Welcome to Fundraising Friday: AB Today's weekly digest of recent developments in development.
Five prominent Hawaii donors and organizations are making a transformative $5 million commitment to the University of Hawaii at Mānoa athletics department via the UH Foundation to support name, image and likeness opportunities for student-athletes and help ensure the long-term success and national relevance of UH Mānoa Athletics. Per the athletics department's Wednesday announcement, the $200,000 annual commitments each from Bank of Hawaii, First Hawaiian Bank, shipping company Matson, and longtime UH supporters and community leaders Jack Tsui and Walter Dods will provide $1 million annually over the next five years for NIL support, helping UH Mānoa retain homegrown talent, recruit high-level student-athletes and provide equitable, Title IX-compliant opportunities across sports in an increasingly competitive Division I athletics environment. It will also strengthen a program that generates statewide pride, visibility and meaningful economic impact for Hawaii.
Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla., has named its new softball facility Tish Celenza Messinger Stadium in honor of longtime university supporter and accomplished athlete Tish Messinger, whose $1.3 million pledge will support both the stadium and student scholarships, the school announced Tuesday. Tish Celenza Messinger Stadium was completed this spring—just in time for the 2026 Lynn softball season. The new stadium boasts synthetic turf, modern dugouts and an elevated press box with advanced technology. The stadium accommodates more than 200 spectators.
Providence College Athletics announced Wednesday that an anonymous donor has generously pledged $1 million in cash and will match the next $1 million in men's basketball revenue‑share donations. All gifts to men's basketball revenue share will be matched, up to $1 million, through the end of the fiscal year that ends June 30. The Men's Basketball Revenue Share Challenge will elevate critical resources for the men's basketball program as Providence College Athletics remains committed to recruiting top‑tier talent.
Murray State Athletics has received an investment of $1 million from a family of Racer supporters in Tennessee, it was announced Monday. The gift counts toward the Vision For Excellence Fund as part of the department's Leading The Pack capital campaign supporting numerous strategic initiatives, capital progress and revenue share.that the Racers publicly announced in March. That donation was followed two days later by a $250,000 gift from the Drs. Philip and Melissa Chapman Foundation. The latest gift, which brought the Leading The Pack total amount raised to $44.25 million, has secured the naming of the Gate C Lobby within the CFSB Center, the home of Racer Basketball, as the Drs. Philip and Melissa Chapman Foundation Gate C Lobby, the athletics department announced Wednesday.
Total amount of these gifts:
$8,550,000
Running total for 2026:
$47,3327,000
Total amount tracked by AB Today in 2025:
$1,671,578,500
