SCHOLARSHIPS
“My mother was a great spirit, and a gentle one, too—unless she was riled over some injustice. Anti-gay comments from those around her would always bring a quick corrective response. And in a country where all too often those of privilege believe they obtained their prosperity not because of chance or dumb luck, but because they were somehow more worthy and more blessed than those less privileged, my mother believed that we all had an obligation to care for one another - no matter who you were or how you obtained your place in life. ”
— Jack B. Harrison, Son
The Evelyn W. Harrison Point Scholarship
Evelyn Harrison was born in rural Tennessee in 1930, at the dawning of the Great Depression. Her family lived in a wood and tar paper house where the wind whistled through the spaces in the wall and, when it rained, the noise on the tin roof was deafening.
While she did not have a college degree, she believed in the great importance of education for all people. She instilled this belief in her two sons – Wayne, a university professor, and Jack, an attorney. She believed that education brought opportunities and that those who received those opportunities had a duty to open doors for others. She had a huge laugh that enveloped those around her and a soft spot for those who were excluded in any way. She was always quick to call people to task, including her church, when she saw unfairness or an injustice.
At her funeral in December 2004, her pallbearers were all women — young and old — who had touched her life and whose lives she had touched. As those women, some of whom were in their 70s and 80s, lifted up her casket to carry it out of the church where she had been a member for 50 years, other women spontaneously stepped forward to help carry her out, bearing witness to a profound and powerful sisterhood.
The Evelyn W. Harrison Scholarship Fund has been created by her family and friends to honor her passion and spirit by providing support for talented gay and lesbian scholars, particularly those from the Southeastern part of the United States, to pursue their hopes and dreams.
Past Awardees: Tyler Dillard (06-08) Andrew Moe (08-09)
