“You never pay back, you pay up.”

So declared Dr. William Shelby Oliver ’35 in 2003 upon making a seven-figure gift to endow a scholarship fund for financially and academically deserving students.

Oberlin recently lost one of its most dedicated alumni benefactors, Dr. William Shelby Oliver ’35 (pictured above with the 2005 Puddy Scholars). His far-reaching scholarship program and support of athletics highlight a lifetime of phenomenal support for Oberlin College.

This determination to “pay up” at Oberlin for the full scholarship he received during his undergraduate years in the Depression was the driving force behind a series of leadership gifts to the College in the past several decades.

When Dr. Oliver passed away in early June at the age of 92, he left a remarkable legacy of support at Oberlin – “paying up” beyond anyone’s wildest dreams.

“Shelby and Oberlin were a passionate match,” remarks Vice President for Development & Alumni Affairs Ernie Iseminger, who worked closely with Dr. Oliver and his family for the past seven years. “He had goals; the College had goals. And together we found ways for Shelby to make a huge impact on the lives of Oberlin students. He and his family have supported this College with a great energy and generosity.”

A shining example of this generosity came just weeks before his death, when Dr. Oliver made yet another leadership gift to grow the Evelyn “Puddy” Oliver ’34 Scholarship Fund – allowing it to eventually support thirty-two Puddy scholars.

The fund honors his late wife, a 1934 graduate of the Conservatory, to whom he was married for 68 years. A pianist, she acquired the nickname “Puddy” while at Oberlin.

“The best thing I ever had in life was my wife,” Oliver said. “Some people list their priorities as God, country, and family, but I list mine as family, God, and country. My family was my life. I married when I was in medical school. Puddy kept me going then. And when I went to war, she kept two kids going.”

This most recent gift represents just one of the many ways that Oliver expressed his dedication to Oberlin College over the years. In 1996, he and Puddy established a charitable gift annuity to endow the Delta Lodge Directorship in Athletics and Physical Education.

"Shelby’s support of Oberlin athletics comes from a true love of student athleticism,” Iseminger notes. “He was the epitome of a student-athlete himself. He worked hard at school and on the field, and the lessons he learned took him far.”

Indeed, Oliver’s was a story of perseverance. His father died when he was quite young, leaving his mother to raise two boys. Oliver worked for a year after high school, but because of the Depression, it was difficult to find good work. He then made the life-altering decision to go to college.

At Oberlin, Oliver studied pre-med, lettered in football and track, and played basketball. He also sang in Glee Club and was elected president of his senior class. He attended medical school at Western Reserve University (now Case Western Reserve University), where he specialized in surgery.

World War II interrupted his internship and residency at University Hospitals in Cleveland. Oliver served as a captain in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, and when the war was over, he completed his residency in Cleveland.

Shortly thereafter, he set up a surgery practice in Alameda, California; he performed his last surgery on his 65th birthday. The medical group he founded grew to include 28 doctors in specialty groups, including his own son, David Oliver ’62.

Oliver felt his professional success was no accident. It was an Oberlin education and his own hard work that propelled his future. “If I had just worked, I’d have had nothing to show for it, but this way, I got an education,” he said. “I think it paid off.”

Oliver’s main involvement with the College in recent years had been helping students gain an Oberlin education. He felt it was important to have a mixture of backgrounds on Oberlin's campus to create a balanced student body. He also hoped that his gifts would inspire other alumni to endow scholarship funds.

“I’m proud of these scholarships,” he once said. “I was poor once, and I remember it very well. These scholarships will help 28 kids on campus from now to eternity, with full tuition. These scholarships are going to do a lot of good.” 

This sentiment echoes the good feelings that the scholarship recipients themselves felt for Dr. Oliver. “I felt deeply privileged to have met Shelby Oliver before he passed away,” notes Puddy Scholar Virginia Dreier ’08. “I was immediately taken by his humor, knowledge, and hint of stubbornness.”

Dreier also recognized immediately the deep roots of Dr. Oliver’s generosity toward Oberlin: “With the scholarship, Shelby and Puddy’s legacy will continue to influence many new generations. I hope that thought is comforting [to his family].”

Like our memories of Shelby Oliver, his remarkable legacy of support will continue to live on, providing the Oberlin experience for generations to come.

If you would like to learn more about endowed scholarships, please contact the Leadership Giving staff at leadership.giving@oberlin.edu or at 440 775-8545. For more information about charitable gift annuities, contact gift.planning@oberlin.edu.