To: South Salem Class of 1970
Happy Holidays to the Class of 1970
Below in the announcement you will see an update from the Saxon Success Fund Scholarship program.
Thanks very much to all who have supported our Class of 1970 Scholarship Fund! To date we have provided 11 scholarships to deserving South Salem graduating seniors. Attached to this letter are brief bios of the three recipients of our 2025 scholarships. Our financial support truly helps as you can see that one of our scholarship recipients will not be receiving any parental financial help for her ongoing studies at OIT.
As we head into the holiday season, we hope that you all will consider making a contribution to our scholarship fund. Every contribution helps! And as a reminder, at this stage, we have aged to the point where those of us who have retirement accounts can make a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) directly to the Saxon Success Fund and avoid all tax consequences on the amount donated.
Whether you take advantage of the RMD/QCD benefit or make a straight tax deductible charitable donation know that your contributions all matter! Contributions should be made to the Saxon Success Fund and designated to go into the Class of 1970 Scholarship Fund. Donations made by check should be made payable to Saxon Success Fund and mailed to PO Box 3783, Salem, OR 97302. Donations can also be made online through the Saxon Success Find website at: saxonsuccessfund.org
We hope this letter finds you all well and we wish you all a happy holiday season ahead. Thanks again to all who have contributed and thank you all for considering donating now. Go Saxons!
Class of 1970 Scholarship Fund Committee
Ed Whipple
John Ross
Stephanie Schoap
Phil Schradle
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
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Saxon Success Fund Scholarship Update
During our first discussions as a board, the Saxon Success Fund (SSF) wanted a main area of focus to be scholarships. We were inspired by Lara Tiffin’s goal to provide scholarships to each South student who planned to further their training or education post-graduation. We wanted to give hope, opportunities and resources to graduating seniors as they pursue their next steps.
We started our nonprofit during the 2019-20 school year. Despite the complicated challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the fact that we’d just begun fundraising, we were proud to award five $1000 scholarships in June 2020. Since that first year, our effort has grown exponentially. SSF has granted a total of $178,000 in scholarships to 99 deserving Saxons in the six years we’ve been organized. In addition, we have partnered with the Class of 1960 who has a long history of supporting Saxon seniors and has proudly provided scholarships each year since 2011. As of 2025, the Class of 1960 has given 59 scholarships totaling $112,200. The Class of 1970 has funded eleven scholarships for a total of $11,000 since 2023.
In this and upcoming newsletters, we’d like to introduce you to some of our donors and scholarship recipients. We will share some Saxon success stories. In this issue, we're highlighting Rick and Jan Gassner, who have made a difference in the lives of many South High students.
Jan and Rick Gassner meet the mother of a scholar at the SSF scholarship reception in June.
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Meet the Gassners
The Gassner family has had a long and positive relationship with South Salem High School. Rick, Class of 1967, and their three sons are all Saxon graduates. After the building remodel in 2022, Jan and Rick received a tour of the school guided by a senior who impressed them with her poise, enthusiasm, and intellect. She was headed off to college, excited and ready to tackle her career dreams.
Around this same time, the Gassners were reintroduced to the Saxon Success Fund. “With confidence in the review committee, we were inspired to invest in scholarships for four special students who could not have attended college without our help,” Jan tells us. “We met these appreciative recipients face to face at the June reception. We have received updates and thank you notes from several students and parents. Their gratitude and connection is truly heartwarming!”
Students excited for the future
The Gassners shared some of the notes of thanks they have received from students and a parent.
One of the Gassner scholarship recipients is attending Lewis and Clark and studying political science/pre-Law with a career goal to be a prosecutor. She is the daughter of immigrants who were not able to attend college themselves. Her parents are providing financial support to other family members and cannot afford her college expenses. While in high school, she took classes in the law enforcement program at the Salem-Keizer School District’s Career Technical Education Center (CTEC), as well as college prep coursework. She touches base with the Gassners periodically updating them on her classes and club activities.
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Another student who is studying occupational therapy at WOU, checked-in with the Gassners at the end of her first year. “My school year was very busy and exciting. I really love it at Western. I have gotten all As the whole year. The work has been really challenging but I honestly love it,” she said. She signed off with “Thank you so much for supporting me with my educational journey. It means the world to me. I hope you know how grateful I am. You have made a huge difference in my life.”
The mom of another Gassner scholarship recipient sent this to Jan and Rick:
“I just wanted to take a moment to send you a huge thank you for all you have done…” She continued, “As we get ready to send her off for another year at OSU, I cannot fully express what a blessing your scholarship has been to her (and I). You have made such a huge impact on her ability to focus on her studies and her future. Thank you for your kindness and generosity to her. We will forever be grateful.”
Continued support
The Saxon Success Fund began awarding the Rick and Jan Gassner scholarships beginning in the 2023-24 school year. Ten students have received them to date, with two of them receiving extensions for their second year.
We feel deeply honored and grateful for the partnership with the Gassner family. Each year we have seen more students able to pursue their career goals with the help of our generous Saxon community.
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