Jim Kasten Memorial Scholarship

Music was the focus of Jim Kasten’s life—before, during and after his years as a student at CLC. He graduated with the class of 1974 and died of cancer seven short years later, in May 1981.

Jim was known as a quiet, sincere and humble person, with a beautiful baritone solo voice. Following graduation, he continued to be active in CLC music through the popular alumni choir known as the Californians of CLC. This group used their voices and their talents to sing in different churches in the greater Los Angeles area. With the offering gifts they received, they managed to award two music scholarships each year.

Music permeated Jim’s professional life as well. He worked at Camarillo State Hospital in what was then a new program in music therapy. Because Jim was a gentle person and talented musician, he was very effective in this therapeutic approach.

Jim was one of three Kastens to graduate from California Lutheran College and to be involved in music. The others were Kurt Kasten and John Kasten. In the years that followed his death, other members of the Kasten family also attended CLC. Jim’s mother Heidi was a staunch friend of the University and a lifelong supporter of the scholarship.

It was the Californians of CLC who provided the impetus for the Jim Kasten Memorial Scholarship. Starting with funds in their organization’s treasury, they contributed personal gifts and solicited memorial gifts from other CLC alumni. It took almost five years to reach the $5,000 endowment level. Out of gratitude to CLU and to the many friends whose lives Jim had touched, the Kasten family has continued to build the scholarship fund through the years.

The Californians determined that the recipient of the Jim Kasten Memorial Scholarship should be a sophomore or upper-division student who is involved in the vocal or choral programs at CLU and is of the Christian faith. And so it is that in his own unique way Jim Kasten continues to share his love of music with each generation of CLU students.