Gifts in Action - The Laibles

MEET THE LAIBLES

Jon “Rusty” Laible of Charleston, Illinois, earned two degrees from the University of Illinois: a B.S. in agriculture in 1920 and an M.S. in animal science in 1925. After working for the U of I Department of Animal Science and the Illinois Extension Service, he joined the Funk Brothers Seed Company in 1937 as an agricultural advisor, retiring in 1968 as manager of the company’s Hybrid Corn Division. In 1970, the College of Agriculture Alumni Association presented him with an award of merit for his significant accomplishments.

HOW THEY GAVE

Jon and his wife, Jo Ann, have established a generous endowment that will honor the memory of Jon’s father, R.J. “Rusty” Laible (pictured here) who served as an agricultural advisor for more than 30 years. The R.J. “Rusty” Laible Endowment Fund will benefit library collections and services in the field of agriculture, which are located in the Isaac Funk Family ACES Library. The Laible Endowment Fund will provide annual income to enhance agricultural holdings in the ACES Library, which is named after the Isaac Funk Family whose descendents formed the Funk Brothers Seed Company in 1901.

The R.J. “Rusty” Laible Endowment Fund is the couple’s second gift to the Library; in 2001, they established an endowment that provides unrestricted support for the Mathematics Library and the University Library as a whole.

WHY THEY GAVE

“Jo Ann and I both have a commitment to the University of Illinois, and I know my father felt the same way,” said Jon. “When we learned more about the Funk Library, we realized it provided a natural match for our gift and a fitting tribute to my father,” explained Jon.