CLU Center to be named for CLU supporters: John B. & Carol Gilbert

(THOUSAND OAKS, CA) CLU’s new sports facility will bear the name The Gilbert Sports and Fitness Center in honor of John B. “Jack” Gilbert, chairman of the board of TOLD Corp. and one of Ventura County’s most successful businessmen, and his wife Carol. The announcement was made during the groundbreaking ceremonies for the $24 million North Campus Athletics Complex on Oct. 22.

With more than 800 people gathered on what will soon be an area filled with first–class sports facilities, Gilbert was recognized for his determination as well as his generous gifts to the University. Gilbert initially made a $2 million gift at the start of the Now is the Time capital campaign for a gymnasium in the new 96,000–square–foot Sports and Fitness Center and subsequently added several other major gifts including a capstone gift for the Center this May.

A former Regent and recipient of an honorary doctor of Laws degree from CLU, Gilbert was also honored as Philanthropist of the Year for Ventura and Santa Barbara counties during National Philanthropy Day last fall. In choosing to grace the new Center with the Gilbert name, CLU’s Board of Regents recognized Gilbert’s long and active relationship with the University, the inspiration and challenge he provided for other major donors, and the high regard he enjoys as a civic and business leader of Ventura County.

“Jack has been a loyal and significant friend to the University for more than two decades,” said President Luther Luedtke. “ We are honored that he and Carol are the largest individual contributors to the Sports and Fitness Center, and we are delighted to have their stewardship as well as their friendship.”

During the groundbreaking ceremonies, Gilbert was given a replicated Olympic Gold Medal by two–time Olympic gold Medalist diver Pat McCormick. The event also included brief talks by Baseball Hall of Famers Sparky Anderson and Tommy Lasorda.

The Gilbert Sports and Fitness Center will house a main gymnasium and practice gym as well as classrooms and labs, a fitness center, dance studio, sports medicine facility, faculty/coach offices, the Lundring Events Center, the CLU Alumni Association Hall of Fame and the Ventura County Sports Hall of Fame.

Other sports venues planned for the first phase of the complex include the George “Sparky” Anderson baseball field, Samuelson Aquatics Center, soccer fields, a track and practice fields. The $80 million Now is the Time campaign has resulted in the construction of the Spies–Bornemann Center for Education and Technology, which was dedicated in fall 2002, as well as gifts toward the university’s endowment, scholarships and annual fund.

The founder of Burbank–based Zero Corp., an electronic packaging firm, Gilbert moved to Ventura County in 1973 and founded Thousand Oaks Land and Development Corp. (TOLD Corp.), which has been ranked among the top 100 industrial and commercial developers in the nation. A champion of business, community and charitable programs, Gilbert has been honored by numerous organizations. He received an Honorary Doctor of Laws from CLU in 1990 and was the first recipient of the Hall of Fame Award presented by the Ventura County Economic Development Association (VCEDA) in 1989. Recognized as a major contributor to the economic progress of Ventura County, the Oxnard resident and former CLU Regent has been a supporter of the University since 1985.