Students Emily Prins, Samari Blair, Kayleigh Wilson and Ashley Parigian stand up for PHHP on Giving Day. Photo by Julie Walter

College of Public Health and Health Professions alumni and friends rallied in February to support the college’s education, research and service activities with 184 gifts totaling more than $16,000.

Gator Nation Giving Day, the University of Florida’s first ever one-day giving campaign, encouraged Gators from all over to “Stand Up and Holler” for UF. The 24-hour campaign far exceeded the university’s goal of 5,000 gifts by raising $12.6 million from 11,535 gifts.

The campaign, driven mostly by email and social media, is named in recognition of the beloved Gator football game cheer made famous by George Edmondson Jr., better known to fans as “Mr. Two Bits.” Edmondson’s iconic orange-and-blue striped necktie was used as a symbol to promote the campaign.

At PHHP, a challenge gift from alumnus Frank Gainer, master’s in occupational therapy ’84, matched every gift to the department of occupational therapy two to one, up to $5,000. More than 40 people rose to the challenge for a total of $8,000 raised for the department.

“I have reached a point in my life where it is important for me to pay it forward,” Gainer said. “I have all I could possibly need and now want to support others as they begin their careers in this wonderful profession of occupational therapy.”