By Jesús Jiménez, Assistant Director of Editorial Services
Miami University graduates Max '50 and Koneta '50 Schneider have visited their alma mater often over the years, but when their son, Tom, insisted on visiting in the middle of a busy week, they were not sure why.
"He kept saying, 'It has to be on Wednesday,'" Koneta says.
Max and Koneta were met with the revelation of a lifetime as Tom and his wife, Wanda, surprised his parents by establishing the Max '50 and Koneta '50 Schneider Scholarship for students from Montgomery County, Ohio.
"Mom and Dad, they are so generous in so many ways," says Tom, a graduate of Bowling Green State University. "When I went to college, I didn't pay anything, thanks to them, so I believe in paying it forward."
Tom, who serves as Associate Vice President for Development at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida, previously met his Miami University counterparts, Matt Borden and Matt Kuhn, at a professional conference. Tom shared with them that he and his wife intended to make a gift from their will to honor his parents. Tom also related their hope to bring Max and Koneta to Oxford to share the news. The three conspired to surprise Max and Koneta with a tribute luncheon.
"We were just coming down to go look at the campus so Tom and Wanda could see it. That was basically the reason," says Koneta, who majored in education. "We were very shocked."
Max, who was a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity and studied business, spoke emotionally about his son's kind act.
"It's one of the most exciting points of my life," Max says. "Certainly, it's a wonderful thing that our son has done."
You can honor someone special who shares a connection to Miami University through a planned gift. To learn more, please contact Miami's Office of Gift Planning at GiftPlanning@MiamiOH.edu or 513-529-1286.