Longtime Supporter Helps Upgrade Eagles Nest

在一个可以俯瞰 铜的舞台 是新设计的鹰巢, 一个有吸引力的, glass-enclosed room w在这里 CUI hosts special receptions, 田径队会议, 比赛期间的座位. The room’s upgrade came thanks to 菲利斯Talmage, a generous donor since 1973.

“It was just a natural instinct for me to be a supporter,菲利斯说。. “When you know t在这里 is something that really is needed, you become personally involved and that’s gratifying.”

Phyllis was an athlete herself, in the 1940s. “I’ve always been interested in athletics,她说。. “I played second base for the Orange Lionettes softball team for a number of years. They were a non-professional team backed by the Lions Club. I also really enjoyed field hockey, basketball and tennis. 我参加了所有的运动.”

Phyllis is from Orange and was raised at St. 约翰的路德教会. Her roots in the denomination go deep. Her great-grandfather on her mother’s side was renowned missionary Friedrich Wyneken who helped establish The Lutheran—Church Missouri Synod and served as its second president.

When you know t在这里 is something that really is needed, you become personally involved and that’s gratifying.

“He was sent from Germany to America to start a church,菲利斯说。. “They knew t在这里 were Lutherans in America and needed a missionary to scout it out and start some churches. That’s another reason why I remained so committed to the Lutheran church. 这就是我所知道的.”

丈夫芽, who went to be with the Lord 27 years ago, was an orange rancher before turning to real estate after he saw ranch after ranch being converted into urban development.

“Bud decided he had better find a new profession,菲利斯说。. “So he took real estate courses, got his license and turned to that venture. Eventually all the orange groves disappeared and he ended up in commercial real estate development. We hated to see the oranges disappear because that’s what we were used to. But he had a few smarts about him and could see that oranges weren’t going to last.”

塔尔马吉人是 欧文康考迪亚大学 supporters 甚至在它存在之前. Their first contribution, in the early 1970s, was $20.

“I’ve always been interested in what was going on down around Irvine because it was developing fast,菲利斯说。. “I thought, ‘Gee, they’re going to put a Lutheran college down t在这里. That sounds like something I’d be interested in.’ So we began contributing a little bit at a time.”

The Talmages gave to many different needs, but athletics was always special to Phyllis. Her softball team used to travel to Arizona and Los Angeles for games and “we had to get a signed letter showing that we weren’t accepting any payment so we could play. We were in our senior year of high school.”

高中毕业后, she and her husband started out by working in agriculture, 种植和销售卷心菜, 西红柿和玉米. T在这里 was a vegetable packing house in the Olive area of present-day Orange, 她回忆说, and they took their vegetables t在这里 to be shipped and delivered to various markets.

“We had patches up in the Santa Ana canyon, all around the county, really,她说。. “W在这里ver we could find five or ten acres available, we’d plant it. That was a lot of interesting, hard work, one of the most enjoyable of my life. 很长, hard hours and you really felt you accomplished everything and you could save some money and go from t在这里.”

As they supported CUI over the years, the Talmages also enjoyed attending 活动 还有校园音乐会.

“I put our efforts into contributing to whatever drive they were having,菲利斯说。. “我一直支持他们的年度评选 活动 还有时装表演. They’ve had some marvelous productions.”

最近, Phyllis heard about the need for a renovated Eagles Nest and decided to give a donation to make it happen. 结果?

“Oh, my gosh, it surprised me,她说。. “It’s got this huge, carved eagle mounted on a base in the room. Then it’s got an image of an eagle embossed right on the seat of the stools. 他们看起来真的很漂亮. 我对他们非常满意. The girls had a volleyball game the night of the dedication. 非常令人印象深刻.”

Phyllis attended the reception with son Randy. The Talmages have another son, Matthew. Phyllis continues to enjoy her long association with 肯考迪娅 because “the people at 肯考迪娅 really express their love and appreciation among each other, from the professors to the students,她说。. “有一种亲密感. The students seem to feel very welcome t在这里.”

了解更多 about supporting the athletic department 在欧文的康考迪亚大学 through the 雄鹰体育俱乐部.