Donor Stories
John and Joanne Hegener
Joanne Hegener, '59, has happy memories of commuting with five friends during her freshman year to "Michigan State Normal College," all bringing their lunches, eating in the kitchen of Starkweather Hall, and stretching a tea bag to include six people.
A four-year state board scholarship made Joanne's education possible. After earning their degrees in elementary education, she and her husband, John, '59, went on to teach for a combined total of 57 years in Michigan, Florida and the Philippines.
"I have always been grateful to the state of Michigan for the opportunity I was given," said Joanne, explaining why the Hegeners were the first "two-teacher" couple to fund a
planned gift with the EMU Foundation. John and Joanne recently established a charitable gift annuity with the Foundation to endow an elementary education scholarship in their names. "It gives us great pleasure to be able to give back in the hope that some aspiring student can be helped in the way I was," she said.
She met John in Ruth Fenwick's music class. They were married at the beginning of their senior year and lived in a basement apartment near the water tower on Sheridan.
The family moved to Sarasota in 1967 for the health benefits of a warmer winter climate. Although they taught primarily at public and private schools in Florida, they also worked for two years in the Philippines.
The Hegeners hope that other teachers who have benefited from their EMU education will consider making a planned gift so deserving students can have the same opportunity. Joanne reflected that when their two children were growing up, the couple worked for five summers at North Carolina's Camp Chimney Rock, where a favorite chapel song was called "Pass It On."
"That's what we want to do," said Joanne. "Pass it on."
