If you drop by his modest house near downtown Ithaca, Michigan, on a random Tuesday afternoon expecting to have just a quick chat with the multi-hyphenate Ceo Bauer (veteran-war-hero-Spartan-engineer-world-traveler-philanthropist-centenarian), it would only take you about five minutes to realize that you need to adjust your expectations ... and you need to pull up a chair and listen.
There are two things that have shaped and enabled Bauer’s life-well-lived: the first is World War II. The second is the civil engineering degree he earned at Michigan State University.
After graduation, Bauer joined the Michigan Department of Transportation (then known as the Michigan Highway Department), where he worked for 30 years, using his civil engineering degree to the fullest, building Michigan’s brand-new highway system.
At 102, Bauer is one of MSU’s oldest living alums and holds the record for the longest history of consecutive giving to his alma mater—72 years and counting.
Read more about this Spartan Centenarian in Spartan Magazine.
Story written by Devon Barrett, courtesy of University Advancement.