Howard Luckey: A Lifetime of Service

Ten years ago Howard Luckey established his first gift annuity to benefit Western Michigan University. Since that first gift, he has added an additional nine gift annuities, giving him the honor of having the most gift annuities at WMU. The proceeds of his annuities will create three named endowments: The Howard Luckey Jazz Scholarship Fund, The Howard Luckey Music Endowment Fund, and The Howard Luckey Presidential Fund for the discretionary use of the president.

Howard was born in Kalamazoo and attended Kalamazoo Public Schools, graduating from Central High in 1944. He served in the Navy during the last months of WWII and extended his service for an additional two years. Upon his return he used the GI Bill to enter the University of Michigan engineering school but left after four semesters. At that time he was recalled to active duty from the reserves to serve during the Korean War. While working at NSA in Washington, DC, he began taking dance lessons at Arthur Murray's. He joined the teaching staff and taught ballroom dancing for the next 10 - 12 years, further developing his love of music.

Howard eventually returned to Kalamazoo and enrolled at Western, obtaining a BA in social science. He was offered an assistantship in the economics department and pursued his MA in social science with a major in economics and a minor in sociology. While searching for a teaching opportunity at the college level, he was offered a position at Prairie State College in Chicago Heights, Illinois. He began his teaching career in the Social Science Department in the fall of 1968 and enjoyed teaching there until his retirement in 1999.

Additionally, Howard has named WMU the beneficiary of his estate. When asked why he chose Western he responded, "Because of my appreciation for the education I received and because I am from Kalamazoo, I wanted to find a way to help the University to continue to grow and become an even better quality institution. Since I do not have any immediate family, I am able to pass my name on to future generations by establishing the named endowments." Thanks to Howard's generosity, the University and many future students will benefit from his support.