The Thomas Irwin General Library Endowment was established in 2006 by Thomas D. Irwin. Tom is the former president and chief executive officer of the Midway Auto Group in Phoenix, Arizona, though now he splits his time between Michigan and Indonesia. At Notre Dame, Tom serves on the Hesburgh Libraries Advisory Council. He is proud of his two children, William (’10), a multitalented sports enthusiast, and Amber, a gifted equestrian, who has also received an MA in special education from Point Loma Nazarene University.

As the University ascends among the ranks of the world’s finest institutions of higher learning, the Hesburgh Libraries face ever greater challenges to providing commensurate resources, programs, and services in support of Notre Dame’s academic aspirations. The Libraries are thus in a continual process of growing and developing their collections and services to align with and support the curricular and research needs of the broader University community. The Irwin Endowment helps to provide not only the physical books and journals necessary for such endeavors, but also the electronic information resources that can be made available from any location in the world, at any time, at the touch of one’s fingertips. Due to its flexibility, this endowment truly is vital, as annually it funds the areas of greatest need, and will do so in perpetuity.