The Veterans’ Families Freedom Scholarship

By John Baden, PhD, Foundation for Research on Economics & the Environment

In 2012, the Montana State University Alumni Foundation, working in conjunction with interested donors and Montana State University’s Office of Disability, Re-Entry and Veteran Services, established the Veteran Families Freedom Scholarship Initiative.

Gifts to this initiative create endowed scholarships (for undergraduates) and fellowships (for graduate students) are designed to help:

Qualifying spouses of veterans—who have made their own tremendous sacrifices—to pursue college degrees and their related economic opportunities.

Address known gaps in the Post 9/11 GI Bill, improving access to and retention of veterans and veterans’ families at our University

Empower veteran families to say “Yes, both of us,” rather than ask “But, which of us?” to higher education.

Establish MSU and Bozeman as the University and community of choice for those veterans returning from military service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Allow the Montana State University community to benefit from the diversity, talents, experiences and leadership skills that our veterans and their families uniquely offer.

Bozeman is remarkable for its contagious generosity. We swim in a pool of opportunities to participate in good causes. Many are interconnected. I will spare you the details but this one links Warriors and Quiet Waters, the Montana Chamber Society, the Bozeman Symphony, the Museum of the Rockies, Eagle Mount, the recent Bozeman Gun Show, and the MSU Alumni Foundation. Rejoice in the result and resolve to somehow contribute in 2014.

Carol Clarke Smith might win the IM (individual medley) in Bozeman’s pool of opportunities to participate in good causes. Here is her story:

My motivation for creating the VFFS stems from my experiences as a volunteer for Bozeman’s Warriors and Quiet Waters. My favorite job was hosting spouses of Vets for a day of camaraderie. Their stories were heart wrenching. Unlike their military husbands, these courageous women are untrained for the battles of life at home. What most impressed me was their strength, determination and commitment to make their family’s lives as normal as possible, in spite of overwhelming medical circumstances that face so many of our returning Veterans. It is always warming to send them home knowing they were able to laugh, cry, bond, and yes, learn to fly fish in our beautiful Montana! (The first recipient of my scholarship is Saul Martinez’s wife, Sarah)! In a serendipitous meeting, Sean Gifford, former president of the Veteran’s Association at MSU, an alum, and veteran of both Iraq and Afghanistan, told me of the scholarship needs of spouses of veterans. While the GI Bill covers veterans’ tuitions, spouses are not covered. As a member of the MSU Alumni Foundation Board, I asked our president, Michael Stevenson, what our foundation was doing for our veterans’ spouses support. Answer — nothing…yet. There was a matching gift MSUAF program in place. Through this match, $12,500 became a $25,000 scholarship. If only I had the $$$ I could make this happen.

An unanticipated sale of her family’s business in Illinois gave her an opportunity. Carol Clarke Smith opened a new checking account. Her first check for $12,500 established the initiative. Then she provided a second check for the same amount. With the match, this provides $50,000 in scholarships for spouses. Carol concludes with this: “Establishing the scholarship is my humble and infinite gratitude to those in the military that have defended our freedom and our great country. Big hugs to the spouses, children, parents, siblings, of our vets. Thank you.”

Carol feels good—and so will you. To contribute, contact Tyler Wiltgen, Principal Gifts Officer: (406) 994-3743, [email protected].

Editor’s note: Carol’s “windfall” also funded a contribution to the MSU President’s Fine Arts Series and the newly formed Bridger Biathlon Club at Bohart Ranch.

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