Scholarship fund created in Cardinal George’s name

A scholarship fund has been established for memorials to Cardinal George, who was dedicated to ensuring a Catholic education was available to all children, regardless of financial need.

The Francis Cardinal George Scholarship Fund is a permanent endowment in the Catholic Education Scholarship Trust, an independent trust created with gifts to the To Teach Who Christ Is campaign. Cardinal George launched the capital and endowment campaign in 2013 to raise a minimum of $350 million for parishes, faith formation and Catholic education.

“The Catholic schools of the Archdiocese of Chicago and our faith formation programs make their case in the lives of those transformed by them,” Cardinal George said in a statement at the time. “The alumni of our schools and parishes are living and working in Chicago, the suburbs and around the world. They are the reason, and the winning conclusion, to the need to conduct the To Teach Who Christ Is campaign. The campaign is well named. That is our mission.”

To Teach Who Christ Is is easily the most ambitious effort of its kind. Thousands of faithful across the Archdiocese of Chicago have already pledged more than $150 million, with Cardinal George personally instrumental in securing more than $90 million in gifts. Now Archbishop Cupich has taken on leading this effort.

Cardinal George’s dedication to Catholic education was evidenced by his own personal bequest to the Catholic Education Scholarship Trust. In a campaign newsletter, he asked To Teach Who Christ Is donors to consider leaving a bequest in their wills, too.

“To be sure that future generations may encounter Christ, I have also decided to leave what I can as a gift to the schools of the Archdiocese of Chicago in my will — my final prayerful expression of Christian stewardship,” he wrote to them. “Similarly, I now ask you to reflect on your legacy. Your legacy gift, such as a bequest to your parish, a specific ministry or the campaign, will support the church for future generations.”

The Francis Cardinal George Scholarship Fund will provide scholarships to qualified children in Catholic schools throughout the Archdiocese of Chicago. The Catholic Education Scholarship Trust is invested to create spendable income as well as to achieve long-term appreciation of capital. Scholarships from the Francis Cardinal George Scholarship Fund will be awarded as income is available.

“Our schools are communities where all children are safe in God’s love and therefore free to learn,” Cardinal George once wrote. “Free of government control and not driven by individual agendas, the Catholic schools and other educational efforts of the archdiocese need and deserve generous support.”

Before his death in April, Cardinal George requested donations be made to his favorite charities: the Catholic Education Scholarship Trust or the Priests’ Retirement and Mutual Aid Association.

To make a gift to the Francis Cardinal George Scholarship Fund, visit www.toteachwhochristis.org/cardinal or send checks payable to TTWCI Cardinal George Fund to: To Teach Who Christ Is, 835 N. Rush St., Chicago, IL 60611.