1965 Graduate’s Journey from Loyalty to Legacy

Bob ’65 and Jane Dunphy have included Catholic University in their will in thanks for the opportunities his education gave him.

We are honored to celebrate Robert “Bob” Dunphy, BSCE ’65, and his wife Jane as members of the University’s prestigious St. Thomas Aquinas Society. We all have recollections that define a certain place and time in our lives. For Bob fond memories of The Catholic University of America include civil engineering labs and camaraderie, Sputnik in the news, a field trip to the Alpha cement plant, Hartke Theatre, Senators Club, the Beatles, and Bob Dylan. Although the memories of the assassination of President Kennedy and the Cuban missile crisis are not happy ones, the University community nevertheless bonded in the face of these events.

Bob credits Catholic University with helping to set the foundation for a promising future with excellent career opportunities. Commuting to campus from Virginia as a day hop meant spending a lot of time in traffic on different routes and in different modes—bus, various carpools, and finally his own car. This experience coupled with the skills learned in engineering classes provided ideas for creative transportation solutions. Cody Phanstiel, a Metro official who was one of the most influential people in getting Metro built, was a speaker in Bob’s classes.

During his senior year, Bob worked on a research project led by one of his transportation professors. He also seized an opportunity to take a graduate course taught by the District of Columbia’s traffic engineer and filled with students who were practitioners. The professor subsequently offered Bob a job. Clearly, he was destined to work in transportation, a field he found fulfilling and endlessly interesting.

The Dunphys have been married for 48 years. They have been loyal supporters of Catholic University and Jane’s alma mater, The George Washington University, for more than 30 years. When the couple discussed who should be remembered in their wills, their alma maters were at the top of the list. Bob felt it was also important to recognize his parents who were instrumental in his education—enabling him to be the first in his family to graduate from college. Bob’s father died while he was in high school. Thanks to his mother and a government loan, Bob was able to graduate and go on to advanced studies.

After considerations such as life span, health, management of spending and investing, and property values, Bob and Jane decided to give a percentage of their estate in support of the University’s greatest needs rather than give a certain amount.

As the Dunphys and other generous donors have discovered, even a gift of 5 to 10% of your estate can make a big difference to the students, faculty, and programs at Catholic University.

Your estate gift can make a difference for Catholic University students. Contact Isabel de la Puente at 202-319-6914 or delapuente@cua.edu to find out how to maximize your generosity.