Giving to Purdue

Luke Liechty

April 18, 2011

To whom it may concern:

My name is Luke Liechty. I am a high school senior from Berne, Indiana. I will be attending Purdue University in the fall of 2011, and I plan to major in Agricultural Economics. I was recently blessed to have received a Marquardt Alumni scholarship, which will benefit me greatly in my educational endeavours; this award would not have been possible without your amazing generosity as a donor to Purdue University. I would like to extend my most heartfelt gratitude to you for thinking of the well-being and success of young eager college students like myself.

To show my appreciation for your generosity, I would enjoy sharing some of my background and interests with you. I didn’t grow up the same as your “normal” American child; I had a unique upbringing in a couple ways. First, I was educated at home for all thirteen of my school-age years. This wonderful experience is one of the things that has made me into the person I am today. Secondly, I was raised on a grain farm, which is an opportunity many children are not given the chance to experience; my dad and uncle have been farming together for over thirty-five years, and my grandpa farmed on the same land also. My parents have impacted my life in numerous ways. From an early age, my mom imparted to me an insatiable desire to learn, and I developed my passion for agriculture from long hours of working on the farm alongside my dad and uncle.

Throughout my life, I have enjoyed participating in numerous educational, extracurricular, and recreational activities. I am a ten-year member in 4-H, and I have loved participating in the swine, starter calf, livestock judging, tractor driving, rifle, and shotgun projects. My participation in 4-H has benefitted me immensely. I have learned how to be responsible, how to work hard, how to care for livestock, how to keep records, and much more. In addition to 4-H, some of my hobbies include farming, reading good books, playing the piano, volunteering for a disability ministry, shooting guns, playing sports and hanging out with friends, and spending time with my family.

Now that you know a little bit about me, I want to tell you how truly important the Marquardt Alumni Scholarship is to me. The award is meaningful to me, first, because it will help greatly in reducing the financial burden which a college education will bring to my life. Today, college is a huge investment, and every bit of money I can earn is more valuable than ever. Second, this scholarship is significant to me because it is a reward to me for all the time and hard work I have invested in doing my very best in high school. Monetary rewards also provide an added incentive for college students (me included) to work hard to learn everything they can and excel while attending a university. In addition to this, the Marquardt Alumni Scholarship has helped provide a way for me to fulfil my dream of getting an education in the field of agriculture so that I can give something back to the rural community in which I have grown up. Thank you so much for helping bring one of my greatest aspirations within my reach.