Lew Wentz Foundation: Giving More Than Just Scholarships
In the last 12 years one man’s vision has helped more than 2,000 students earn an OSU degree. By providing more than $6 million toward scholar educations, a Ponca City philanthropist took the dreams of many and turned them into a reality.
That man was Louis Haynes Wentz, better known to his friends as Lew Wentz.
“Receiving a Wentz research grant has allowed me to spend the current year studying in Scotland, a goal which would be impossible without the Foundation’s generous assistance,” says Kelsey Williams, junior English and history major.
But assisting thousands of students through OSU demonstrates only a mere fraction of Wentz’s generosity to Oklahoma State. |
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Lew Wentz |
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In 1926, Wentz, the son of a blacksmith and oil boom beneficiary, gave then-Oklahoma A&M a $50,000 endowment to provide student loans. Those loans enabled many Cowboys the chance at something Wentz did not have – a college education.
Upon his death in 1949, Wentz left OSU 20 percent of his estate, which included a number of Texas oil leases. Ten years later the sale of those leases added $2 million to the Lew Wentz Foundation, and today the total endowment exceeds $13 million.
The Foundation has evolved from providing student loans to underwriting the Wentz Scholars, a work study program, and developing today’s scholarship program, which has attracted national attention for its emphasis on research and leadership.
“Wentz gave us a lot of flexibility, which has allowed us to adjust to the changing needs of today’s student,” Trish Houston, administrator for the Foundation, says. “The average college graduate owes $19,000 upon graduation. We felt that OSU students would be better served through a comprehensive scholarship program.”
“Mr. Wentz was a very generous man and once wrote a letter to OSU, which stated to ‘remember the “We” in Wentz.’” Houston says. “Our board tries to honor Mr. Wentz’s philosophy. Our only mission is to help OSU students get an education.”
Wentz’s contribution to OSU students reaches far beyond the dollar mark. Through his generosity he is empowering others to change the world.
“With my Wentz Research Scholarship, I am researching the impacts of human land use on soil microbial populations,” says Cortney Timmons, junior biosystems and agricultural engineering student. “I hope to one day have a career that allows me to incorporate my knowledge of policy and engineering in order to help solve some of the world’s environmental problems.”
To contribute to the Lew Wentz Foundation, contact Trish Houston at Houston Wealth Management at (405) 372-1700.
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