Boynton Family Scholarship

True long-term commitment to a worthy cause is a wonder to behold, and it can be said that Bob and Jackie Boynton were truly committed to Lutheran higher education for well over 30 years. And that’s where this story starts.

In the early 80s, with two daughters to educate, the Boyntons made the decision to send them to CLU. Daughter Ann Boynton graduated in 1983, her sister Karin in 1986. But that was just the beginning. The Boyntons were deeply involved with their Lutheran connections in Ethiopia and began supporting the Adinew family in their desire to become educated in the United States. Through CLU, the Boyntons established an Ethiopian Student Scholarship Fund that helped both Michael and Fana Adinew to attain their degrees at CLU.

The Boyntons’ love for Third World countries and people continued. They eventually decided to convert their Ethiopian scholarship fund into an endowed scholarship fund bearing their family name at CLU—the Ethiopian Student Scholarship Fund became the Boynton Family Scholarship. Jackie’s matching gift privilege with McGraw-Hill enabled them to double the size of their contributions. The first scholarship award was made in 1988 to a student from Argentina with great potential.

The Boyntons always responded to the specific needs of students from Third World countries. In 2000, they became aware that the daughter of the Lutheran bishop in Tanzania wanted very much to complete her education at CLU. And so, once again they made it happen. When they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2003, they requested that all gifts be dedicated to their endowed scholarship fund—gifts amounting to $1,700. To the Boyntons, their scholarship recipients were individuals they wanted to get to know. Thus it was in 2005 that they arranged to take Tracy Howtamfat Mauritius along with their family to celebrate Thanksgiving.

The occasion was a treat for Tracy and the whole Boynton family. But that’s the kind of thing people knew to expect from Bob and Jackie Boynton. The Boynton Family Scholarship is designated specifically for non-U.S. citizens, with preference to students from Third World countries. The Boyntons’ commitment to Lutheran higher education was long-term indeed, and CLU is very fortunate to be the vehicle for their dedication.