Peter Gerson
“Our family created the Peter Gerson Educational Scholarship Fund to provide higher educational scholarships to Gerson Company employees and their families. The idea of offering scholarships to employees provided a meaningful way to honor my Dad’s memory for several reasons. My Dad believed and was living proof that, through hard work and education, one can better one’s life. He also was deeply committed to and felt responsible for the welfare of his employees. Although our family has its own private foundation, the Jewish Community Foundation offered the perfect vehicle to easily create, execute and administer all aspects of the scholarship fund. With our input, the Foundation established the fund parameters and guidelines; received and acknowledged donations; and importantly, enabled scholarships to be awarded solely on merit as the Foundation created an independent committee to read the grant applications and award the scholarships. My Dad would have been so pleased to know that the first round of scholarships were granted this spring. The perpetual, semi-annual granting cycle of the Peter Gerson Educational Scholarship Fund will help keep his memory alive.” – Liz Hjalmarson