It all started with a conversation.
In 2018, Governors Club (GC) member Bill Wallace was talking with an employee who was pursuing a college degree while she was working full-time at the club. The conversation hit a chord.
“I was very impressed with her dedication and began thinking that our members should do something to get behind and support this type of initiative,” Wallace said. “Many of us consider employees of Governors Club as family and a huge reason that living in the community is so special.”
Wallace started looking at options to set up a scholarship fund. In his research, he talked with fellow member Larry Potter, who shared his vision of helping employees reach their educational and career aspirations. They looked at being part of a larger area foundation and also talked to other organizations that had set up their own programs.
“In the end, we decided to form our own nonprofit entity,” Wallace said. “We felt being part of a bigger organization was too restrictive, and we wanted the ability to set our own course and move quickly.”
In early 2019, Wallace and Potter contacted a small group of club members and started the Step Forward Scholarship Fund (SFSF) with the goal of awarding the program’s first scholarships that summer. Over the next few months, the group formed a board of directors, drafted bylaws, gained nonprofit status, developed criteria for scholarships, created a website, and began fundraising. While the program benefits Governors Club employees and their children, it is an independent organization made up entirely of volunteers.
“It was amazing how quickly it all came together,” Wallace said. “We had a very dedicated group who shared the vision that Larry and I laid out. We didn’t want to wait a full year to launch the program.”
Wallace then met with groups of employees informing them of the program. He gave the presentations in both English and Spanish.
Those applying for scholarships had to be GC employees for a minimum of nine months and work at least 20 hours a week. Children of employees also were eligible to apply for scholarships. The funds could go for tuition and room and board at four-year or two-year colleges, online career-enhancement courses, and English as a Second Language (ESL) programs. The scholarships also could cover the cost of equipment needed for coursework such as a laptop.
In the first year, the program received 11 applications and distributed $30,000, raised primarily from members of the board of directors. The scholarships ranged from $500 to $3,000. The recipients were students at such institutions as University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC State, Appalachian State, Alamance Community College Durham Tech and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Over the next three years, as a result of the outstanding support of the GC community, the SFSF increased the maximum recipient award to $6,000 per year and initiated the “Governors Scholarship” – a special annual $10,000 award.
Since 2019, the SFSF has awarded 55 scholarships totaling $263,000.  The awards are nearly split between employees and children of employees, and twelve of the recipients are the first in their families to attend college. That was important for Wallace.
“I was the first in my family to get a college education,” said Wallace, who received a degree in geology from Middlebury College and a master’s degree from Stanford. He enjoyed a long career in the energy industry. “I know how difficult it can be.”
SFSF also has also added new components to the program.
Chief among them is a mentoring program that utilizes the expertise of GC members to help with applications, course selection, career counseling, and securing financial aid.
“Our support isn’t limited to financial aid,” he said. “Through the mentoring program we are trying to be great counselors, cheerleaders and advisors.”
The SFSF also now covers the costs of college applications, testing fees, and housing deposits. This past year the organization added a program to provide a stipend to scholarship recipients who take non-paying or low-paying internships.
“We do no not believe that a recipient should have to pass on an internship for financial reasons,” Wallace said. “The stipend program helps provide them a living wage during the internship.”
Recipient Samantha Rojas, a senior at NC State majoring in animal science, is the first in her family to go to college. Her father, Luis, came to the United States from Peru nearly 25 years ago and started working as a dishwasher in the Governors Club kitchen. He is now the head of GC’s housekeeping unit. Samantha has received scholarships for all four years the SFSF has been in existence, and this past year was awarded a Governors Scholarship.
Another recipient is Tani Valdez Rivas, whose father, Jose, emigrated from El Salvador and works in kitchen services at GC. Tani is a senior at NC State, majoring in marine science. Tani has received two SFSF scholarships including a Governors Scholarship.
Wallace said the Governors Club community has embraced the scholarship program, and the fund has grown over the four years to allow the organization to have the equivalent of one year’s scholarship total in the bank. The program has received corporate donations from the Bold Companies, Gretchen Castorina of Compass Realty, Sean Murray Grading, and Bland Landscaping. Those donations cover the program’s operating costs and enable all individual donations to go to scholarships.
“The SFSF is now a part of the annual giving programs of many GC members,” Wallace said. “A unique aspect of our program is that our donors interact with many of our recipients on a daily basis and see firsthand how their contributions are having a positive impact on their lives. There is no better feeling.”