Don Betthauser to receive 2026 Blugold Spirit Award

Betthauser not only did it, but he was a member of the teams earning the only back-to-back football championships in the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire’s history. The undefeated 1963 team won the Wisconsin State College Conference Championship, and the 1964 team won the championship once again, this time renamed as the Wisconsin State University Conference. Both titles came under head coach James Rice.

“I chose Eau Claire because it was a good school, my brother had gone here and it was close to my hometown,” Betthauser says. “It all worked out well.”

Betthauser, a 1966 graduate with degrees in accounting and mathematics, is the recipient of this year’s Blugold Spirit Award to be presented Oct. 2 at UW-Eau Claire as part of Homecoming activities. The annual award is given by the Alumni Association to a university supporter who has a true love for the campus, exemplifies excellence in everyday life and strives to share the UW-Eau Claire story.

Selected for his love of campus and Blugold athletics

In addition to the award presentation on Oct. 2, Betthauser and his wife, Jan, will serve as grand marshals for the Oct. 3 Homecoming parade.

Betthauser is grateful for his Blugold Spirit Award recognition, though attention isn’t his favorite thing.

“This is all very nice, but I’m not sure I deserve it. To be honest, it makes me a little nervous,” says Betthauser, who describes himself as someone who avoids the spotlight. “I’d rather be in the back of the room most of the time.”

For Jane Larson, a longtime alumni relations officer at UW-Eau Claire, the choice of Betthauser was an easy one for this year.

“When it came time to select the Spirit Award, Uncle Don was at the top of my mind,” says Larson, using the nickname most on campus have given Betthauser, who was inducted by Larson as a Golden Blugold in 2016.

“Don has done so much for UW-Eau Claire over the years,” she says of the dedicated friend and fan who she says promotes the university’s education and opportunities. “Don shares his love of UW-Eau Claire with his football teammates, the many interns he has worked with through Wipfli and his family, many of whom are Blugold graduates.”

Betthauser’s long career as an accountant was spent here in Eau Claire, starting with C.A. Bertelson Co. after graduation, a firm that later merged with Wipfli LLP. After retiring from Wipfli, Betthauser worked for the city of Menomonie for 12 years.

Mark Faanes, a retired senior partner at Wipfli, is a 40-year friend and colleague of Betthauser, who he says ‘’put his UW-Eau Claire education to good use’’ working mainly with Wipfli clients in the governmental sector.

“Many area municipalities benefitted from Don's expertise and tireless commitment to serve his clients,” Faanes says.

“At Wipfli here in Eau Claire, many of us were UW-Eau Claire graduates, but we considered Don our ‘Mr. Blugold.’ Through all the years, Don has remained a faithful, proud alumnus.”

Still cheering on and supporting Blugold football

Along with his steady attendance at Blugold athletics events over 50 years, Betthauser began a fun way to challenge the football team over the years to keep their record “in the black,” so to speak.

“A few years after graduating, I decided that I would donate to the football team based on their number of wins each season. I started at $20 per win and increased that every five years,” Betthauser says. “This season I’m at $65 per win. I sure would like to give them $650 at the end of this season — here’s to hoping they get 10 wins!”

As he anticipates the opportunity to speak with current students and young alumni during the Homecoming festivities, Betthauser has prepared a few tips to share.

“To the students now, I will tell them to work hard, study hard and enjoy the hill — it’s good exercise,” he jokes.

“And to the new alumni, I will offer that they do not forget where they got their education, and to remember the responsibilities it comes with.”

Be sure to wave to Uncle Don and Aunt Jan as they marshal in the Homecoming parade Oct. 3 on Water Street.