2014-01-01
Catherine Flynn Morrison spent her 46-year teaching career in a small country school where many of her students came from less fortunate backgrounds. She took those children under her wing and worked tirelessly to help prepare them for a college education, especially to become school teachers like herself.
To honor that legacy, a scholarship fund has been created through Your Community Foundation (YCF) that will benefit hard-working Harrison County students who want to become teachers and may need financial help to attend college.
“Catherine was dedicated to her work with children and led a very diverse life,” said Beth Fuller, president of YCF. “She especially wanted to help students who might not be at the top of their class academically but were hard-working and dedicated and needed financial assistance to follow in her footsteps as elementary school teachers.”
The Catherine Flynn Morrison Memorial Scholarship Fund will award financial assistance each year to one or more deserving students graduating from Harrison County high schools who wish to become certified professional teachers in West Virginia and, toward that end, to pursue a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from an accredited institution of higher education in this state.
The amount of the scholarships will be $2,000 a year, renewable for up to four years. Students should check with their guidance counselors to obtain applications when they become available.
The recipients of the scholarships shall be nominated to YCF by an Advisory Committee consisting of three residents of Harrison County appointed by YCF, one of whom will be Marcel Malfregeot, Jr., executor of the Morrison estate.
Catherine Morrison “worked with the conviction that she had the charge to keep both boys and girls under her supervision,” according to those who spoke at her memorial service. “She exercised an enthusiasm that pulled things out of the mediocre and the commonplace to the threshold of perfection and excellence. Catherine gave of herself in the classroom to create something of great value, and she left an indelible imprint upon all that she touched.”
“There were many factors that contributed to the professional profile of Catherine,” Malfregeot said. “They included her family heritage, Catholic ancestry, academic training, the influence of colleagues and associates, professional affiliations, honors and recognitions received, services rendered, political leadership given and extra-curricular activities she pursued.”
She loved music and piano, enjoyed archery and watercolor painting and also liked to walk, Malfregeot said. “For many years she walked to work, rain, snow or shine.”
When she retired from Wilsonburg Elementary School in 1977, the late U.S. Senator Jennings Randolph of West Virginia was among the speakers at a reception in her honor.
Any individual, business or organization can contribute any amount to the Morrison scholarship fund in care of YCF, P.O. Box 409, Morgantown, WV 26507. The initial endowment and all additional donations will be invested by YCF to increase their value, with net income used to fund the scholarship awards.