ROME, N.Y. — The Mohawk Valley Community College (MVCC) Foundation hosted a ceremony on Nov. 2 to name the conference room in the Plumley Complex at the college’s Rome campus after Russel C. Fielding, a trustee emeritus and 2023 MVCC Hall of Fame inductee. Fielding named the foundation in his will when he died in […]
ROME, N.Y. — The Mohawk Valley Community College (MVCC) Foundation hosted a ceremony on Nov. 2 to name the conference room in the Plumley Complex at the college’s Rome campus after Russel C. Fielding, a trustee emeritus and 2023 MVCC Hall of Fame inductee.
Fielding named the foundation in his will when he died in February 2021 with a gift of $50,000 that benefits its Areas of Greatest Need Fund. This fund enables rapid response to shifting community needs.
“Russel C. Fielding not only served our country but dedicated much of his life to supporting and serving his local community,” Deanna Ferro-Aurience, executive director of the MVCC Foundation and institutional advancement, said in a press release following the event. “Mr. Fielding’s impact on MVCC continues to be felt, and we are pleased to be here today to honor Mr. Fielding with the naming of this room on the MVCC Rome campus.”
Fielding served as treasurer of the MVCC Foundation board in 1962 and joined the college’s board of trustees in October 1970. He acted as board chair from September 1972 until August 1977.
He served in the U.S. Army during World War II and the Korean War before returning home and working for nearly 40 years at the Rome Sentinel. Fielding also handled multiple fundraising campaigns for local nonprofits. He served as Rome’s public safety commissioner and director of the Rome Area Chamber of Commerce and also served on numerous boards for community, educational, and corporate organizations.
