There’s something special about our Richmond bond, and we see it in action whenever Spiders help out fellow Spiders. We saw it when one alum donated her kidney to save another, when a film student landed a dream Oscars opportunity thanks to a Spider, or when a group of students launched a mental health initiative to support their classmates.

And this week, we saw it play out in an incredibly generous way when 1986 alums Paul and Anne-Marie Queally announced their $7.5 million lead gift for a new men’s and women’s basketball training and performance facility on campus.

The center is set to open in 2020 and will equip our men’s and women’s teams with state-of-the-art athletic facilities and academic support areas to bolster their success both on and off the court. We’re also particularly excited about the Spider Heritage Hall — an homage to UR’s longstanding athletic success.

As you might know, the Queallys have a history of giving back to Spiders. They’ve long supported student success through their gifts for the construction of the Queally Center for Admission and Career Services and Queally Hall, an addition to the Robins School of Business.

“Anne-Marie and I have been committed to supporting university excellence across the campus and are pleased to be associated with this new facility, which will benefit the student-athletes who represent us so proudly on the court, in the classroom, and out in the world,” Queally said.

Thank you, Paul and Anne-Marie! We love to see our Spider family support one another in so many generous ways!