Ohio Wesleyan University received a $250,000 gift to create to establish a faculty support fund, school officials announced.

Fifty years after earning his degree from the private liberal arts college, George Mahoney, Class of 1964, and his wife are honoring Mahoney's former history professor and mentor, Richard W. Smith, by establishing The George R. Mahoney Jr. '64 and Linda L. Mahoney Endowed Faculty Support Fund in his honor.

"Ohio Wesleyan has made a lasting impression on my life," Mahoney said. "Professor Dick Smith has made an equally important and lasting impression. My wife and I are honored to recognize him with this endowed fund that will help support the work of other outstanding and inspiring OWU faculty members. We're also pleased to be able to enhance our gift through the 'Connect Today, Create Tomorrow' major-gift match program."

Mahoney appreciated Smith's passion for helping students to understand the vital lessons the past provides the present.

"This is a vital gift for Ohio Wesleyan," President Rock Jones said in statement. "The Mahoney Fund will support our outstanding faculty as they inspire future generations of Ohio Wesleyan students. We are grateful to George and Linda for honoring professor emeritus Dick Smith in such a permanent and profound way."

Smith joined the Ohio Wesleyan faculty in 1950 and retired in 1986. In between, he earned the Bishop Herbert Welch Meritorious Teaching Award -- Ohio Wesleyan's highest teaching honor -- and inspired nearly four generations of students with his love and understanding of history.

Smith, who lives in Delaware and remains active with the university, called the new endowment from the Mahoneys an "eight-layer cake."

"It's very humbling," said Smith, who has kept in touch with George Mahoney since his graduation," Smith said. "In this profession, you don't get things like this too often. It's such an honor. I'm pleased that this will benefit the university, students, and faculty."

The donation is eligible for a $250,000 major-gift match, increasing the value of the endowment to $500,000.