More than 100 donors have put the new “Peter J. Weber Memorial Scholarship Fund” over its first-year goal line of $25,000, and an initial Weber scholarship will be awarded to a 2022 graduate of Shenandoah High School.
Weber was a 1980 SHS graduate who later served as editor of the Shenandoah Evening Sentinel. He died in 2019, and the fund drive for a memorial scholarship was spearheaded by family members, classmates and other friends. Dozens of them gathered in Shenandoah during the “Shenfest” weekend last fall and played in a first “Peter Weber Swing for Education” golf tournament, with proceeds going to the scholarship fund.
The $25,000 received has been used to establish a Weber fund endowment, so that every year the fund will generate at least $500 that can be awarded in a scholarship.
“It’s great that we’ve reached this minimum goal in less than a year, and I’m so grateful for the wonderful support we’ve had from so many donors and volunteers," said Tony Black, a Weber classmate and friend who now lives in Arlington, Va. “But let’s bear in mind that $25,000 really is the bare minimum we need to sustain a permanent endowment. Using a conservative rate of return, an endowment of $25,000 would produce a single scholarship of about $500 every year."
“I’m sure a student will appreciate $500, but the scholarship fund will have a much greater impact if we can continue to increase the endowment to a higher level,” Black continued. “I would hope that general donation efforts, further golf tournament proceeds, and publicity from the first scholarship being issued will all help toward that end. So, let’s be thankful for the success we’ve had, and resolve to reach even greater success.”
Donations for the Weber scholarship fund will continue to be accepted, and can be made online at www.shenandoahiowaeducationfoundation.org/donate. You’ll see a button there to designate your donation for the Weber scholarship fund.
You can read more about the establishment of the Weber scholarship, right here: https://bit.ly/3mzPIbd.