#WhyMCSF (Part I)
This blog post is part of a series celebrating our National Scholarship Announcement Ceremony and honoring the scholarship recipients and their families receiving scholarship support for the 2016-17 academic year. Today we are featuring a post written by one of our scholars, Chancy Schaaf, a rising senior at the George Mason University and daughter of Master Gunnery Sergeant Heath L. Schaaf USMC.
The Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation has provided me with scholarship support for the last four years, and I cannot put into words the meaning it has for me, both in terms of the scholarship itself, but also in the friends I have made through the Foundation. When I first received the scholarship, I was surprised to learn there was a ceremony to honor myself and my family – I had never heard of something like that before. Since then, every year my family and I have attended the Scholarship Announcement Ceremony, and we’ve made lasting friendships as well.
The scholarship from the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation means so much to me, because it was the reason I was allowed to attend college in the first place. At the beginning of my college career, my family was in the middle of a move from Yuma, Arizona to Marine Corps Base Quantico, and my parents were hesitant about the idea of attending such a large university due to finances. They shared that they wouldn’t be able to help me as much as they would like, because most of our money was going into the move and moving is already a stressful process without having to worry about the financial status of your child on the other side of the country, as I was going to stay in Arizona. However, when I received the scholarship from the Foundation, my parents’ worries were put at ease, and I was able to start my college career.
The Scholarship Foundation has shown me that there are people out there who truly care about my dad’s service, and I think the greatest gift someone can give to a parent is helping to assure them that their child has support, and I have felt nothing but support from the Foundation at every turn.
I could not imagine what I might have done without the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation throughout my college years. It has saved me a lot of stress, and my parents have a few less gray hairs! I love the Scholarship Foundation and all the people in it for their support and friendship. My family and I could not have made it this far without them.