Everett and Naomi Ulrich Scholarship

“We need to get involved in supporting our Mennonite church schools so that our students will not be forced to attend state universities just because of cost.” That is the strong sentiment of Everett and Naomi Ulrich of Manson, Iowa, who have established a scholarship fund at Goshen College as their way of getting involved.

The Ulrich gift characterizes the couple’s close relationship with GC–a connection that has been maintained over many years. Naomi, originally from Alliance, Ohio, remembers the strong encouragement of her parents to attend Goshen and be actively involved in the church. As a little girl she knew she wanted to become a teacher. She attended Goshen College and returned to Alliance to teach sixth grade.

Everett grew up on a farm in Pomeroy, Iowa, where early on he developed a love and talent for music, enjoyed hunting and fishing, and later became a skilled builder and woodworker. His parents taught him the scriptural basis for tithing and he soon realized the blessings derived from generous giving of time and money. These experiences taught Everett to be sensitive to the needs of the church, missions, those in need, and now the students of Goshen College.

It was at Goshen College that Naomi’s Iowa roommate introduced her to a friend from her home community, Everett Ulrich. This meeting led to marriage and the new couple returned to Everett’s community, where they actively worked and supported the church and raised a daughter, Karen Sue, while Naomi taught school for 21 years and Everett continued to farm and build.

Because of Everett’s father’s illness the family farm was “dropped into my lap,” Everett said, and he never had the chance to attend Goshen. Even so, he could claim GC as his college, too, through the visits he made as a youth to see campus friends, and through the experiences of the couple’s daughter, Karen Sue, a 1967 Goshen graduate.

In the years since Naomi attended GC, she and Everett continued to stay in touch with “their school”. They offered their home and hospitality regularly to numerous faculty and administrators. When Karen Sue was a student, they returned to campus often to take in parent activities and attend music programs. They also visited the college to participate in an “Uncommon Cause” weekend–an event planned as part of Goshen’s endowment campaign.

“We really valued that experience,” said Naomi. “We came away with new appreciation and enthusiasm for our Mennonite church schools. I often think of the great teachers of the Bible such as S.C. Yoder, J.C. Wenger and J. Lawrence Burkholder and the influence and inspiration I received from them.”

“It is important that today’s students also have a chance to study the Bible in college; if they do, they’re much more likely to stay involved with the church throughout their lives.”

The Ulrich Scholarship for Iowa and Ohio students is a fitting symbol of the donors’ regard for Goshen College and their commitment to the church. And it will help maintain both the college’s commitment to quality Christian education and students’ opportunities to choose it.

Everett Ulrich died December 15, 2004 and Naomi Ulrich continues to live in Iowa.