We have exciting news — news that we hope you will join in celebrating, and that will inspire you to support our efforts.

 

For many years, Ward McDonald has been a leader in our industry. Ward has served as a mentor to many of us in our legal careers. He has been a leader of Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund, Inc. (ATG) for forty years, having served as CEO for thirteen years and continuing to serve on its Board of Directors. It is fair to say that ATG would not be the success it is today without Ward's efforts.

 

In addition to maintaining a successful law practice, Ward has also served as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Illinois for twenty years, and at the College of Law for seventeen years. He has mentored hundreds of future real estate attorneys. His contributions to the legal profession are impressive and quite significant. For those reasons and many others, we are pleased to announce that ATG will honor Ward by initiating the Ward McDonald Scholarship Fund at the University of Illinois College of Law.

 

The scholarship will be awarded to a 3L student who is in good academic standing and displays a passion and initiative for real estate law. The student will also need to have completed or enrolled in the Real Estate Finance course offered at the College of Law. If in any year a student is not identified for the scholarship, it will be awarded at the discretion of the College.

 

ATG has committed to $25,000 over five (5) years to assist in establishing the scholarship. Ward has also committed to yearly gifts and has made provisions in his estate to support the scholarship. To endow the scholarship, a total of $50,000 is needed. In agreement with University of Illinois guidelines, a 4% draw will be taken from the principal amount on a yearly basis. A $50,000 scholarship fund will yield a scholarship of $2,500. We are confident that this fund will continue to grow through the years.

 

MAKE A DONATION Questions about the gift process? Contact: Chris Higgins Assistant Dean for Advancement U of I College of Law 217.244.0021 chigg@law.illinois.edu

We are asking ATG members, agents, and friends to join us in honoring Ward. Any gift is appreciated and will go a long way to help us achieve our goal. You may have already sent a donation via the mailing from the University of Illinois. If so, we thank you for your support. If not, please donate via this link. The full amount of your gift is 100% tax deductible in accordance with the charitable giving laws established by the United States Internal Revenue Service.

 

In addition to helping fund the scholarship, we invite you to attend a special event:

 

 

We thank you in advance for your consideration and generous support. Ward is deeply touched by this gesture and is very grateful to all his friends.

 

Peter J. Birnbaum
President and CEO