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Physician honors mother through RELEASED: June 13, 2006 EAU CLAIRE — An Eau Claire native and nationally recognized leader in the medical profession chose the week before Mother's Day to honor his deceased mother and further ensure the future of an endowed scholarship established in her name with the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Foundation. Dr. Richard H. Egdahl, son of the late Harry Egdahl, a longtime Eau Claire dentist, and his deceased first wife, Cassandra Ball Egdahl, has committed $100,000 to the Cassandra Ball Egdahl Music Scholarship. The scholarship was created in 2004 with a bequest from Harry Egdahl's estate following his death at the age of 107. (See related 2004 article.) The fund provides scholarships to students who participate in the UW-Eau Claire Holiday Concert, the university's annual holiday gift to the community, which features various UW-Eau Claire music ensembles. Recently, Richard Egdahl contacted the UW-Eau Claire Foundation and shared his plans to add to the scholarship in memory of his mother. Richard Egdahl graduated from Eau Claire High School and briefly attended UW-Eau Claire before enlisting in the Naval Reserve during World War II. He went on to graduate with a medical degree from Harvard University Medical School and a doctoral degree from the University of Minnesota. Richard Egdahl has enjoyed a successful career as director of the Health Care Entrepreneurship Program and surgeon, administrator and researcher at Boston University's School of Medicine. Harry Egdahl was an Eau Claire area dentist who practiced well into his 80s before retiring. Cassandra was a graduate of the University of Minnesota and came to Eau Claire in 1921 to teach school. When his father's estate gift was made, Richard Egdahl wrote in a letter to the UW-Eau Claire Foundation that his mother, "had a special interest and talent in music," noting that she attended many Minneapolis Symphony concerts and was "an inveterate listener to the Saturday afternoon performances of the Metropolitan Opera." He noted in the same letter to the Foundation that his mother "was a wonderful woman, and my father's gift to UW-Eau Claire in her name would have pleased her." "Dr. Egdahl's generous gift further extends the impact of his mother's scholarship," said Robert Knight, chair of the department of music and theatre arts. "The department applauds Richard Egdahl's generosity, which helps ensure the fund's continuation so that in the future music students can continue to develop their talents and perform at UW-Eau Claire." The Egdahl's commitment is recognized as a contribution to Fulfilling the Promise of Excellence, the UW-Eau Claire Foundation's ongoing comprehensive campaign to benefit UW-Eau Claire's people and programs.
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