Lyon College awarded $400K by the Sturgis Charitable Trust

BATESVILLE — The Trustees of the Roy & Christine Sturgis Charitable Trust recently awarded Lyon College a $400,000 grant to help fund two new residence halls that are under construction. Most grants from the Roy & Christine Sturgis Charitable Trust are for one year; however, multiyear awards are sometimes granted. The grant will be awarded in four $100,000 installments.

“We at Lyon College are pleased to have the privilege of extending our relationship with the Sturgis Trust and its new Arkansas liaison, Beth Coulson,” said Gina Garrett, executive director of advancement at Lyon. “With this grant, the trust’s cumulative support of Lyon College will top $1 million. It is a significant milestone, one that will benefit Arkansas students for generations.”

The Roy & Christine Sturgis Charitable Trust was established in 1981 with the goal of promoting quality education and cultural, human-services and health care programming. Roy Sturgis was one of 10 children. He dropped out of school after the 10th grade to join the Navy during World War I. He married Christine Johns in 1933, and the couple became very successful in the timber, lumber and sawmill industries in Arkansas and owned other prosperous business enterprises. While they did not have children, the couple were particularly interested in educational opportunities for young people.

The Roy & Christine Sturgis Charitable Trust awards about 65 percent of its grants to Arkansas institutions. The remainder of grants are awarded in Texas. The grant awarded to Lyon will support the construction of two new residence halls on campus that will house 100 students each. As a result of Lyon’s record-breaking enrollment this fall, the campus is undergoing several physical expansions to accommodate the growing student body.

“We are truly grateful to the Sturgis Charitable Trust for their ongoing support of Lyon College,” Lyon President Donald Weatherman said. “It is especially helpful as we work to grow our student population to better serve this community.”