Boomer Benefits, an insurance agency that helps Baby Boomers navigate Medicare, awarded their first scholarship for an adult student returning to school in 2014. Co-founder Danielle Kunkle Roberts announced last week that after awarding the scholarship annually for 4 years, she and her business partner have decided award the scholarship twice a year going forward, once for each semester.
“The applicants for this scholarship are so amazing. We realized as we were reviewing our finalists that we wished we could help them all. These incredible people are loading up their backpacks in their 50’s or 60’s to finally complete a degree, often after they have put their own kids through school. We just want to help them realize their dreams.”
Roberts paid for much of her own TCU education via scholarships from private organizations. She has never forgotten the generosity of others who helped her gain her degree.
In recent years, many businesses like Boomer Benefits have begun to offer scholarships that give back to the population that they serve. Even celebrities like Lebron James and Kevin Spacey have gotten into the game, sponsoring scholarships for deserving students at their alma mater or in their field.
Spacey said that people who have succeeded in their fields have an obligation “to send the elevator back down” to help others succeed in their chosen paths as well and realize their ambitions.
The Boomer Benefits Scholarship is awarded to a student age 50+ who has returned to school later in life to pursue a degree. The scholarship committee particularly likes to see applicants who have a history of community service to others, especially to the elderly.
Applicants for the scholarship often comment on their delight at finding a scholarship that is designed to encourage and support baby boomers. Many are picking back up where left off many years ago.
2017 Award winner John Bostwick explains how his college career was interrupted when he began working as a firefighter to support his family.
“I began college right after high school with plans for a business degree. After a year and a half, I was married and moved across the country… and was hired as a firefighter, “he said. “The schedule of 24-hour shifts did not give any real opportunity for standard college attendance but finally gave a steady income to my new family. I tried to attend fire training classes and seminars to further my fire education, but true college classes were a dream for the future.”
Bostwick is now pursuing a Fire and Emergency Management degree in Cedar Falls, Iowa, where he is Fire Chief. Roberts said he exemplifies everything the scholarship is all about.
Boomer Benefits is in Fort Worth, TX and assists Medicare beneficiaries in 47 states. Applications are now being accepted for the Spring 2018 Scholarship. To learn more, visit BoomerBenefits.com
Boomer Benefits
Danielle Kunkle Roberts
Fort Worth
TX
USA
817-249-8600
danielle@boomerbenefits.com
https://boomerbenefits.com