The legacy of Drs. John T. (Jack) and June Richie Chambers of Charleston will live on through a planned gift made by the late alumni to West Virginia University.
Two unitrusts established by the couple will provide the Chambers College of Business and Economics, Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute and the School of Medicine with over $668,000 to support programs and research.
“As the Chambers discovered, a unitrust gift can be a great way to support WVU while receiving a tax deduction and income for life. Their legacy allows them to support what was important to them, and helps to shape the future of WVU,” said Matthew Clark, WVU Foundation Director of Planned Giving. “The Foundation sincerely appreciates the Chambers’ generosity and support.”
Jack, who passed away last October, graduated from WVU’s College of Arts and Sciences in 1943 at age 19 before attending Case Western Reserve in Cleveland for medical school. June graduated from the WVU School of Medicine in 1947 and completed her residency at Western Reserve where she met Jack.
Each went on to have successful medical careers in the Charleston area. Jack was chairman of the Department of OB-GYN and later chief of staff, as well as a member of the board of trustees and member of the executive committee of the medical staff at Charleston Memorial Hospital. Outside of his medical career, Jack also found success as a real estate developer and venture capitalist. In 2009, he was inducted into WVU’s Business Hall of Fame.
June, who passed away in 2005, practiced internal medicine for many years before working as a psychiatrist.
The Chambers were avid supporters of WVU throughout their lives, establishing the John T. Chambers Family Fund in 1999, which benefitted the computer science and engineering programs. They were named Most Loyal West Virginians in 2001, and both were members of the WVU Foundation’s Irvin Stewart and Woodburn Circle Societies. Jack also inducted into the University’s Order of Vandalia in 1977.
The couple was married for 57 years and had three children: Cynthia (Park), Patricia (Anido), and John,