Helping Graduates Achieve Their Dreams

It started with one altruistic and forward-thinking person and continues with the support of our community and beyond. The Buchanan Promise opens the door to a brighter Buchanan by investing in our local students today.

In 2016, the Michigan Gateway Community Foundation was named the beneficiary of a very generous multi-million dollar bequest to support a new scholarship program for Buchanan Community School students in Buchanan, Michigan.

Modeled after the Kalamazoo Promise concept, this scholarship is available to graduating students who reside inside the BCS district boundary. Students must be enrolled in at least 9th – 12th grade to be eligible. The goals of the Buchanan Promise are to promote post-secondary education, cultivate economic development, and create a more vibrant caring community.

The Buchanan Promise Impact


How it all began: Wally’s Story

Walter E. Schirmer, Sr. was President of Clark Equipment, headquartered in Buchanan, starting in 1963. He was one of the four founders of the Michigan Gateway Community Foundation in 1978, where he established two permanent endowment funds, the Walter E. Schirmer Memorial Scholarship, and the Walter E. Schirmer Fund for the Buchanan Library. He had a deep love and concern for his community, rooted in traditional values. He was devoted to serving Buchanan and encouraged his Clark employees to do so.

His legacy was not lost on his son, Walt, Jr. Wally, as he was known, established his own fund in 1994 with the Michigan Gateway Community Foundation, through which many community organizations and projects have received support. In October 2015, he discussed his estate plan with the Foundation from which, over the last months of his life, emerged the concept of a new and exciting idea called a promise scholarship.

Promise programs seek to transform communities by making a long-term investment in education through place-based based scholarships. They work to expand access to and ensure success in higher education, deepen the college-going culture in both the K-12 system and the community as a whole, and support local community economic development.

Walter E. Schirmer, Jr enthusiastically endorsed this concept for the Buchanan community, his hometown. His permanently endowed gift to Michigan Gateway Community Foundation will significantly impact future generations in Buchanan, continuing the legacy established by his father years ago.


Mission

Help Buchanan graduates achieve their dreams by supporting post-secondary success.

Vision

Enrich Buchanan to be a community of choice to live and educate one's children.

Contact

We are happy to help! Contact us with any questions.


Email
info@buchananpromise.com

Phone
(269) 695-3521

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