Donna Nesselbush Creates Bequest to Show Her Gratitude and Keep Nichols Strong

Donna Nesselbush '80 has earned some impressive titles in her career, including Chief Judge and Rhode Island State Senator. However, she believes she owes much of her success to another title: Graduate of Nichols School, which is why Donna has created a bequest in her will to give future students the same opportunities she enjoyed.

A native of West Seneca, Donna entered Nichols on a scholarship in the ninth grade. Entering a world she hadn't even known existed, Donna soon found the Nichols experience transformative. She learned to think critically, articulate complex issues, and examine her own and others' points of view and personal values. She also met a wide variety of people, gaining an open mind and a new sense of self confidence.

"I feel that I owe Nichols so much for who I am today," she says, speaking from her home in Rhode Island where she moved after high school to attend Brown University. "I often say, God, family, and Nichols, in that order. Whatever I have been able to achieve in this lifetime, I owe it primarily to those three inspirations."

A standout athlete and inductee to the Nichols Athletic Hall of Fame, Donna is especially grateful for the mentoring she received from two faculty members in particular: Mary Hilmer and Trudy Hanmer. They helped Donna talk about her parents' divorce - a subject she felt unable to discuss in her small West Seneca community or even in her own home.

"I owe them such a debt of gratitude," she says.

Working with an estate attorney, Donna knew she wanted to create a bequest for Nichols. She urges fellow alumni to examine their own experience at Nichols and do the same.

"I would encourage others to think about the value of their Nichols education and the value of their Nichols experience and give commensurately and generously," she says. "It's just priceless."