If it hadn’t been for Carleton, Beach Hall ’53 and Marianne Kalivoda Hall ’53 — better known as Kellie — would never have met. The transition into college proved to be an important one for the rest of their lives: By the end of their first month on campus, they were dating.
“Those were the days that you kissed goodnight in the snowbank, not in the hallway,” Beach says.
They were good years, the Halls recall. They both have fond memories of attending Carleton during the President Gould years, editing the Algol, and fighting for the only time on campus in Scoville Library.
“Neither one of us can remember what it was about,” Kellie says with a laugh. As the couple moved on, to Beach’s Army days, to Indiana, to Michigan, and to later stages of their lives, Carleton remained important. The couple ran alumni meetings and served as admissions representatives in the Indiana and Detroit areas, and Kellie has edited their class newsletter since 1995. They also served as co-chairs for their 50th, 55th, and 60th class reunions.
“Carleton’s education has served us well through all our lives,” Kellie says. “It’s still a great school, and we’re happy to support it.”
When the time came to transition once more, to simplify their lives, the Halls decided to sell their vacation condo in Colorado. To avoid capital gains, their CPA suggested they donate the property rather than sell it. Carleton was their charity of choice.
“We weren’t using it as much, and Carleton has meant a lot to us over the years,” Beach said. “And we didn’t have the bother of dealing with a real estate sale from another state.” The process of the bargain sale was simple. The Halls sold the property to the college for a nominal price so they could pay the small remainder of the condo’s mortgage; Carleton then sold the property and kept the proceeds. In the Halls’ case, the money from that sale was added to a scholarship they had previously created to fund through their IRAs. It feels good, the couple says, to see that scholarship begin to be awarded while they are still alive.
“With the bargain sale, we weren’t out of pocket anything,” Kellie says. “We came out all right, and the college came out ahead.”