$15,000 in memorial gifts for Lage go to university foundation

The Lage Charitable Gift Fund has received $15,000 in memorial gifts in memory of the late Wally Lage, according to the Southeast Missouri University Foundation. Gifts to the fund will help support scholarships at Southeast Missouri State University and a new Pediatric Rooftop Garden at Saint Francis Medical Center, where Lage served on the board of directors.

"Education and community were paramount to Wally," Jenny Shaffer, Lage's daughter, said in a news release.

Lage, who died Aug. 19, joined Rust Communications, parent company of the Southeast Missourian, in 1993; he was vice president and chief operating officer.

The Lage Charitable Gift Fund is part of the University Foundation's Donor Advised Fund.