A Legacy of Financial Aid Support: Susan and Richard Huffman P’91, ’00, ’01
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Susan and Richard Huffman have a deep-rooted history with Friends Select School. Parents of Matthew ’91, Johana ’00, and David ’01, they've experienced the school though their children's education and relationships with teachers and friends. Both have had roles as members of the board, collectively serving for more than 15 years. And they've been loyal contributors to Friends Select for decades.
In 1990 the couple established the Matthew Huffman ’91 Memorial Scholarship to honor the legacy of their son who passed away weeks before starting his senior year at Friends Select. Since its creation, the Matthew Huffman ’91 Memorial Scholarship has supported more than two dozen upper school students in financial need who meet the grant's criteria of exhibiting leadership and a commitment to community.
When asked what the portrait of this student might look like, Susan lists other qualities that many Friends Select students share: "The ability to listen and to understand different points of view, intellectual curiosity, and the desire to learn are characteristics I envision in recipients of the scholarship." As part of the Friends Select's endowment, the value of the Matthew Huffman ’91 Memorial Scholarship is currently $100,000, and it provides over $4,000 in annual support for its recipients in perpetuity.
The family's generosity—which also includes a leadership gift as part of the capital campaign in 2003 to create the Matthew Huffman ’91 Dining Hall— will, indeed, be lifelong: after thoughtful consideration, Richard has decided to make the school a beneficiary of his estate with a plan to leave a bequest through the school's Price Wetzel Legacy Society. He explains, "My personal commitment to Friends Select School is and has always been very strong." This generous gift, combined with continued prudent investing of the school's endowment fund, may ultimately triple the value of the Matthew Huffman ’91 Memorial Scholarship and could provide as much as $15,000 annually for students in need of financial assistance.
Of their motivations to donate to the school for so many years, Susan says, "We feel it is important that other children have the incredible opportunity Matthew, Johana, and David had. Quite honestly, I think Friends Select provides an education like no other. It is an amazing way for children to grow up."
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