 |
| Bob and Ann Nelson |
Dear Friends,
Bob returned to college in January of 1979, taking 21
years for his education to resume. (Note: he flunked out of UK during his
sophomore year!) His life had changed
paths and he was anxious to learn more about the God who had brought him out of
a life of addiction. He had a passion to
learn all he could about Him. At age 39,
he found himself the recipient of a scholarship which would permit him to begin
classes at Asbury College (now Asbury University).
For the next 6 ½ years he excitedly drove to Wilmore, KY
and soaked up the teachings of wonderful professors at Asbury College and
Asbury Seminary. In the spring of 1984
he graduated from Seminary, ready to preach wherever the Lord sent him. I sometimes looked at him in amazement when
he was studying. This was a man who had
only read the sports section and here he was reading hours at a time. As he used to say, seminary was the NFL of
reading.
We were blessed for the opportunity he had to attend
school. He knew he needed the education
to help him in this new life path, and we talked and dreamed about it often,
but realized we had daughters close to college age and we felt they deserved a
chance at college first. So we put these
dreams in the back of our minds. But
God had other plans. Through a
scholarship, our dreams came to fruition.
We were so grateful for this help.
This scholarship changed our lives and our future.
Before Bob passed away in 2008, our daughters began
talking about establishing a scholarship in his name which would help Asbury
students with their education. We all
had talked about what an impact it had made in all our lives. Because of his sudden death, Bob never knew about
this idea in our hearts. We spoke with Asbury shortly after his passing, and set
in motion the plans for an endowed scholarship benefiting students who were non-traditional.
Our wonderful friends who loved Bob began to help us
raise funds for this venture, and we raised several thousand dollars to put
toward the scholarship. In order to
reach the necessary goal, we had to get creative, so the idea for a golf
tournament was born. Those who knew Bob,
knew of his passion for golf, and we thought this was a perfect fit to raise
the money.
But, this is not just another golf tournament. It is an investment in the future of people you may never meet. It is an opportunity to help someone who
wants to study at this special University, but does not have the means to do
so.
Yes, this golf tournament is about spending an afternoon on an October day with
old and new friends, remembering the fun times Bob had playing golf, and best
of all, because of your generosity, giving students a chance to make a
difference in their lives. This
tournament can have eternal consequences.
And to quote Bob, “golf helps”… in
more ways than one.
Hope to see you in October!
Sincerely,
Ann
