Donor Stories

Busey family endows scholarship to benefit members of Alpha Tau Omega

DePauw University and the Greek system are part of the family heritage of John W. Busey '61.

An economics major at DePauw, Busey went on to a 30-year career in banking, which included 19 years as a bank president, and he was an active community leader. He was a broker with First Busey Securities, Inc. for seven years prior to retirement.

Several family members have graduated from the University, including John's brother, Dr. Joseph S. Busey '63; his cousin, John S. Moffet '73; both of his sons, John W. Busey II '90 and James J. Busey '93; and John II's wife, Maribeth Steimle '88. John II serves on the DePauw Alumni Association Board of Directors.

Coming as a student from a small Illinois town to the more populous DePauw campus, Busey fondly recalls that DePauw’s admission director at the time, the personable John J. Wittich ’44, always recognized him and talked with him when they crossed paths on campus. Busey also found that joining Alpha Tau Omega fraternity provided another welcoming family and a life-changing experience.

"Basically, the main social experience I had at DePauw was living together with 70 other men in the fraternity. I formed lasting friendships, many of which have been lifelong," he said.

His fraternity roots spread even deeper. "My family also has a very strong involvement with the Greek system," Busey said, "because in addition to me, my brother, both sons and several members of my mother's side of the family are members of ATO. Altogether, 11 members of our family are members of ATO." John remained engaged with DePauw, particularly through serving on the ATO house corporation board for nine years—eight of them as board president.

He visited the campus frequently when his sons attended DePauw and involved in athletics and other activities. John II was a play-by-play announcer for WGRE radio and sometimes traveled with the basketball team for road games at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Ill. The DePauw team bus would often stop at the Busey home in Mahomet on the return trip.

When John and his wife, Judy, began to think about estate planning, they wanted to be sure to include DePauw and Alpha Tau Omega in their plans. They made a major deferred commitment to establish the Busey Family Endowed Scholarship Fund, becoming life members of the Washington C. DePauw Society. The scholarship will be awarded to an active member of ATO who is involved in campus leadership, demonstrates financial need and has the highest grade point average in the first semester of each academic year.

With the assistance of a knowledgeable attorney, the Buseys found it easy to establish a charitable remainder unitrust (CRUT). "My wife and I decided which foundations, churches and schools to name as our beneficiaries, and we particularly wanted to include DePauw in that group." John explained. "It's a deferred gift, so the money goes to DePauw only after we pass.

"We were able to greatly diversify our investments, increase our income and receive meaningful income tax benefits." Further, the Buseys were able to purchase a second-to-die life insurance policy to make certain that their estate to their heirs is not diminished. The Busey Family Endowed Scholarship Fund also ensures that deserving ATO members will continue to benefit from the DePauw experience for generations to come.