The Northeastern Junior College Foundation hosted its annual donor scholarship appreciation breakfast on Saturday. This event, held in the NJC ballroom, allows donors of scholarship funds a chance to sit down with their NJC student recipients to get to know each other.
Walking by any given table you might hear a donor telling a story of a loved one who passed, the reason behind creating the scholarship fund, or a story from a student as to why they chose to go into their major.
“This event is difficult to put on, but hugely impactful and it is worth it every single year!” Executive Director Mattie (Erickson) Haney told the Journal-Advocate.
According to Haney, the NJC Foundation has 170 scholarship donors, which has allowed them to award over 400 scholarships, totaling over $375,000 in scholarships for NJC students this year.
“But the need is still there, NJC currently has around 1,500 students, which means that well over 1,100 students are not receiving any type of scholarship. We have a great need currently in our EMS and Business Departments especially for scholarship Funding,” she told the Journal-Advocate.
NJC Foundation President Bob Carpio gave a welcome, thanking donors for what they do, “it is incredible the support that you give us and the support you give to students.” He also spoke about his time at NJC sharing that he made relationships that have lasted his whole life, telling the donors “You guys are helping these people do that same thing and we can’t thank you enough.
NJC President Mike White shared he looks forward to this breakfast every year, “because today we truly get to feel the impact of our generous donors. In a transactional sense that impact is simply the monetary donation that you give that permits some students to come to college that maybe never would have and others it just lessens or reduces any kind of debt that they walk away with and while important I submit to you the real impact is what we’re doing this morning, where the student can look across the table and see someone that believes in them. I believe that makes a lifelong difference for an individual,” he said.
White shared a story from his time in the U.S. Navy when an F-18 pilot was ejected into the western Pacific Ocean at night. Once it was determined it was not a pilot error but a problem with the aircraft, the young man was allowed to go fly again but his confidence was shaken severely. His flight commander and others told him “We believe in you” and with that encouragement, he did fly again and went on to have a great career.
“For our students, someday along your life journey when you’re shaken when you’ve had a rough day, I hope you reflect back on today and think about that individual you met that believes in you,” White told the students.
Among the donors attending were former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb and wife, Wilma Webb, with a few of their staff members, who met the recipient of their scholarship for basketball players, which is his way of giving back for the impact NJC had on him while he attended.
“Wilma and I contribute to the scholarship fund because we think it’s so important to give to this school and to the students that go here because everyone is not ready for Michigan State, CU, the school is too large, at least they were for me, I needed a smaller community and Sterling provided that,” Webb said.
He has achieved many things in life, including working for the University of Colorado, getting elected to the state legislature, getting elected three times as mayor of Denver and being appointed to the United Nations by President Barack Obama. But Webb said his greatest achievement is “the ability to be best well enough to give money back to those along the way because I think it is so important to give back.”
Other donors at Saturday’s event included LeAnn and Greg Dennington, who created a memorial scholarship in honor of their daughter Denise who passed away, and Zachary Brammer, a Sterling Native who founded Cloudbreak Energy Partners and now gives scholarships to students pursuing careers in industrial automation or energy.
“One of the things I love most about our scholarship donors is that they come to us from a variety of backgrounds. Some of them are memorial scholarships that family members donate to honor their loved ones, some of them were started with the estate of a donor who passed, some of them were funded by donating stocks to the Foundation. We also have scholarships that local businesses donate for each year. Regardless of how the donation gets to us, we are so lucky that we get to administer the scholarships!” Haney told the Journal-Advocate.
Two scholarship recipients also spoke at the event. Cole Halley told the audience “Don’t wait for a perfect opportunity, instead take any opportunity and make it perfect.” The ag and biomechanics systems engineering major chose Northeastern because he came from a small town, Kersey, and wasn’t ready for a large school. When he came to NJC he fell in love with the campus, the small size and “incredible faculty,” and finding out about NJC’s many donors was an added plus.
“I can’t thank you enough for your support. What you give us is an opportunity to further our education, to enter the work field in a higher level than straight out of high school,” Halley said to the donors.
Kelbi Schwartz grew up in Akron and agriculture has been a huge part of her life since she was born. She grew up on a cow-calf operation in Steamboat Springs before she moved to eastern Colorado, where she began to follow her passion for horses and began training them at a young age.
“I know myself and many others have a love for ag and that’s why we came to NJC, a great ag community school. We all share a passion for ag and want to further educate ourselves to educate future generations about ag,” Schwartz said, thanking all of her donors.
If you are interested in creating a scholarship to support an NJC student or donating a smaller amount to support group-funded scholarships, please go to njc.edu/foundation.