Annual Fund

Maintaining the connections

When Mark Beyerly, class of '95, decided to make a $5,000 gift to the capital campaign, his participation was rooted in his appreciation of lifelong learning. It's a theme he says fellow alumni echo in conversation - the shared belief that they received far more than a classroom education while at Fairfield.

"Attending alumni events helps me appreciate that Fairfield is so much more than an education," explains Mark. "I was given the opportunity to grow into myself here, into who I was supposed to be. That's what makes giving back - in whatever way I can - so fulfilling."

He also gives back in a very special way, by continuing to provide liturgical music at the Egan Chapel on campus, accompanying student cantors and the Loyola Singers at Sunday Mass. "I'll never forget sitting in the chapel at Mass the first Sunday of my freshman year," recalls Mark. "Everyone and everything was still so new to me, but I realized then and there that I had made the right choice in Fairfield. I wanted to be the guy behind the piano ... and a year later, I was. And fourteen years later, I still am!"