Sam Gilbert Foreign Study Fund established at UVa-Wise

Students at The University of Virginia’s College at Wise will have a greater opportunity to travel and learn abroad thanks to the Sam Gilbert Foreign Study Fund.

The Sam Gilbert Foreign Study Fund is one of 18 new scholarships at UVa-Wise that will be announced during the 16th annual Scholarship Appreciation Luncheon on Saturday, March 24.

Established by Carol Sue Williams Gilbert ’56 in memory of her late husband, the fund will enable full-time students at UVa-Wise to travel to a foreign country and engage in the study of that country’s culture, language and customs. Several students could benefit from the Sam Gilbert Foreign Study Fund each year.

“Sam and I lived out of the country for many years and enjoyed it,” Mrs. Gilbert said. “We felt like the places we’d lived had added so much to our lives and our understanding of the world. There’s nothing like being there and seeing it for yourself. Traveling is as much a part of a young person’s education as anything else.”

During Mr. Gilbert’s career with Gulf Oil, the couple lived for 14 years in Venezuela and another eight years in London, England. After his retirement in 1985, the Fort Worth, Texas, native settled in his wife’s hometown of Wise. A year later, Mr. Gilbert became the volunteer manager of the Wise County Food Bank, an effort to which he devoted his life for the next 20 years.

Mr. Gilbert passed away suddenly on April 29, 2006, at the age of 73. In recognition of his extraordinary service to elderly residents of Southwest Virginia, his exemplary leadership and compassion and service to others, Mr. Gilbert was posthumously awarded the 2006 James Lawson Barker Outstanding Volunteer Service Award.

For Mrs. Gilbert, the Sam Gilbert Foreign Study Fund will help students be more aware of circumstances in their home communities and those in other parts of the world.

“Travel changes your attitudes if nothing more than making you realize how lucky you are to live where you live and have what you have,” Mrs. Gilbert said.

“Sam would be very happy for UVa-Wise students to have experiences that broaden their lives,” Mrs. Gilbert said. “He always wanted it for our children and he would be very happy to know this would enrich and broaden somebody’s life.”

For more information, contact the Office of College Relations at (276) 328-0130.

Posted March 20, 2007