President’s Report 2022

McDonough Supporters, Clubs and Scholars:

I am very pleased and honored to report on my first year as president of the McDonough Foundation. The year was a successful one for the Foundation, and I am grateful for your continued financial, membership, and program support.

Before reviewing the year’s accomplishments, I would like to thank my predecessor, Glenn Walton, for his leadership and commitment as president of  the Foundation from 2018 -2021. He did a great job and continues to serve on the Board as the chairman of the Scholarship Committee. I also want to thank John “Jack” Doykos, who recently retired from the McDonough Board. Jack is our first “director emeritus”. We thank him for his wise counsel and the many McDonough scholars he has interviewed and championed over nearly 20 years on the Board.

The 2022-2023 academic year marked the McDonough Scholarship Foundation’s 67th season of awarding scholarships to golf course employees enrolled in an undergraduate college degree program or certified trade school program. We awarded a record $141,530 to 78 outstanding scholars this year and have given over $3.14 million in total in scholarships since 1955. We also broadened our eligibility criteria this year for scholarships to include students who are enrolled in certified trade school programs. This year’s scholars are pursuing careers in medicine, business, engineering, finance, marketing, computer science, cybersecurity, gaming, sports, golf course management, and diesel mechanics, just to name a few.

During the year, we worked hard to improve our communications with our supporters, clubs, and scholars. We further improved our annual report and website, providing more photos and information about our McDonough scholars in action at work and in their school settings. In August, we held our first online auction, for over 30 donated rounds of golf at New Hampshire golf courses.  Social media advertising, along with tremendous support from the NHGA and NHGCOA, made our first experience with digital marketing and virtual events a great success.

Unfortunately, our annual golf tournament, which was scheduled for Bald Peak Colony Club in September, was rained out. However, I am pleased that we have been able reschedule the tournament at Bald Peak for June 19, 2023. We are very appreciative to Bald Peak’s management for working with us to help minimize the financial impact of the cancellation, as well as to many of the tournament’s sponsors and players who donated their sponsorship and entry fees to the Foundation without having enjoyed the promised Bald Peak experience.

The stock market was extremely challenging for our endowment and investment portfolio this year, but I am pleased to report that two new endowed scholarship funds were established in 2022: The High-Clark fund was endowed by board-member Richard High in memory of his late wife Joyce Clark; and the Tracy Wyles Scholarship was endowed by members of The Bald Peak Colony Club in honor of Bald Peak General Manager Chris Wyle’s late wife Tracy. We now have 21 endowed scholarship funds available to our applicants in addition to the general scholarship awards we distribute on an annual basis.

The Foundation invited three very qualified members to join our Board of Directors in 2022: Tyler Walsh, a senior manager at Ernst & Young; Tom Dionisio, a recently retired senior vice president of Technology and Transformation from Southern New Hampshire University; and Richard High, a psychologist and retired Lehigh University professor. Richard, a former McDonough scholar, served on the McDonough Board more than a decade ago, prior to his retirement and relocation to North Carolina. These three individuals are welcome additions to the Board and we appreciate their commitment to the Foundation.

The challenge created by the rapidly escalating costs of higher education makes our mission of providing meaningful college scholarships ever more important. Our plan for 2023 is to award at least $150,000 in scholarships and our hope is to continue increasing the total as we move forward. However, we cannot meet these ambitious goals without your continued help and support.

Thank you for all you have done for our McDonough Foundation’s Scholars.

William H. Everett
President
McDonough Scholarship Foundation