Tom and Ellie Naden will leave a legacy to the UW sport that brought them together
The UW rowing program inspired Tom Naden as a little boy in the 1930s, introduced him to his wife more than 65 years ago, and ignited a legacy that will live long after he’s gone.
Tom (BA Chemistry, 1953, Doctor of Dentistry, 1960) and his wife, Ellie (BS Home Economics, 1949), are so passionate about rowing that they’ve practically built their lives around the program.
“I met my husband in a boat,” Ellie laughs.
In the 1950s, Tom was a member of the lightweight crew team and was training for a regatta.
“We’d go down to the Laurelhurst Beach Club and find a really good-looking girl and get her to cox the boat for us,” Tom recalls. “My eyes lit on Ellie. We shanghaied her and that’s how we met. Now, 65 years later, she’s not sitting behind any boat but she’s still giving directions!”
Today, Tom and Ellie are giving back to the program that brought them together. They have endowed a scholarship to give a crewman from the Pacific Northwest a full ride to Washington and have joined Forever Washington with a bequest to the program in their wills, ensuring that their legacy will live on.
Tom’s Husky roots run almost a century deep. Both his parents earned UW degrees. His uncle managed the basketball team in 1920, the year Husky Stadium was built, and bought tickets for that inaugural football season — seats Tom still owns.
His connection to crew began early, too. Tom’s fifth-grade pal, Dale, was the younger brother of Don Hume, stroke of the “Boys in the Boat” UW crew team that triumphed in the 1936 Olympics.
Fast forward to the 1970s. The Nadens’ two sons rowed for the Huskies and Tom served as team dentist when they competed in the Henley Royal Regatta in England.
“It was a signature time of my life to be part of that program,” Tom says. “I’m enthusiastic about paying back for what the University did for me.”
“It just makes us feel good to give back,” Ellie adds.
You can leave a legacy and become a Game Changer through Forever Washington, too.
