Marty (Schneider) Boyer ’78 likes to say, “This place is the great equalizer.” In this case, she’s talking about Fox & Goose Public House, a popular Sacramento restaurant. She likes to host SCU alumni networking events here because everyone from recent grads to political insiders feels comfortable in the homey British pub.
She could also be talking about her experience at Santa Clara. “My education gave me an affirmation and a sense of promise for my future—that is an incredible gift.”
Boyer’s first job came during the summer following second grade. She picked strawberries near her Bellingham, Wash., home. She had three siblings, and the family lived off the income of her stepfather’s job as a city electrician. For the blue-collar family, a university education was simply not an option.
Boyer continued to work through high school, then as a college student while raising a young daughter. At 25, she visited Santa Clara and loved it, hoping to transfer. But Boyer figured that she would be priced out of her dream.
Which is where a modest amount given by one family, the Dunnes, changed the picture: That gift had grown into a full scholarship that covered Boyer’s education. She leveraged what she learned at Santa Clara into a career as a journalist and now as a longtime media relations consultant, specializing in communications, media strategy, and training related to public policy.
“I am living proof that you don’t have to donate millions to make a difference at Santa Clara,” Boyer says. “A piece of [the Dunnes’] generosity came to me, and I can match that piece with my legacy gift. The bottom line is that, in my life, Santa Clara remains a miracle that changed my future.”
You can talk to Liz Gallegos Glynn in the Office of Gift Planning about how to grow more miracles with a scholarship. Reach her at 408-554-2108 or giftplanning@scu.edu.