J. Karl Lehman International Scholarship Fund
J. Karl Lehman was born in Beatrice, Nebraska on November 25, 1963. He was born a Husker fan, and remained a Huskers fan throughout his life. He passed away on March 12, 2014 after a courageous battle with stomach cancer.
Karl grew up in Hasting-on-Hudson, NY, until he moved to India with his family in 1977. He attended and graduated from Woodstock School in 1982, where his father, Dr. Jim Lehman, served as Counselor and Principal. While at Woodstock, Karl participated in every sport he could, was actively involved in drama, and participated in the Christian fellowship groups on campus. At his graduation Karl was awarded the “Sportsman of the Year” and also the top drama award.
Karl’s love for all things German began at an early age, as he was an ardent admirer of his maternal grandfather, Henry D. Hirschler, who emigrated from Bavaria, Germany. When Karl was a high school student, he travelled to Germany on his own to live with relatives and work in their sauerkraut and pickle factory.
Karl attended Goshen College for one year then in 1986 graduated from Earlham College, majoring in Business and German. In his junior year he traveled to Germany and Austria for a semester abroad, and his appreciation for Germany deepened.
Upon graduation from Earlham College, Karl was awarded a highly competitive scholarship by the Carl Duisberg society. This offered him the opportunity to be a management trainee with Volkswagen in Germany for one year while living with a member of the German Parliament to better understand the workings of the German government.
Karl returned to the United States to study international business at Pace University in New York where his mother, Dr. Betsy Lehman, was professor of nursing. He received his MBA in 1989 and was recruited by Lufthansa German Airlines for their management trainee program. This began a long and very impressive career with Lufthansa. He held numerous managerial positions in sales, planning, pricing and marketing. In 1998 Karl assumed responsibility for the combined Southern and Midwest regions as Director, Regional Sales, Central United States. He had offices in Chicago, Detroit, Houston, and Dallas. In addition he studied at Wharton School of Business and received certificates from the Global Leadership Professional Program.
Karl was married to Maureen Nicholas and they have three wonderful children: Andrew, Alexandra, and Austin. He loved them very much and enjoyed travelling all over the world with them. The last overseas trip was to Rome where Karl celebrated his 50th birthday. A few days before Karl passed away his children presented him with a plaque that said “Behind every GOOD kid there is a GREAT dad”.