The University of Denver will use a $17.5 million gift to establish a center for the study of aging and to support the School of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management in DU’s Daniels College of Business.
The donation from Betty Knoebel, widow of Denver food services pioneer Ferdinand “Fritz” Knoebel, includes the 996-acre B Bar K Ranch, valued in excess of $10 million, and a future cash commitment.
It is among the largest gifts the university has received in its history.
“It is a remarkable gift, without question. It means a great deal to us but also to a broad spectrum of people beyond the university,” said DU Chancellor Robert CoombeResearchers at the university are already working on Alzheimer’s disease and other aging issues.
The Knoebel Center will expand DU’s role in interdisciplinary research on aging and aging-related conditions.
The center will be the only one of its type in this part of the country, said DU spokesman Jim Berscheidt. “As an institution that cares for one third of Denver’s population and as a partner with DU, we see this Center for the Study of Aging as a unique resource for this region that will achieve important advances in this needed area,” said Patricia Gabow, Denver Health Medical Center CEO.
Faculty positions will be added in molecular life sciences and bioengineering.
When the ranch is eventually sold, DU will apply up to $10 million from the net proceeds to help fund costruction of facilities to house the Knoebel Center and support its programs and research.
Any proceeds in excess of $10 million from the sale of the ranch off North Turkey Creek Road in Morrison will go toward the hotel management school, Coombe said.
Money for the school, which will be named the Fritz Knoebel School of Hotel, Restaurant and tourism Management will increase student scholarships, faculty support, industry partnerships and experiential learning programs.
Knoebel’s husband was a Denver native who founded the Nobel Mercantile Co., a bakery distributor, in 1929. He turned the business into the largest privately-owned food service distribution company in the country.
After Sysco Inc. acquired the company in 1982,Ferdinand Knoebel stayed on as chairman of Nobel/Sysco Food Services Co. until 1999 when he retired at 90. He died in 2005.
Tom McGhee: (303)954-1671 or tmcghee@denverpost.com
