University of Mississippi alumnus Tom Fishman of Dallas, Texas, hopes his recent gift to Ole Miss Athletics will fuel the Rebels’ efforts to maintain an elite level in collegiate sports.
“I want to support my alma mater and reflect the faith that I have in Keith Carter (vice chancellor for intercollegiate athletics) and his entire staff,” said Fishman, a 1996 graduate of the Patterson School of Accountancy. “I hope my gift will help them continue their path to greatness.”
Fishman, executive vice president at Hillwood Investment Properties, made a generous gift to support CHAMPIONS.NOW., the Ole Miss Athletics Foundation’s (OMAF) fundraising campaign to improve facilities for student-athletes.
“Athletics is an important piece of college life,” Fishman continued. “It is an escape from this crazy world. In those few hours at a sporting event, we all unite and cheer together as one for our team. This holds true even more after graduation.”
At Hillwood, Fishman leads the team charged with the acquisitions and dispositions of industrial properties in target markets across the United States and Canada. In addition, he plays a key role at Hillwood by working closely with the CEO and president to make strategic financial decisions.
Prior to joining Hillwood, he was a partner at Cobalt Capital Partners, which was acquired by Colony Capital in 2013. At Cobalt, he oversaw acquisitions, dispositions and financing for the private equity firm specializing in industrial real estate. He started his real estate career at Trammell Crow Company.
Throughout his 25-year real estate career, Fishman has executed $14 billion of industrial acquisitions and dispositions totaling 177 million square feet in the U.S. and Canada. Additionally, he has led the financing efforts of $4 billion, involving major life insurance companies, debt funds and banks. His real estate expertise also includes asset management and accounting.
An active real estate broker in Texas, Fishman also served in the U.S. Army/U.S. Army National Guard for six years.
“Accounting school brought me to Ole Miss, but the tradition, hospitality and great people of Oxford made me never want to leave,” said Fishman, who was born in Tel-Aviv, Israel, and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana.
At Ole Miss, Fishman was a member of Phi Gamma Delta fraternity and an inductee in the Golden Key and Lambda Sigma honoraries.
The newly expanded Olivia and Archie Manning Athletics Performance Center, supported by gifts like Fishman’s, features the Ririe Family Weight Room, a 10,710-square-foot workout facility with free weights, plate-loaded machines, a cardio mezzanine, yoga/pilates space, state-of-the-art technology, fueling stations, counseling and sport psychology services, and offices for the nutrition staff. The training room also provides recovery benefits, including hydrotherapy, massage therapy, compression units, two sensory deprivation tanks, cold and hot tubs, and new concussion rehabilitation technology.
The Van Devender Family Foundation Locker Room has been enhanced to include a barber shop, hydro tanks, plunge pools, a players’ lounge and fueling station.
New office spaces include separate offensive and defensive team meeting rooms to supplement the existing Roland and Sheryl Burns Team Meeting Room. Office layouts are now streamlined for offensive, defensive, analytics and recruiting staffs.
“All these improvements are key to keeping our student-athletes at the top of their game and maintaining the Rebels’ level of excellence in sports and academics,” said Matt McLaughlin, OMAF chief development officer. “All of this is possible because of private support provided by alumni and friends like Tom Fishman. We are extremely grateful for Tom’s gift to Ole Miss Athletics.”
To make a gift to CHAMPIONS. NOW., contact Matt McLaughlin at matt@givetoathletics.com or 662-915-7159 or online here.
By Bill Dabney/UM Foundation