February 1, 2019 – The George J. Russ Memorial Scholarship, established July 2017, was once the largest scholarship of its kind in the named scholarship program. Two years later, the George J. Russ Memorial Scholarship is now the largest Endowed Scholarship with the WGACSF.
George was a caddie at the Hudson River Club in Yonkers, NY and received a scholarship to attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Class of 1969. George had a successful career in engineering and spent much of his free time traveling and giving back to the community through many associations. He passed in 2015 and left a significant gift—the largest from an alumnus—in the history of the Caddie Scholarship Fund.
Two outstanding scholars were selected as the first recipients of the George J. Russ Memorial Scholarship in 2017. Naturally, the recipient(s) are caddies pursing studies in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) fields, or are attending Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
In January 2019, the close friends and family of Russ generously selected the WGACSF as the recipient of an additional $100,000 contribution from his estate. As such, all parties agreed to honor George Russ’s legacy in perpetuity by transferring the named scholarship to an endowed scholarship.
The current Russ scholar will continue to receive their scholarship award through their matriculation. In future years, Russ scholars will receive a supplemental amount, per the WGACSF’s Endowed Scholarship Policy.