LHU celebrates donor generosity, student success with annual Reeser Scholarship Brunch
LOCK HAVEN, PA – On Sept. 26, more than 90 donors and scholarship recipients attended Lock Haven University’s eighth annual James C. Reeser Scholarship Brunch. The brunch, held in the Durrwachter Alumni Conference Center, is a commemoration of donor generosity and student success at LHU.
The event provides donors the chance to see the impact their giving has on the student recipients and gives students the opportunity to thank the donors for their commitment to helping them achieve their goals.
Also during the event, two awards are presented: the Wagner Lock Haven University Achievement Award and the Philanthropy Award.
Established by Donn and Mary Ann Zaffuto Wagner, the Wagner Award honors an individual or individuals whose extraordinary and genuine efforts come from the heart, and whose accomplishments have impacted others in a positive way.
This year’s recipient of the Wagner Award was professor emerita Dr. Beth McMahon.
McMahon was a professor in LHU’s Department of Health Science for 22 years before retiring in 2019. Just a few months later, she found herself back at The Haven, serving as LHU’s COVID coordinator and overseeing the university’s COVID-19 Institutional Response Team (IRT).
Under McMahon’s leadership from August 2020 to June 2021, LHU was a model of success, as McMahon and the students, faculty and staff that formed the university’s IRT developed and implemented mitigation strategies to help keep The Haven community safe.
In addition to overseeing the IRT, McMahon — along with Anna Mae Smith, physician assistant program director; Deanna Hill, chief administration and finance officer; and LHU students McCartney Register and Luke Kreider — was responsible for establishing the Be the Solution Award.
The award aims to engage LHU students into taking social responsibility to develop creative solutions to complicated problems and ultimately better the world in which they live. McMahon pledged to match the first $5,000 in contributions to the Be the Solution Award with a $5,000 donation of her own.
The Philanthropy award goes to an individual or individuals that have shown outstanding civic responsibility by voluntarily committing their time and financial resources to advance the philanthropic mission of Lock Haven University.
This year’s recipient of the Philanthropy Award was Lock Haven University’s corporate partner, the Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union (PSECU).
Along with providing an array of low- or no-cost banking services and financial education resources to Lock Haven University students, staff, faculty and alumni over the last 22 years, PSECU has also provided countless scholarships to LHU students throughout the years.
The PSECU Student Athlete Scholarship awards up to $20,000 per year to multiple student athletes that compete on PSECU Court at Thomas Fieldhouse. The court was renamed PSECU Court in 2014.
PSECU also sponsors numerous events like the LHU Business Hall of Fame, the LHU Athletics Hall of Fame, various athletic and academic events throughout the year and Homecoming events like the Alumni Golf Classic, among others. PSECU is also a major sponsor of All In, LHU’s 24-hour day of giving.
The Philanthropy Award was accepted on PSECU’s behalf by employees Chris Rhine, Tiffany Bowmaster and Dave Dentler.
“It’s the sincere appreciation from students and the joy on donors’ faces that truly makes this event one of our most special days on campus each year,” said Katelynn Hanna, director of annual giving and stewardship. “Our donors don’t give because they want the recognition, but this event is still the university’s way of recognizing their impact they make and telling them ‘thank you’ for playing such a pivotal role in positive student outcomes at Lock Haven University.”
For the 2021-22 school year, 580 scholarships have been awarded to 511 LHU students, totaling nearly $713,000. For more information about the Lock Haven University Foundation or to make a gift to Lock Haven University, visit www.givetolhu.com.
