HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Marshall University and the Marshall 75 Family Alumni Chapter are establishing a new scholarship to honor the 75.
The 75 Legacy Scholarship Fund is designated for descendants of the crash victims who wish to earn their higher-education degree at Marshall University.
“This scholarship fund will allow descendants to attend Marshall at no cost to themselves,” said Leslie Deese Garvis, President of the Marshall 75 Family Alumni Chapter. “What better way to ensure the legacy of the 75 endures through their descendants than to provide a way for them to attend the university they loved.”
This fund is designed to support full-time or part-time undergraduate students who are direct descendants of the 75 who were on the plane that crashed on Nov. 14, 1970. Qualifying students must fulfill the obligations of the standard application process and be accepted to Marshall University. As long as recipients maintain good academic standing, the award shall be renewed for up to four years, or eight semesters.
Garvis said so far they have identified four people who are eligible for the scholarship and wish to pursue a degree at Marshall after not being able to before now.
First-generation descendants of the 75 are given priority for the fund. If there are no first-generation recipients, any direct descendants of the 75 beyond the first generation would be considered.
“Once we’ve identified those people and exhausted the people who want to go to Marshall, then we’re going to extend the scholarship to the descendants of those first-generation individuals,” she said.
Garvis is a recipient of the fund herself, being the daughter of Danny Deese, who was one of the crew members on the 1970 flight.
Garvis, a Texas resident now, has been working towards her degree at Marshall for the past few years. She visited the university as an 18-year-old and inquired about the scholarship, but there was no funding in place for it yet.
“For whatever reason back then it was never funded so it never came to fruition,” Garvis said. “When we established this chapter, one of our missions was to fulfill that.”
A few years later, Garvis is fulfilling her goal of getting her degree at the school that she grew up loving, despite the tragic loss of her father.
“It has always been my goal to get my degree from Marshall,” said “Marshall has such a place in all our hearts, no matter if it’s hard.”
Garvis said it’s difficult to come back to the Huntington area, especially in November to mark the anniversary of the crash. She calls it a bittersweet feeling, but her love for the university will never waiver.
Of the 75 individuals who were on board, 37 were members of the Marshall University football team with eight coaching staff. There were also 25 boosters, community members, and five Southern Airways employees. Seventy children lost at least one parent, and 18 were orphaned after losing both parents.
The Marshall 75 Family Alumni Chapter Legacy Scholarship Committee will work together with the Office of Student Financial Assistance to identify the descendants and award the recipients.
“The chapter’s primary mission is to keep the memory of their 75 loved ones alive,” said Matt James, executive director of alumni relations. “One way to honor them is establishing a path to higher education through the descendants scholarship. I’m honored to be involved with such a special project.”