The original version of this story originally appeared in our 2014 Annual Report.
When Katy Webb passed away, her husband Matt and their children, Emily and James, wanted to do something very special to honor her memory. In 2014, they opened the Katherine C. Webb Memorial Scholarship Fund with the Inland Empire Community Foundation.
Katy and Matt met at Stanford University, married, and started their family in Riverside where Matt worked at his family’s business, Albert A. Webb Associates. Katy worked as Controller of Hunter Engineering Company. Later, Katy left her professional career to focus more on her children and to serve in leadership positions with various Riverside nonprofits, including the Riverside County Philharmonic, National Charity League, Junior League, and California Riverside Ballet.
Katy dedicated much of her time to the Poly High School Mock Trial team in Riverside, and encouraged both Emily and James to participate on the team. She was also a big supporter of Poly High School, where her two kids, her husband Matt, and both of Matt’s parents attended. She believed strongly that economic considerations should not limit college choices for young people, and that college students should not be burdened with overwhelming debt.
With this in mind, Katy’s family established the Katherine C. Webb Memorial Scholarship Fund in her honor. The endowed fund provides annual scholarships to graduates of Poly High School who have financial need and have participated in Mock Trial or other student activities that were important to Katy. The funds are held at IECF so that scholarships can be awarded in perpetuity. The selection process is conducted by The Greater Riverside Dollars for Scholars.
“I chose IECF for a number of reasons,” said Matt. “The Foundation has a strong and responsible leadership that is committed to doing the right things in support of our region. The endowment is being managed intelligently, striking a good balance between growth and conservatism.”
Matt and his children reached out to family and friends and provided an opportunity for them to also honor Katy by donating to the endowed fund.
“People were incredibly generous, and our fundraising far exceeded expectations,” said Matt. Over time, Matt would like to build the endowment further, mainly through contributions from him and his children, possibly assisted by others who might want to donate. “The $6,000 a year that we currently give is a small amount considering the large cost of a college education. We would like to do more in the future.”
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