HOUGHTON, MI -- George and Barbara Butvilas of Houghton have established a deferred gift annuity in the amount of $100,000 to Michigan Tech's Leaders for Innovation capital fund raising campaign. The campaign has a goal of raising at least $100 million for the University by the end of 2003.
"One of the things that really impressed me is the type of research that is going on at Michigan Tech -- and I mean some groundbreaking research," George Butvilas commented. "That, coupled with the university's prominence here in the Copper Country, makes me believe that this gift will provide a payoff in the future for local people and, in general, for the state of Michigan. I think it is a wise investment."
George and Barbara moved to the Copper Country in 1990 when he was named president of D&N Bank. Prior to joining D&N, he was executive vice president and director of Boulevard Bancorp of Chicago. He was named chief executive officer of D&N Bank in 1991 and CEO of the D&N Corporation in 1992. After D&N and Republic Bancorp merged in July of 1999, he was named director and vice chairman of the Board of Republic and president and CEO of D&N.
"We're especially grateful for this gift from George and Barbara Butvilas because it is such an excellent example of local community leaders who believe in the kind of programs our University provides and who are willing to help us meet our capital campaign goals," said MTU President Curt Tompkins.
During his tenure at D&N, Butvilas has been a strong supporter of Michigan Tech and the bank has donated more than $213,000 toward various MTU projects during that span. Butvilas is a Michigan Tech Fund trustee and a member of the Presidents Club and also serves on the MTU Community Advisory Council and the Advisory Board of the Applied Portfolio Management Program in the MTU School of Business and Economics. He also is a member of the Board of Directors of Portage Health Systems.
He graduated from the Advanced Management Program of the Harvard University Graduate School of Business and also received an MBA from the Illinois Institute of Technology. He earned his bachelor's degree from the U.S. Naval Academy.
The Leaders for Innovation Campaign intends to raise at least $100 million to support five key areas: scholarships, faculty endowments, innovation, enrichment programs, and facilities.
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02/16/00