Student Loan Fund

In the 1929-30 year, the Student Loan Fund was created through a bequest of $1,000 by Sylvester Moore. This fund has proved to be most helpful to deserving young men of the community to obtain a college education.

In 1930-31, rules for governing the Student Loan Fund established during the previous year were drawn up and approved.

In 1937-38, the Student Loan Fund was spurred on through contributions from the Birthday Table Group at $1.00 per person.

In 1940-41, an intensive drive for contributions to the Student Loan Fund was carried out, and $1,000 was added as a result.

In 1941-41, because of Selective Service for military purposes, there was very little Student Loan demand. The Fund increased by monthly Birthday Table donations. One fine letter of appreciation was received from a young man we helped and who "made good with Westinghouse."

In 1942-43, an anonymous donation of $2,000 was made to the Student Loan Fund.

In 1951, the Student Loan Fund changed its policy so that loans were made available to male or female scholars; the interest on loan started one year after graduation at a rate of four percent.

In 1960, the Club's Board voted to change the Student Loan Fund to provide for larger loans and for longer periods. Graduate study loans were made available, and the maximum loan to an individual student was increased to $2000. The escalating costs of a college education prompted these changes.

In 1962, an announcement in The Transmitter stated that there was $8,915 at work in the Student Loan Fund, distributed among 20 students, with a current available balance on hand of $827. Lancaster Rotarians and their families performed a play in April, 1963. While providing the unique opportunity for Rotary fellowship, it also afforded the medium for every Club member to feel a part of the Club. The performance also increased the Student Loan Fund by about $1800.

In 1954, the Lancaster Rotary was instrumental in starting the Association For Retired Citizens. George Diehl, with help from several other Rotarians, led the project to overwhelming success. In 1963, the Board of Directors of the Association notified our Club that it was willing and able to make $2,300 available to our Student Loan Fund, as needed, to meet requests for loans exceeding the Cub's resources. It was indeed gratifying to see this phenomenon in which an agency partially founded by Rotary became so self-sufficient in so short a time that it was actually able to lend a helping hand to another Rotary project.

The escalation of college costs motivated improving the Student Loan Fund.

In 1966, Harold Shaar and Red Richards formed a chorus of Rotarians and Rotary Anns. The Rotary Chorus gave a performance in March at the Lancaster Township Junior High School. The chorus members enjoyed participating. Shaar's leadership was peerless. Richards and Ernie Stanziola also contributed heavily to the success. A tidy sum of money was raised for the Student Loan Fund from this effort.

A Transmitter announcement on August 9, 1967, indicated that $10,700 was being put to use through our Student Loan Fund.

The Student Loan Fund, begun in 1929, was valued at $19,000 in 1984, with funds being added from Birthday Table donations.

In 1989, after much discussion, Rotary's Student Loan Project, begun in 1929, was finally terminated. The $10,000 in the account plus $8,000 in receivables was turned over to the Citizens Scholarship Foundation, which a study committee had determined was better equipped to manage this activity. The funds then constituted the Lancaster Rotary Club Endowment Fund for Scholarship Loans within the Foundation.

Today, there are no loans, just scholarships.

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