Class of 1965 alum selected for award

SPOKANE, Wash.—Gerald A. Danquist, class of 1965, was selected as the Washington State University College of Pharmacy’s 2015 Outstanding Alumnus of the Year.

Danquist was presented the award at the college’s annual Celebrating Generosity event on Friday April 22, at the WSU Health Sciences campus in Spokane.

Celebrating Generosity is an event hosted by the WSU College of Pharmacy every spring to celebrate and say ‘thank you’ to its alumni and donors for the many contributions received over the past year, and to present the college’s annual donor awards.

Each year, the college recognizes an alumna or alumnus who has made significant contributions to WSU and the profession of pharmacy in the previous year. Danquist was selected as Alumnus of the Year for his contributions of time, expertise and financial support to the college over many years.

Danquist is a WSU Pharmacy benefactor and has been contributing to WSU since 1984. He established an endowed scholarship with the College of Pharmacy in 2014, and this year donated to name the Danquist Innovation Conference Room in the Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences Building on the WSU Health Sciences campus. Danquist has also served on the WSU College of Pharmacy dean’s advisory council since 2013 and has provided valued counsel on issues impacting the college and the future of pharmacy.

Danquist grew up in the small farming town of Plaza, Washington, about 25 miles south of Spokane. He received his bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from Washington State University in 1965. He worked for two years in retail pharmacy and spent two years in the U.S. Public Health Service as a pharmacy officer.

He then earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and started a career with Eli Lilly and Company, which included a variety of roles, assignments and locations in both U.S. and international markets. He retired from Eli Lilly after 33 years.

Danquist currently lives in Carmel, Indiana, a suburb of Indianapolis. He has a daughter, son-in-law and grandchild who live in Pittsburgh and a son and daughter-in-law who live in Austin, Texas.

[May 13, 2016] By: Lori J. Maricle