Willis and Joyce Gardner join the Archimedes Club

Andrew Mark
ASME Foundation

Longtime ASME Member and Life Fellow Willis W. Gardner is now also the latest Founding Member of the ASME Foundation's Archimedes Club. Gardner and his wife Joyce will be recognized as members at the Silver Level. Because of his longtime affiliation with the Tribology Division, he will be recognized at the 2004 Tribology Conference this October in Long Beach, Calif.

The Gardners set up their gift as a charitable remainder trust. "With the charitable remainder trust that we have set up there are obvious tax advantages and it also provides some income, which is nice during retirement," Willis Gardner said.

More importantly, however, Gardner viewed the planned gift as a means of giving back while helping future engineers. "ASME was a contributing factor to my engineering career, and the charitable trust is a way to aid in the continuing work of the organization that provided special help and guidance during my life."

Joyce and Willis Gardner

Gardner, who was inspired to contribute to the Planned Giving Program by today's high costs of education, hopes primarily to support ASME Foundation scholarship programs. As Gardner noted, with one grandchild in college and another receiving his bachelor's, he and his wife "are very much aware of the high costs of college and the need for outside financial help."

Gardner joined ASME as a student at Purdue University in 1953, where he received a BSME. After receiving his master's degree at the University of Wisconsin, he went on to work in the field of hydrodynamic fluid film bearings at Waukesha Bearings Corp.

Beginning in 1972, Gardner served as a vice president at Waukesha Bearings, where he was involved with many important projects, including work with the U.S. Navy on main propulsion thrust bearings for submarines, large thrust bearings for hydroelectric turbines and generators, and thrust and journal bearings for a wide range of turbomachinery. Gardner, who holds 24 patents, retired from Waukesha Bearings in 1998 after 35 years of service.

Archimedes Club Gift Levels Platinum: Planned gifts of $1 million or more. Gold: Gifts of $500,000 to $1 million. Silver: Gifts of $100,000 to $500,000. Bronze: Gifts of $25,000 to $100,000. Member: All planned gifts up to $25,000.

For his engineering achievements and his contributions to the Society, Gardner was nominated and approved as an ASME Fellow in 1998. Commenting on Gardner's Fellow nomination, ASME Life Member Richard C. Elwell said, "We are all more knowledgeable and better able to design and build mechanical equipment as a result of what he has given to ASME."

Gardner was named Engineer of the Year for 2000 by the Engineers and Scientists of Milwaukee, having been nominated by the ASME Milwaukee Section. In addition, Waukesha Bearings Corp. honored him in 2001 for his outstanding service and contributions to advancements in fluid film bearing technology by establishing the Willis W. Gardner Technology Center, a research and development center in Pewaukee, Wis.

Gardner and his wife, Joyce, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last year and enjoy spending time visiting their children and grandchildren, tracing their ancestors, and history-related travel.

 

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