I am pleased and honored to serve as the Chairman of the Stanford Rugby Foundation for the next two years.  I am particularly excited about the many changes and improvements to the Stanford Rugby program over the past several years, and those that are ongoing.

Stanford Rugby has been blessed by the generosity of the Hal Steuber Family and the John Doyle Family, as well as that of other alumni and friends, that has resulted in the construction of the best rugby stadium and clubhouse facility in the United States.  Stanford has already hosted two Collegiate Men's National Championship tournaments and will host a third this year.  We hope to host one or more International matches in the near future and appreciate the support of the Athletic Department in its willingness to showcase the facility for the improvement of rugby in the United States.  We particularly appreciate the continuing support of Athletic Director Ted Leland in our various efforts to grow Stanford Rugby.

We are very fortunate to have been able to provide the funds for the hiring of Rob Holder as Stanford's Director of Rugby.  Rob's enthusiasm for men's and women's rugby is infectious, and in a year, Rob has dramatically increased student participation in both programs.  He has arranged for tours, summer camps and visiting coaches and games, making the facility and program a success on a year-round basis.  This year, Rob has secured sponsorship for the teams' uniforms. Rob's high school recruiting efforts are already paying dividends in the arrival of several talented freshman this year.  We are confident that under Rob's leadership, both the men's and women's programs will be challenging for league and national championships on a regular basis in the near future.

We are also pleased to be able to provide funds for the hiring of Jonathan Griffin, formerly of the London Irish and coach of the Loughborough University women's team, the current England collegiate champion.  Jonathan will be the head coach of the women's team and an assistant for the men's program.

As we transition into the new facility and the new Director of Rugby, the Foundation is updating its charter to insure that it is meeting the needs of all Stanford Rugby players, men and women.  We have added several former women's ruggers to our Foundation Board of Directors and our fundraising efforts will now be directed to the support of the rugby program as a whole. 

In that regard, we will be launching several new fundraising initiatives in the months ahead.  We will be approaching former rugby players involved in class reunion fundraising to solicit donations for the rugby program as part of that fundraising campaign.  We will also be launching an annual gift program called the First Fifteen Club that will encourage alumni to annually provide funds to support specific men's and women's rugby events and trips.  Finally, we are embarking on a campaign to celebrate the first 100 years of Stanford Rugby in 2006, in which we hope to make a significant increase to our endowment, which in turn is used to fund our coaches and game travel, among other things.

Those of us that have been fortunate to play rugby at Stanford have benefited from great athletic competition, excellent facilities and lasting friendships.  The Foundation's goal is to ensure that rugby remains strong at Stanford, and that the current and future Stanford student members of the rugby program have the same experience.  We hope you will continue to support the Foundation to that end.

As we look to the future, it is important to remember and thank those with the foresight, time and energy to bring the Foundation and Stanford Rugby to where it is today.  In particular, Tom Klein, the Foundation's founding Chairman for the past seventeen years, is responsible for the great success of the Foundation and Stanford Rugby today.  Please read the article regarding Tom in this newsletter and join me in thanking Tom for all of his efforts over the years.

I look forward to working with all of Stanford's rugby alumni and friends to continue the great tradition of Stanford rugby.          

-- Denis F. Shanagher