Eckstein helped lift up Marquette
Family gift funded new law school
Marquette graduate Kay Eckstein met her husband at college, and the two never forgot their alma mater.
Eckstein and her husband, Ray, donated $51 million to Marquette University in 2007 to help fund the construction of a new law school. The Ecksteins’ gift was the largest in Marquette history.
“It really lifted our law school in a major way,” former Marquette President Father Robert Wild said, adding that the new facility helped the school gain regional and national notice.
A devout Catholic, Kay Eckstein died Monday at her home in Paducah, Ky. She was 90.
Eckstein was born in Chiidence. in 1927. She attended St. Scholastica Academy, a Benedictine college prep school for girls in Chicago, and earned a degree in speech from Marquette in 1949.
Eckstein met her husband at Marquette, and the two married in June 1948. One condition: that they wouldn’t go back to Ray’s hometown of Cassville, a village in Grant County with a population under 1,000.
Ray Eckstein had a law degree and attempted to open a practice with a classmate in Milwaukee. They didn’t have enough contacts to make it work. In 1949, with a baby on the way, the couple “made the practical decision” to head to Cassville, according to the website of the couple’s charitable fund.
Kay eventually settled into small-town life.
“She came to really enjoy living on the river and being a part of that small community,” Wild said.
In 1958, Ray Eckstein started a river transportation business that eventually became Wisconsin Barge Lines. He sold that company and formed Marquette Transportation in 1978, naming the company after his alma mater and the French priest. Since 1991, Marquette Transportation has been headquartered in Paducah.
In early 2005, the Ecksteins created the Ray and Kay Eckstein Charitable Trust. In 2007, the pair made the recordbreaking gift to their alma mater, and Marquette University Law School opened Ray and Kay Eckstein Hall in 2010.
In 2014, the Ecksteins donated to the construction of the Dr. E.J. O’Brien Jesuit Rescago Earlier this year, the couple issued a $10 million challenge toward the construction of a new residential hall.
“She leaves a legacy across our entire Marquette campus that will impact future students for many generations to come,” Marquette President Michael Lovell said in a statement.
Wild said while Kay Eckstein was a quiet person, it was a mistake to not take her seriously. He said he’ll remember Eckstein for her generosity and for the strong love she and Ray had for each other.
“She was pretty much always on his mind, and she made a powerful impact on his life,” he said.
Eckstein is survived by her husband and seven children. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Cassville.