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May 2009 Bear Backer E-Newsletter
Dear Loyal Bear Backer, On a festive Saturday evening in early April, we celebrated at the Charter Gala our great institution's birthday. It was a wonderful evening full of joy and celebration, which illuminated the finest that Cal has to offer in terms of spirit and passion. For those of us associated with Cal Athletics, it was a particularly meaningful evening, as one of the most passionate and most loyal amongst us, Robert D. Haas, was honored as the California Alumni Association's Alumnus of the Year.
Go Bears!
If you have recently changed your email address to a new provider, please let us know so we may have your most up-to-date contact information on file. Send your new email address along with full name and customer number to CalEmails@berkeley.edu Back to top Bear Awards http://www.sportsbusinessconferences.com/sba2009/ Cal is also currently in 7th place for the Directors Cup Standings. Click below for more information. http://www.nacda.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/nacda/sports/directorscup/auto_pdf/D1April23
 Come meet Cal Coaches, Alums, and all of the Cal faithful at the 2009 Coaches Tour. Tickets are only $20 per person, and space is limited at all 6 locations, so make sure to register today!calbears.com/coachestour 2009-2010 Men's Basketball renewals are on sale May 12, 2009. The renewal deadline is June 23, 2009. If you're a current season ticket holder and you missed the deadline to submit your deposit, there is still time to participate in the reseat. Simply renew your season tickets in full by June 23, 2009.
Giving 110% to Cal Athletics
Building Champions, Endowing the Future 
Dear Bear Backers,
I am very pleased to share with you that the Building Champions - Endowing the Future Campaign is well underway and we are making great progress in our effort to secure the financial future of Cal Athletics forever! As of this publication, we have received Letters of Intent for twenty-five percent of the three thousand ESP seats. We are extremely pleased with this incredible progress, especially considering that we are only four months into the campaign. This is a testament to the great support of our loyal Bear Backers like you, and we are very grateful for the leadership that those who have committed early to this project have shown. It is important to note that June 30, 2009, is the deadline for a Letter of Intent to be received by the Athletic Development Office to qualify for the charter allocation of seats this summer. A LOI can be printed from the Cal ESP website at CalBears.com/building where all of the information about the program is available. We are also in the process of conducting ESP presentations at Haas Pavilion. If you have not had an opportunity to join us already, there are six more presentations between now and the June 30, 2009, deadline to learn all about ESP. For a full schedule of upcoming presentations and to RSVP please visit the Cal ESP website at www.calesp.com. If a presentation is not convenient for you, one of our dedicated development staff would be happy to speak with you individually about the program by calling the Office of Athletic Development at (510) 642-2427. We continue to receive national exposure and interest about ESP, and there will be more to follow on this front in the upcoming weeks. I truly hope that you will seize this opportunity to ensure your legacy within Cal Athletics just as the Cal supporters did in 1921 when Memorial Stadium was first built. As always, thank you for your continued support of our student-athletes and Cal Athletics. Go Bears Click Here to register for an ESP Presentation Click Here to visit the ESP Website Nate Pine Executive Director's Corner: Continuous support a "Win, Win for All" As we wind down another successful athletics campaign I am constantly amazed by the number of long time loyal Bear Backers who year after year contribute to make Cal the premier athletic program in the country. It is this continuous giving which allows us to compete at the highest levels in all 27 programs.
Your yearly contributions not only help our current student-athletes but you as well. By being a Bear Backer you can enjoy the benefits that this membership provides. We reward consecutive years of giving by awarding 5 priority points for each year of consecutive giving. These consecutive years of giving, regardless of gift size, allows you to accrue points at an accelerated rate. These points are important because they allow you the opportunity to improve existing seats, receive better parking assignments or have early opportunities to purchase Bowl game or post season tickets. These priority points will be critical this summer as we reseat Haas Pavilion for the 2009-10 Men's Basketball season. To find out how to view your current point total, please Click Here to check out your status.
We are all challenged during these difficult economic times and we truly appreciate your continuous support of our mission. Your yearly commitment is pivotal in allowing us to provide an experience for our student-athletes you would want them to have while building a total program that you can truly be proud of.
Always stay connected and keep collecting those Priority Points. Go Bears!
Tod Bannister
In the Fall of 1982 Gary Storms parents brought him to his 6th "Big Game", needless to say, twelve year old Gary was no stranger to Memorial Stadium. On the final play of the game, on November 20th, 1982, Gary witnessed a play, the play, which was a lesson in teamwork and persistence that he has put to work on a day to day basis ever since. "I will never forget that some of my parent's friends and their kids had left after Stanford scored. They missed maybe the best play in College Football History. I'm glad we stayed!" Since then, whether it be re-enacting that infamous play with his childhood friends in the school yard, or leading a team of strategists at the company he founded, Storm knows that his Cal memories have made him who he is today. That is why he gives back. Storm enjoys the various Bear Backer events that take place throughout the year; you can find him at The Bear Backer Thank-You Luncheon, The Grid-Iron Golf Classic and many other donor specific events. Storm said, "It makes me a part of something much bigger than myself, I enjoy networking with other Cal fans, but if you take, you need to give back." A financial supporter of Cal Athletics since he was 25 years old, Storm knows that the help he gives to Cal Athletics is much more than just cutting a check. "I'm doing my part; Cal has been such a huge part of my life, I feel it is my duty, to give back." Storm said. Storms Cal education didn't end when he received his diploma in International Relations in 1992. His Cal education lives on every Saturday afternoon he spends with his friends at Memorial Stadium. At the end of the day, all of Storms experiences will cultivate through his contributions to the University of California Athletic Department, and the lives of student athletes that his contributions enrich every single day. Gary Storm is one of those people who can say that he has been a Golden Bear since the beginning.
Fimrite's goal has been to write the definitive history of the exciting and sometimes challenging program. He places Cal Football in the greater context of history of the University of California. He has been working on the manuscript for several years. Beyond the happenings on the field, the book will document the many events and issues--both academic and political-- that have influenced the program. Various rule changes will also be analyzed (such as the forward pass in 1906) and how those changes impacted the game. Many notables who are a part of the history of Cal Football are featured including Andy Smith, Stub Allison, Pappy Waldorf, Jackie Jensen, Joe Kapp, Craig Morton, Chuck Muncie and Jeff Tedford. Great plays, including "The Play" from the Big Game of 1982, will be recaptured in detail. Like a historical novel, the narrative will flow seamlessly from era to era, filled with adventure, intrigue, conflict, tragedy, humor, villainy, and heroism. The Cal Football History Project has been underwritten by private donations (mostly from alumni and former players) and the efforts have been chaired by Lefty Stern, Class of '51. For more information, contact the California Alumni Association at 510-642-7026 or Andrea L. Campos, Athletic Development, at 510-643-5750.
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Pavilion. 
There are some Cal graduates who can call themselves Die Hard Fans, or in our case Bear Backers well after their college years, and then there are some who can say that they have been Bear Backers since the day they were born. There are some people who can watch games on television and call themselves a fan, and then there are those who can say that they were actually there from the very beginning. 
The California Alumni Association has undertaken a project of great importance to fans of Cal football and, in particular, those interested in the history of Cal Football. Renown sports writer and Cal alumnus Ron Fimrite has written a comprehensive history of Cal football that will be published this August by Mac Adam/Cage Publishing.
