Commit to your passion
Julie and Drew Wade
Julie and Drew Wade are committed to the University of Georgia to provide future students the same experiences they had that continue to benefit them today.
their scholarships helped them
Become leaders
Julie and Drew Wade are committed to the University of Georgia to provide future students the same experiences they had that continue to benefit them today.
The couple and their three children live in Savannah, where Julie (AB ’96, JD ’00) leads a thriving law firm and Drew (BS ’97, AB ’97) is a radiologist with SouthCoast Health. As Julie tells it, their life together really started at UGA, where both benefitted from state-funded and private support.
“We had a tremendous experience for free,” Julie explains. “I was on scholarship as an undergraduate and in law school. Drew was considering colleges around the country, but received a Foundation Fellowship [the foremost merit scholarship offered at UGA]. We owe a lot to UGA and want future students to have a tremendous experience just like we did.”
Sweethearts at Walton High School in suburban Atlanta, Julie and Drew continued to grow together in their shared experiences at UGA, including as goodwill ambassadors through the Arch Society. “Leadership was not something I expected to get in college,” Julie says. “You expect a degree, the academics, but I did not go to UGA thinking I would get leadership experience. It was not until after I graduated that I realized how valuable and unique the experience was.”
Julie Wade
In her own words
“We came out of Georgia as competitive as if we had attended the Ivy Leagues, but without the debt. Our commitment is to provide the same kind of opportunities for our kids.”
-Julie Wade
their generosity will support
future state leaders
The Wades are committed to giving back to UGA, making an annual gift for 22 consecutive years. They’re also committed to their community. Julie is in her second term with the local board of education, and Drew serves on the board for the Coastal Affiliate of the Susan G. Komen Foundation (Julie is a breast cancer survivor). They also participated in Leadership Savannah and Leadership Georgia. In recognition of their success, both have been named to the UGA Alumni Association’s 40 Under 40 list.
“There is a common bond and shared experience we all have,” Julie says of the UGA connection. “If you want to live in the South, particularly in Georgia, you want to go to the University of Georgia because that is where you will meet the next leaders of this state.”
Before moving to Savannah in 2006, the Wades lived in Boston while Drew completed his residency at Massachusetts General Hospital. Julie worked at a large law firm and describes the experience as eye-opening in terms of how a UGA education stacked up against their peers.
“We came out of Georgia as competitive as if we had attended the Ivy Leagues, but without the debt,” she says. “Our commitment is to provide the same kind of opportunities for our kids. It’s great to be a part of the flagship university and have that true Georgia experience—it definitely helps you appreciate the state.”
Do you have a cause about which you’re passionate? Undesignated gifts to the Georgia Fund go entirely to fund scholarships, allowing talented students in your field to pursue their education and discover how they can change the world.
