"One of the greatest privileges I have had in life has been
the opportunity to serve Chapman University as a trustee
for nearly four decades. My wife, Diane, and I are
particularly excited now to play a small role in the
emergence of the next exciting chapter in Chapman's life -
the creation of a broad-based graduate health science
campus and program. There can hardly be a more noble
calling than providing care and healing for others. Diane
and I are grateful that this campus will create opportunities
for young people to serve that calling."
- Diane & Harry Rinker
Diane J. Rinker (1938–)
Southern California would not appear as it does today without the incredible vision of Diane J. Rinker. Her philanthropic spirit has emboldened and empowered communities throughout the entire region for decades. Because of her, countless lives have been provided opportunities for change and growth.
In concert with her husband, Harry, she has always shown an interest in a multitude of charitable causes. In particular, educational, medical research, conservation and veteran charitable causes have always been focal points of their generosity. And as evident by some of the organizations that Diane and Harry support, such as The Nature Conservancy and the Wood River Land Trust, the couple has a clear desire to reach past state and national boundaries to create effective change.
Nonetheless, Southern California holds a special place in their hearts, and their support toward the educational and medical sectors in the region has led to awe-inspiring effects. Diane has served on the Board of Directors of the Doheny Eye Institute for decades, helping shape future vision science, and the couple has given generously to help establish the infrastructure to recruit and educate the next generation of medical professionals. It is without a doubt that Harry and Diane have helped transform the landscape of Southern California into a hotbed for the sciences and technology.
The Lucy Curci Cancer Center and the Annenberg Center for Health Sciences under Eisenhower Health, Hoag Hospital Foundation, St. Luke’s Hospital, University of California, Irvine, and Chapman University have received major gifts from Harry and Diane. Each one of those gifts was committed to improving health care throughout the United States. Their $15 million gift to Chapman University in 2015, to name the Harry and Diane Rinker Health Science Campus, serves well to illustrate the level of impact of their gifts.
Dr. Jim Doti, who was the president of Chapman University when the transformational gift came in, described their giving as follows:
Harry and Diane’s visionary generosity will make possible the education of future health scientists in Orange County. The graduate programs that will be housed within the Rinker Health Science Campus will help to address the critical social need for a new generation of healthcare professionals, as well as provide new methods in educating future health professionals.
However, the change and growth Harry and Diane spur at Chapman, especially through the Rinker Campus, are replicated in the numerous other organizations that they support. This is particularly true for Eisenhower Health and the University of California, Irvine, where their gifts have helped establish a foundation that will train the next generation of medical professionals.
In every location touched by Diane Rinker, one can see how Southern California’s future is being cultivated. Her connection to Angels of the Arts offers incredible opportunities in the performing arts. Her support for Human Options and the Orangewood Children and Family Center helps protect and secure a safe future for those in abusive and dire situations.
Altogether, her visionary efforts have helped form strong communities throughout the United States that create ripple effects through positive change, benefiting society as a whole. As an individual of undeniable merit and a staunch supporter of the underserved in communities, Diane Rinker is a person Chapman University would be honored to dedicate with a bust.
