Gratitude List Spurs Giving
Some people create bucket lists—series of activities they’d like to do or achieve in their lives, like visiting a new country, skydiving, or writing a book. But Tom Hellman ’70g Chemistry has a different sort of list, one that includes everything in his life for which he is grateful.
“When I made my gratitude list, I thought about all the institutions and people who had made a real difference in my life, both personally and professionally,” said Hellman, who retired in 2008 after 38 years as an executive in the industrial and manufacturing sectors. “Penn State came up high on the list and Gordon Hamilton was the person who made the difference.”
To honor Hamilton, professor emeritus of chemistry at Penn State, Hellman decided to set up the Dr. Gordon Hamilton Graduate Scholarship in Organic and Biological Chemistry with a gift of $50,000. The scholarship will provide recognition and assistance to graduate students in the Department of Chemistry who have demonstrated financial need.
“Gordon provided me with guidance and mentorship, but he also allowed me to be independent and chart my own course,” said Hellman. “I thought this scholarship would be consistent with his values as a teacher and scholar.”
Hamilton, who retired from Penn State in 1997 after 31 years, said he was surprised and honored to learn about the scholarship. “I really didn’t expect it,” he said. “It is extra-special to me that Tom’s gift to the University is student-oriented.”
To Hellman, helping students by creating a scholarship is a way of acting on the gratitude he feels for the assistance he once received. “I was very fortunate to get scholarships at Williams College (where he earned a bachelor’s degree) and then to have the opportunity to go to Penn State,” said Hellman, who grew up in a mill town in Massachusetts, where going to college was considered to be a rare privilege.
At Penn State, Hellman received funding from the University to conduct his Ph.D. research on ozone. “What I learned, in terms of research discipline, was very helpful in providing me with the foundation and thinking that is vital to be successful in corporations,” he said.
Hellman was a high-level executive at Allied Chemical, General Electric, Bristol Myers-Squibb, and Limited Brands. He also was an adjunct professor at the University of West Virginia, the New Jersey Institute of Technology and Tufts University, as well as a guest lecturer at Ohio State University’s Fischer School of Business.
While at Penn State, Hellman served as captain of the rugby team. “I probably had the distinction of being the only chemistry Ph.D. student who was also captain of the rugby team,” he said. “But I learned that when you get knocked down, you get back up again, and that was a valuable lesson.”
Hellman said he hopes through his scholarship to help students, in need of financial support as he once was, to realize their dreams. “A little scholarship like this,” he said, “may be the difference that allows an individual to prosper and accomplish their academic aspirations in an easier fashion.”
If you are inspired by Tom’s story and would like to contribute to the Dr. Gordon Hamilton Graduate Scholarship in Organic and Biological Chemistry, visit
www.GiveTo.psu.edu/HamiltonGrad
or
Make a check payable to Penn State
Note in memo:
Dr. Hamilton Graduate Scholarship
Send to:
Eberly College of Science
430 Thomas Building
University Park, PA 16802
Gifts at any level will add to the impact of this scholarship.
Or, if another faculty member was instrumental in your life and you’d similarly like to honor them, scholarships like this can be established as outright gifts (generally $10,000 per year over a five-year pledge period) or as a deferred gift in your estate plan. For more information, please contact Joyce Matthews, senior director of development and alumni relations, at jvm2@psu.edu or 814-863-1247.