A Major Bequest From a Humble Alumnus

"This is probably the largest check I've ever held," said University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry Dean Mert Aksu.

The check—for $700,000—was made out to Detroit Mercy Dental and was a bequest to the School in the will of a grateful alumnus.

Emmett Neville, D.D.S., was 90 when he died in December 2017. Detroit Mercy Dental learned shortly afterward of Neville's planned gift to the School he graduated from in 1953.

"I did not know Emmett Neville well," Aksu said. "I met him from time to time in my early years at the School. He seemed a quiet, humble man."

For more than 40 years, Neville practiced dentistry out of a former fish shop on Grand River Avenue in Redford, Michigan, just a few blocks from his childhood home. He and his wife, Theresa, spent summers in East Jordan, Michigan, where he loved to fish. She died in 2007; they had no children.

"While the Nevilles contributed to the School of Dentistry annually, they felt unable to make a major gift in their lifetime," Aksu said. "We are extremely grateful they thought of us so generously as they made their estate plans."

Bequests like the Nevilles' play a powerful role in the ongoing life of Detroit Mercy Dental. In the past 18 months alone, more than $1.6 million in planned gifts has been received by the School.

The Nevilles did not specify how the gift should be used, so Aksu said it would be put to the area of greatest need, which will be determined at a later date.

If you would like to remember University of Detroit Mercy in your will or trust, please contact Teri Carroll at (313) 993-1262 or carroltl@udmercy.edu.