Although, the Reves Center was established a mere 26 years ago, notes the newsletter, it has been instrumental in making the College a leader in international education. In the words of former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, the Center “has produced the best undergraduate program in international studies in our country.”

According to the newsletter, “The College continues to take meaningful steps and make significant investments to embrace international education and assist William & Mary students in gaining global competence, an absolute must for living in the 21st century.”

International education plays a central role at William & Mary. More than 700 W&M student study abroad annually. Nearly 50 percent of university students do so as undergraduates, making W&M the top public, doctorate-granting institution for under-graduate study abroad. The university offers more than 30 study abroad programs in more than 20 countries.

Annually, the Reves Center awards more than $375,000 in need and merit-based study abroad scholarships and $70,000 in grants for international faculty conference travel, student-faculty research projects. “In addition,” states the newsletter, “the Center supports William & Mary’s thriving international community of students, scholars and faculty who represent more than 55 nations.”

The Center provides assistance to more than 800 international students and scholars preparing for their adjustment to life at the College and in the United States. Currently, the Reves Center is leading efforts to establish an English, as a Secondary Language Center at the university that will support international students, scholars and their families through pre-enrollment programs.

The establishment of a Center for International Studies at William & Mary was the brainchild of its then-president, Paul Verkuil. It was a brilliant idea bur the College didn’t have the resources to fully fund it. Verkuil was nevertheless successful in recruiting Dr. James Bill, a noted professor at the University of Texas, and an internationally recognized expert on Iran, as the founding director of the Center. Initially, it was housed, in two rooms, in a building adjacent to Merchant’s Square, now, a specialty shoe store. He had a secretary, a native of East Asia, whose command of English was questionable.

By shear coincidence, I received a letter from Wendy Reves, the widow of Emery Reves, the author of the seminal work, “The Anatomy of Peace,” and a friend and mentor of mine. She asked for my help to find a way to memorialize her husband’s intellectual legacy. As a columnist for the Gazette, I learned about the College’s desire to establish an internationals studies center. I managed to convince Wendy to come to Williamsburg to take a look at William & Mary. She did so and liked what she saw.

Mark De Vincenzo, a staff writer at the Daily Press described the “marriage” between Wendy Reves and the College, this way: “After a stroll around the campus, they ushered their guest to the Williamsburg Inn for lunch and immediately afterwards, thought they would pop the question.

“Reves, however, sensed that her hosts were nervous, so she postponed the eating and accelerated the business.

“Gentlemen’ she recalled saying, “lets settle this before lunch. I don’t want any nervous stomach spoiling our food. If you can give me what I want and I can give you what you want, we can settle this quickly.”

Wendy wanted a “wonderful, magical, marvelous” facility to memorialize her husband. “What do you want? she asked.

Verkuil pulled a piece of a paper and pen from his jacket and wrote down: $3 million. Wendy took a glance at the number, and said, okay, “It’s time to order lunch.”

After the dedication of the Reves Center in 1989, she was quoted saying, “This is a magical association that’s what we have, William and Mary and I. We are a family now, a new, loving family.”

Recently, my wife and I had concluded a Testamentary Gift Agreement with the College of William & Mary, stipulating the establishment of an endowment that will be funding a Diplomat-in-Residence Program and support study abroad scholarships for students to explore International Relations, Diplomacy and Global Studies.

Thus, we have also become members of the William & Mary family.

Frank Shatz lives in Williamsburg, Va. and Lake Placid. His column was reprinted with permission from the Virginia Gazette. He is the author of “Reports from a Distant Place,” A compilation of his selected columns.