Honoring a Mother’s Legacy through Philanthropy
Awarding nearly $90,000 in scholarships from the Pat Conlon Scholarship Fund over two decades.
After losing their mother at the age of 72 to brain cancer, Pat Conlon’s children knew exactly how they wanted to honor her: by setting up a perpetual college scholarship for a graduating senior from Marysville High School to recognize Pat’s love of education and her beloved adopted hometown of Marysville, Ohio. Since 2004, this scholarship, housed at the Union County Foundation, has awarded nearly $90,000 to make sure students from the town she loved could pursue their college education.
Pat and her husband Bill were the first of their blue-collar families to go to college and they were determined to see their children graduate from college, too. In 1961, Scotts relocated several families from around the U.S. to the Scotts headquarters in Marysville. When the Conlon family joined the Marysville community in 1961 there were less than 5,000 residents and they loved the small-town community.
Sadly, Bill died of a heart attack less than 10 years later, and Pat found herself widowed at just 39 with four young children to raise. After being a stay-at-home mom for several years, Pat returned to the classroom as a third-grade teacher at East Elementary where she worked with a wonderful team.
“She was determined to see her children get their college educations — and she knew Marysville was the perfect place for us to grow up. It really does “take a village” and this village took such good care of our family!” said Pat’s daughter, Cathy Blackford.
Pat did get to see all four of her children graduate college, and now her legacy helps send even more Marysville residents to college.
About Union County Foundation
The Union County Foundation (UCF) is a 501(c)(3) organization that connects charitable individuals, associations, and businesses with causes, people, and non-profits within Union County. Our work as a grant maker, community resource, and philanthropic partner uniquely positions UCF as a bridge for creative problem-solving throughout Union County. UCF has been proudly serving Union County since 1993, and has distributed millions of dollars to local charitable causes over the past 10 years.
