Passing It On

On my last day of high school, I learned a lesson that has stuck with me ever since. That was the day in 2003 that Beaverton High School announced the students who were awarded scholarships for college. As I sat in the audience listening to the inspiring stories behind these scholarships, I was more than a little surprised to hear my own name called out as a scholarship winner.  

I walked up to the stage, feeling honored and humbled. After the assembly, my father pulled me aside and told me I should go thank the person who created one of the scholarships that I received. His name was Jim Moore, BHS class of 1949. After graduating from high school, Jim went on to finish college and then law school. He served in the US Army and later started work at a law firm. After that Jim turned to public service and served as Mayor of Beaverton. When he retired, Jim and his wife Donna started their own scholarship. 

I remember walking over to the mayor, shaking his hand, and thanking him for my scholarship. At home, my parents said that it would be great if I could establish my own scholarship one day. It stayed in my mind. 

So did the stories of people that inspired the two other scholarships that I won that day. There was Michael Pericin, BHS class of 1979, a three-sport varsity athlete in soccer, basketball and baseball who also carried a 3.8 GPA. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with a brain tumor his senior year and was unable to finish college. Michael spent the next 20 years battling brain cancer, but his friends remembered him coming to Christmas lunch each year with the same positive spirit. When he passed away, those same friends established a memorial scholarship in his name. 

Finally, there was Fred Tarasawa, who spent his career teaching math at BHS. After his passing, his wife Connie established his memorial scholarship. 

With the help of these scholarships, national scholarships, financial support from my parents, student loans and financial aid, I attended Stanford University, where I finished my BS, MS and PhD in Electrical Engineering. This higher education prepared me well for technical challenges in Silicon Valley. For the past 10 years, I have worked at Apple, where I manage a team working on the iPhone.  

I saved money each year until I finally established my own scholarship in 2022, 19 years after high school graduation. I wanted my scholarship to be endowed with OCF, so it would be my legacy even after I am gone. But I also thought, why wait until the end of my life to start giving it out?  

The great part of awarding a scholarship is getting to know the awardees. Every year, I talk with the latest recipient. I also host an annual meeting with all scholarship alumni, where they share advice and support one another. I hope that they all feel the same community spirit and support that was given to me. 

Maybe one day, they will start a scholarship of their own.