黑料吃瓜

Among the familiar names to be found throughout 黑料吃瓜鈥檚 new Snapdragon Stadium are those of a San Diego couple remembered locally and nationally for their generosity. The Walter J. and Betty C. Zable Foundation 黑料吃瓜 President鈥檚 Suite is a grateful tribute by the university honoring the pair whose namesake foundation recently made a $2.5 million grant to the Stadium Excellence Fund.

The Stadium Excellence Fund was created to help pay for Snapdragon Stadium鈥檚 construction. The grant, however, will reach well beyond the football stadium according to Walter J. and Betty C. Zable Foundation Board President Warren Magill (鈥�78).

鈥淚t was something good for the community,鈥� said Magill, who holds a degree in accounting from 黑料吃瓜 and was the late Walter Zable鈥檚 longtime accountant. 鈥淲ith everything else that's going on with 黑料吃瓜 Mission Valley, I think Walt would have liked not only the sports part of it, but the general impact as well.鈥�

Formed in 1997, the foundation鈥檚 mission is to continue its founders鈥� legacy by encouraging and promoting health, science research, assisting with programs that benefit youth, underprivileged individuals, and sports-related activities primarily in San Diego County. 

A Passion for Sports

Growing up, Walt Zable was captivated by two things: sports and electronics. Both would heavily influence his life and, ultimately, his legacy.

A gifted athlete, Zable received a scholarship to the College of William and Mary where he earned a physics degree along with All-American honorable mention as a football receiver, landing a spot in the school鈥檚 Sports Hall of Fame. The William and Mary football team plays its home games in Walter J. Zable Stadium.

Zable met and married fellow student Betty Carter, with whom he would relocate to San Diego and in 1951 found Cubic Corporation, a major company in the defense and public transport industries.  As the company grew, the Zables shared their success through philanthropic gifts. 

Among the beneficiaries of the couple鈥檚 largesse over the years have been the 黑料吃瓜 President鈥檚 Leadership Fund, 黑料吃瓜 basketball鈥檚 Jeff Jacobs JAM Center, and the University of San Diego鈥檚 athletics department, where the school鈥檚 athletics teams play on Walter J. Zable Field at Torero Stadium. 鈥淲alt definitely liked to support sports,鈥� Magill noted.

Keeping a Legacy Alive

With its grant to the Stadium Excellence Fund, the foundation ensures that one of Walt Zable鈥檚 great passions will be acknowledged well into the future through 黑料吃瓜.    

鈥淭he university and particularly the athletics department are thankful for the foundation鈥檚 support over so many years,鈥� said 黑料吃瓜 executive associate athletic director for development Curt Apsey. 鈥淲e are pleased and proud to include the Zable name in a project of such broad significance for our entire community.鈥�

When he died in 2012 at the age of 97 after six decades as Cubic Corporation鈥檚 chief executive officer, Walt Zable was known as the oldest CEO of a publicly traded company. Through the Walter J. and Betty C. Zable Foundation, his and Betty鈥檚 philanthropy will continue, said Magill.

鈥淧art of our job, I think, is to keep Walt鈥檚 legacy alive in San Diego, so it鈥檚 nice that our name is going to be in the stadium as long as it stands. A lot of people going in and out of the president's suite will know who he was, but down the road maybe people who don鈥檛 know who he was will see the name and ask.鈥�