Courtesy A $1.5 million gift from former Fort Wayne residents Esther Rinehart Hamer and her late husband, John Hamer, will fund a music professorship at Manchester. Previous Next Friday, January 08, 2021 1:00 am Music love shared with Manchester Alumni couple's estate to endow professorship ASHLEY SLOBODA | The Journal Gazette Seventy years after graduating from Manchester University with degrees in biology and piano performance, Esther Hamer hopes a $1.5 million estate gift from her and her late husband helps future students find balance and enjoyment through music. Their donation establishes the John L. and Esther L. Rinehart Hamer professorship in music, Manchester announced Thursday. “Even in this era, while science and medicine remain important, John and I hoped that Manchester would continue to have a strong music program,” Esther Hamer said in a statement. “Music has given balance to my life.”