to Babson for nearly 20 years. Why?
Babson is near and dear to my heart. I look back and am so appreciative of all the opportunities I had on campus. I received a phenomenal education here, which positioned me well for a successful career and a happy, comfortable life. I’m just delighted to give back, and hopefully incent others to do the same. – Jason Lynch

Eric Dosal is a Class of 2000 alumnus who currently lives in Miami with his wife, Lorena, and their two daughters. A former baseball player at Babson, he recently made two generous gifts in support of Babson Athletics, funding construction of The Dosal, a 5,000-square-foot indoor hitting and baseball performance center, and endowing a Man of the Year Award, which recognizes Babson’s most well-rounded male student-athlete each year.

Eric Dosal ’00 (right) with Mike Lynch, the Pamela P. and Brian M. Barefoot Athletics Director and senior director of athletic advancement.
Photo: Temitope Bajulaiye

What were you most likely to be doing when you were a student on campus?
Probably playing baseball. In peak season, games, practice, and gym time occupied a solid 25–30 hours per week. It was a pretty intense workload. If I wasn’t in the gym or in class, you’d probably find me hanging out with friends. Our favorite spot was B5 McCullough!

Did your time as a student-athlete prepare you for a career in business?
Yes, 100 percent. Being a student-athlete is tough. You learn to work as a team, prioritize, count on others, manage your time, deal with adversity, commit to goals. Everything you need to know for the real world you can learn through team sports.

Why do you give back to Babson?
I think it’s important to give back to the institutions that helped shape you as an individual. Babson shaped my future and who I am today. I recognize that and appreciate it, so I want to make sure I’m having an impact on the College. With our gift to the baseball team, I viewed it as a way to give back and pay it forward to future generations of Babson players. When I got to campus, we had a beautiful field and a great facility and that’s because of the players that came before me. I had so many memories on the field. So much of my college experience took place there—so many friends and teammates, we worked together on that field. To be able to help and give these guys another edge means a lot.

How do you spend most of your time these days?
I work, I work out, and I spend time with my family. That’s about it. These days, I’m spending a lot of time on health and wellness. I spent too much time destroying my health to build wealth, and now I’m spending my wealth to get my health back. Funny how that works.

Do you have any habits or daily routines that are key to your success?
Daily meditation. It’s so important to take time from the day, whatever your priorities are, to just reset the brain and take a break. It only takes 15 minutes a day. For me, it’s the most important thing that allows me to do what I do every day.

Any specific advice you have for students or young alums?
Life is a marathon. Lots of people want to sprint out of the gate and become billionaires right away. But, it’s really a marathon and you need to pace yourself. I also like to say: when you graduate from Babson, it’s like starting a marathon on mile one or two. You’re further ahead of everyone else because of everything you learned there. That’s a great advantage, but then it’s up to you to continue that drive and stay ahead. – Jillian Erdos and Jason Lynch

Richard Snyder graduated from Babson in 1960 and then went on to law school. He served as a White House summer intern and was a trial lawyer with the Department of Justice before entering private practice in 1966. Snyder continues to serve as legal counsel and advisor to business entities of all sizes, including for-profit and not-for-profit institutions and domestic and foreign corporations. He is a former chair of the Board of Trustees at Babson College and currently serves on the Global Advisory Board.

Richard J. Snyder ’60, H’94, P’93 ’01, trustee emeritus, Global Advisory Board
Photo: Justin Knight

What is your favorite memory of being a student at Babson?
Where the Globe is now used to be faculty housing, resulting in ’round-the-clock access to faculty. One could hang around and have access to them much of the time, just sit on the porch and talk about stuff. We solved problems and learned together.

Was there a Babson professor who really changed your life or made you look at life differently?
Walter Carpenter, who taught labor relations and later became dean of faculty—really a wonderful guy. He drove home the idea that if you want to have a successful business, management has a responsibility to have a supportive relationship with employees and treat them with respect. This changed my perspective.

Do you have any funny memories from a specific class or professor?
I majored in accounting because it was the only thing my dad would pay for. He believed that accounting was the only thing you couldn’t teach yourself. However, I really didn’t like accounting, so I often did not do the homework. My accounting professor, Clint Peterson, loved to call on me in class just to prove that I hadn’t done my homework. Luckily, I was able to bluff my way through it most of the time (or grab a friend’s homework and read the answers off!).

Who inspired you most at Babson?
Both Walter Carpenter and a liberal arts professor, John Gibson. Gibson was able to draw a connection between liberal arts and the business world, teaching us history, life, and a broader world view, which all contributed toward being an effective business person.

You have been giving back to Babson for more than 40 years. Why?
At the end of my second year at Babson, I interned at an accounting firm and really did hate it, so I decided to take the national law boards to apply to law school after Babson. I had no money but I scored so high on the law boards that I was granted a full scholarship to law school. Seeing how well I scored on a national test gave me insight into just how good my Babson education was. In fact, law school was less challenging than Babson!

I finished second in my class, made up of graduates of Harvard, Williams, and many of the best undergraduate programs. I never felt that anyone had a better education than I received at Babson. Being able to see firsthand how Babson stacked up against the best colleges around the country made me want to give back to Babson.

Not having a lot of money back then, I volunteered for the Alumni Association. Once I was able to donate more than just my time, I couldn’t conceive of putting money where it would do a greater good than Babson. In my opinion, a dollar invested in Babson had the highest possible return for succeeding generations.

What is your hidden talent?
The use of humor in business. I’m able to use humor as a negotiating technique because there is no defense against a joke, particularly if it’s self-effacing.

What job would you be terrible at?
CEO. I am very effective in a staff capacity where I can advise and present alternative ideas. However, I doubt I would be as effective if I had to choose one.

What does the future hold for Babson?
The need for Babson’s unique form of education across all aspects of societal development has never been greater, and Babson’s prospects have never been so bright. – Jillian Erdos

Richard Snyder ’60, H’94, P’93 ’01 and his wife, Marilyn B. Snyder MBA’80, P’93, with their family at the Snyder Drive Dedication on October 19, 2017.
Photo: Justin Knight

Richard J. Snyder ’60, H’94, P’93 ’01 »

Richard Snyder graduated from Babson in 1960 and then went on to law school. …

Through Make Your Mark, donors can select from one of 20 campaigns that fund an array of campus programs, projects, institutes, scholarships, and more, including areas of critical need. Since its inception, the event has been an important catalyst for increasing alumni participation from 23% to 32%.

Fueled by the success of the first 24-hour push three years ago, hosting a second annual Make Your Mark was a no-brainer. And, the Babson faithful delivered. The day of giving in 2017 resulted in the most gifts received on a single day in Babson’s history: 1,255 from donors in 32 states and 20 countries, with a whopping $173,426 raised.

Make Your Mark 2018 topped that with 1,585 gifts totaling $191,790, and 239 people making their first gift to Babson.

This year’s event will coincide with our Centennial Founder’s Day celebration on Thursday, September 5, when we hope to have 1,919 people donate in 2,019 hours, in honor of our 100th year. You can help by giving to what you love that day.

To learn more (or get an early start), visit makeyourmark.babson.edu or call 781-239-4393.

In 2014, the Bertarelli Foundation gave a $3 million gift to the College to endow a faculty chair, the Bertarelli Foundation Distinguished Professor of Family Entrepreneurship, and recently contributed to the building of the new Kerry Murphy Healey Park. Former President Healey recently presented the award to Bertarelli, who was inducted into Babson’s Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs® in 2008.

A full scholarship to Babson was a gift Mikki Wosencroft ’99 has never forgotten.

“It’s been on my mind ever since I got the scholarship that one day I’ll pay this back,” she says, “because I knew that I wouldn’t be here without it.”

By “here,” Wosencroft means director of human resources, North America, at the fashion and luxury goods company Celine in New York City. Prior to that, she held positions at Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, and L’Oréal. “Almost all of the jobs I’ve had,” she adds, “were the result of some point of reference of my Babson education.”

Wosencroft became part of the Babson Legacy Society with a charitable bequest through her life insurance, so she could make similar scholarships available to students in need. The Legacy Society offers an array of planned gift options for alumni and friends of the College, which can support campus programs and initiatives that are most personally meaningful. “Everything I have is from the education I got,” she says. Comparing notes with friends from high school after her first year at Babson, she remembers realizing she already was ahead of the game: “While they were taking general ed classes, I already knew how to break down a balance sheet and understood why they changed the queueing at Starbucks.”

Richard Abbott

Richard Abbott ’69 re-established his ties with Babson about five years ago, and joining the Babson Legacy Society has been part of that connection. He is hopeful his former classmates can return to campus, especially during their milestone 50th reunion year and in honor of the College’s Centennial.

“The major capital investments at the College are impressive,” says the retired management executive. “The national and international outreach programs continue to make Babson academically recognized, and I strongly support the continued growth of athletics and campus organizations that encourage alumni to remain connected to the College.”

For more information about how you can become a member of the Babson Legacy Society, please visit babson.giftplans.org, or contact Sandra Anthoine at santhoine@babson.edu or 781-239-4352.

That scholarship didn’t come from a large gift from a single donor—or even two or three. Small donations from a number of alumni made it possible for Damiecki to focus on studying finance and accounting and swimming competitively. In fact, in 2018, numerous alumni gifts to Babson under $100 were combined to fund 15 scholarships for students in need.

“When alumni give back, they help sustain and strengthen Babson in more ways than they can imagine,” says Kathryn McCarron, managing director of annual giving. “These gifts help to ensure that Babson remains the standard for excellence in entrepreneurship education, empowering the business leaders of tomorrow with the skills and expertise to transform industries, strengthen communities, and improve the lives of people everywhere.”

“This scholarship gives me more options for what I want to do and where I want to work. It allows me a lot more flexibility. It’s unbelievable.” – Alex Damiecki ’20
Photo: Jon Endow

Regardless of the donation size, she adds, “When people support the Fund for Babson, gifts are put into action immediately to benefit students.”

Damiecki has been fascinated with business since childhood, when he took part in stock market games in elementary school in Centerville, Massachusetts. Babson’s comprehensive business curriculum was a huge draw as he applied to colleges. “The fact that I was able to learn finance, marketing, operations management, and emerging technology—that was very valuable,” he says, adding that this broad knowledge base was key in his decision to ultimately pursue accounting and finance. “Babson really helped guide me through that process.” This summer, he’ll intern at PwC in audit services.

Becoming part of Babson athletics has been another highlight of his time on campus. “The swim team is very close—it’s like a family,” Damiecki says. “I found a strong social connection with people on my team.” That experience, plus his education, “has helped me grow a lot,” he adds. The encouragement he received as a first-year student from upperclassmen wasn’t forgotten, and he now offers guidance to younger students.

With graduation on the horizon, Damiecki is grateful for what a scholarship affords him: the ability to focus on his studies and explore jobs and a career path without the worry of paying back student loans. “This gives me more options for what I want to do and where I want to work,” he says. “It allows me a lot more flexibility. It’s unbelievable.” – Jeannine Stein

Keep your connection to Babson strong and join our community of donors this fiscal year.