On July 12, 1920 George Ruder registered his name in the Marathon County Attorneys’ Roll Book, formalizing his entry into the Wausau-area legal community, and thereby charting the course for a firm that continues to prosper to this day … Ruder Ware. The early years of the law firm coincided with the historical period known as the “New Era.” Businesses expanded and merged at an unprecedented rate – Ruder became a well-versed, well-respected business attorney.
When the country entered the Great Depression in 1929, George Ruder responded by familiarizing himself with laws relating to insolvency and bankruptcy. This enabled him to provide clients with the sound legal advice needed to survive the harsh years of the Great Depression.
In the legal profession, as in everything else, growth depends upon innovation and adaptability in response to changing circumstances. Early on, Ruder realized that to be successful one had to be ever-responsive to client needs. Ruder Ware has counseled clients through economic booms and helped them weather periods of uncertainty. The focus has never wavered from providing our clients with the services needed, when they need them.
We continue to be guided by two important principles embraced by our founder: first, provide creative and valuable legal service to our business clients; second, be active in our communities and provide outstanding leadership to projects and programs that benefit the common good.
When considering how best to celebrate our community involvement aspect of turning 100 in 2020, we kept returning to the words of our founder, George L. Ruder, “the community allowed me to earn a living and I owe a debt of gratitude to the community.”
In 2020, we will be giving $10,000 to each of 10 nonprofit organizations. We were diligent and careful in our selection process, and feel we have selected an excellent cross-section of organizations where our gift will make a significant difference.
Our gift will be applied by the organization to an area in most need. We remain committed to delivering our donation promises during the COVID-19 pandemic. Given our changed environment, we are working with Executive Directors at each organization to adjust the marking of our donation.
The following organizations are recipients of Ruder Ware’s $10,000 gifts:
