Giving Stories
Friendship Benefits Future Generations of Students
November 30th, 2007
This story is provided by Elements
Carls around the world can attest to the strength of friendships first shaped as undergraduates in Northfield. These lasting bonds are witnessed at reunions and other Carleton gatherings, and often are cited as a reason why alumni support the College.
Such was the case for Phillip Schmid ’57 and his wife, Joanne, of Iowa City, Iowa, who, in celebration of Phil’s 50th reunion, established the Earl A. Neil ’57 Endowed Scholarship, which supports students who qualify for financial aid, with preference given to students from traditionally disadvantaged backgrounds. The scholarship is named in honor of Schmid’s classmate and friend, the Reverend Earl A. Neil ’57.
The two met as first-year students at Carleton, says Schmid, professor emeritus of cardiology at the University of Iowa College of Medicine. “Waiting tables (in Burton dining hall) with Earl and running on the indoor and outdoor track teams with him were highlights and truly therapeutic,” Schmid says. The pair also shared a sense of gratitude for the grant aid they both received from the College.
As it does for many students from different backgrounds and with varied interests, Carleton provided the environment for Schmid and Neil to forge a friendship. “I was the only African American student on campus. For many students at Carleton, this was their first peer relationship with a person of color,” Neil says. “Phil and I gravitated to each other largely because we were both quite shy."
Neil, an Episcopal minister and former Carleton trustee, has advocated for social justice and equality throughout his career, and has been an inspiration to those who are affiliated with the Class of 1957. He lives in South Africa and is known for his work in that country in the early 1990s. He assisted in the development and coordination of programs dealing with conflict management and reconciliation, the resettlement of exiles, and voter education in preparation for South Africa’s first democratic elections.
“I am so touched by Phil and Joanne’s tribute, but it’s really beyond me,” Neil says. “Knowing that another person—a young person—will have the promise of a Carleton education because of the Schmids’ generosity is what’s most moving.”
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