Message from Michael S Goodwin

Dear Students, Benefactors, and Stakeholders,

My late wife, Betty Ann, and I were blessed in our lives and always felt a need to give back.  We gave regularly through the years to a variety of charities.  We talked vaguely about starting a foundation someday that our daughter could manage after we where gone.  As time passed we began to cast about for a specific cause or purpose.  Surveying the many needs in our communities we concluded that education was a core requirement for a fulfilling and successful life and that anything we could do to assist folks in furthering their education would have the greatest impact.  After we lost Betty Ann in late 2013, our daughter, Laura Meissner,  began to rethink her career and wondered if there was a way to fund the foundation now rather than later. She volunteered to leave the corporate business world and run it. Thus the foundation and our scholarships.

Our goal is to help those who would otherwise not be able to afford post secondary education.  We found that while there are many sources of educational assistance, there are few programs which cover the entire cost of attendance. We seek to supplement existing programs (Pell Grants, subsidized loans, institutional grants, etc) and provide the last dollars needed to secure a post secondary degree or certificate.  We wish to have our recipients graduate without significant debt.  Our scholarships will be renewable annually for the length of the degree or certificate program.  We will partner with other organizations to provide mentoring and support throughout the program to help students achieve completion of their chosen degree or certificate program.

To our scholarship recipients, we wish you success in your educational goals and in life.  To our benefactors and other stakeholders we thank you for your help and support.

Thank you,

Michael S Goodwin