$3 million pledge initiates two endowments at UC-Davis equine center

Davis, Calif.

-- The Center for Equine Health at the University of California-Davis (UC-Davis) received a $3 million gift from the William and Inez Mabie Family Foundation to support the center's research and teaching efforts.

The pledge establishes one endowment to help support the center's operations. The endowment also challenges other donors to provide an additional $1.8 million in private matching gifts to establish an endowment for the center director's position. That second endowment would allow the center to recruit future leaders.

The gift, combined with the fulfillment of the proposed directorship endowment, will permanently position UC-Davis as an international leader in equine medical research and education, says Dr. Gregory Ferraro, director of the Center for Equine Health. "We deeply appreciate the foundation's vision and leadership on behalf of horses."

The William and Inez Mabie Family Foundation is a longtime supporter of UC-Davis, the school says, having provided significant gifts in recent years to the School of Law and School of Veterinary Medicine. The foundation is dedicated to providing philanthropic support to causes, principally in the area of education and medicine.