A Place of Permanent Honor

Carole Ginzl—along with her late husband, Dave—has been a long-time supporter of Flagler College. The Ginzls' oldest daughter, Christie '95, chose Flagler for its deaf education program. The College was a different place back then, Carole remembers. For one, the girls' dorms in Ponce Hall were not air-conditioned.

"That didn't faze Christie," Carole says. "She'd just finished a summer living in a tent in Orlando as a Girl Scout camp counselor. She figured she could live in the beautiful old hotel, air-conditioning or not."

Carole is a New York native; she met Dave when she was earning her undergraduate degree in elementary education at SUNY Oneonta and Dave was attending nearby Hartwick College. They lived upstate for a time while Dave attended graduate school at Syracuse. Then Dave's career in banking brought the Ginzls south—first to St. Petersburg and then ultimately to Jacksonville—where they raised their three daughters and Carole began her 17-year tenure as Director of Religious Education at St. Joseph Parish and School.

Their daughter Christie's time at Flagler was wonderful, Carole says. But it was the experience of their third daughter, Rebekah '03, that "pushed us way up over the top in our support of Flagler College."

Rebekah was struggling academically as a freshman, and the Ginzls knew something was amiss. Tests soon revealed that Rebekah had dyslexia—and as soon as the learning disability was diagnosed, Carole says, Flagler provided a full support system of resources and services that helped Rebekah succeed.

"The care that Flagler offered to our daughter was amazing," Carole says. "They did so much to help her achieve her goals. We will be forever grateful."

Through the years, Dave and Carole provided gifts to the Annual Fund and the Ringhaver Student Center. Dave passed away in February 2012, and this year, Carole provided a gift to name an office in Hanke Hall to permanently honor her husband's memory.