Why I Give: Ryan J. Rupert '05
Ryan accepting an award on behalf of his fraternity Delta Tau Delta (left). Ryan with the Stanly Cup (right).
Ryan J. Rupert ’05: I look at the end product of who I am and how I got here. It was W&J.
Ryan is W&J through and through. Even though reared in Washington, Ryan found a home away from home in the walls of the college and then his fraternity, Delta Tau Delta.
After graduating from W&J in 2005, he went on to work in the Pittsburgh office of the global public accounting firm Deloitte & Touche. In 2007, Ryan completed the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination and soon after became a licensed CPA. His love of business and desire to be on his own inspired him to strike out and open his own firm, Rupert Tax & Advisory Services LLC, which is situated merely blocks from the college. In fact, in July, Ryan and fellow fraternity brother and W&J alumnus, Bill Knestrick ’03, purchased commercial office space on East Pine Avenue in Washington, which now serves their respective offices of public accounting and law.
Ryan has maintained lofty goals for his professional life and is currently preparing to become our region’s first Certified Minerals Manager, a designation he believes will enhance his grassroots experiences working in the oil and gas industry. With this certification – which he hopes to obtain by the end of fall – Ryan plans to help people in the community secure sound financial and tax planning advice for their oil and gas assets and royalty income from the booming Marcellus Shale development in southwestern Pennsylvania.
Ryan remains deeply involved in his W&J fraternity and serves as President of the Delta Tau Delta Alumni Corporation. This year the W&J Delt chapter celebrated its 150th anniversary, making it the oldest Delt chapter in continuous existence since its founding. To celebrate the occasion, Ryan was instrumental in planning the chapter’s anniversary gala that took place the first weekend of June 2011, at which time he and other fraternity brothers visited the founding house at Bethany College.
Ryan has also maintained a connection with W&J through giving, which began with his Senior Gift and has continued annually since. Each year he has increased the amount given to W&J, as his first gift was $50 and his most recent – which has positioned him at the Jefferson Association level – being $500. To Ryan, contributing to W&J is a way to show appreciation to the place that shaped him into who he is today. “I look at the end product of who I am and how I got here. It was W&J. That’s why I want to help keep W&J the great place that it is,” Ryan said.