October 19, 2005
Breakfast raises $2.4 million for underrepresented students
The sixth annual Costco Scholarship Breakfast, which supports the Costco Scholarship Fund, raised more than $2.4 million for underrepresented minority students to attend Seattle University and the UW.
Among the attendees were several political leaders, including Washington state Gov. Christine Gregoire, former Seattle Mayor Norm Rice who was Master of Ceremonies, and former governors Daniel Evans and Mike Lowry.
Featured speaker was Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch, author of the book Journey to the Future: A Roadmap for Success for Youth, which tells about how she overcame poverty, discrimination and illiteracy to become the highest-ranking Hispanic woman in the combat support field of the United States Army.
Two scholarship recipients also spoke. Seattle University student Sofia Hernandez, an English and cultural anthropology major, said, “The Costco scholarship creates a chain reaction. In providing us with support, you equipped us with the tools we need to reach out and support others.”
UW student Brandon Bailey, who is in the physical therapy program, said, “I was able to attend school, focusing only on my work and not on whether I’d be able to afford those credits I’d be earning.”
Since its inception in 2000, the Costco Scholarship Fund has raised more than $10 million and provided hundreds of scholarships. The Costco Scholarship Fund was created by Costco President and CEO Jim Sinegal and Costco Chairman of the Board Jeff Brotman to make it possible academically, financially and personally for underrepresented minority students to attend and graduate from Seattle University and the UW.
“To us, it is a question of fundamental fairness that people who want an education can get it and aren’t denied it because of circumstances beyond their control,” Brotman said.
Details about the Costco Scholarship Fund may be found at www.costcoscholarshipfund.org.
