The Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine received a gift over $1 million dollars from the Lucky Seven Foundation that will help students over the next four years continue to serve rural and underserved communities as primary and family medicine physicians.
With this grant, funds from the Lucky Seven Foundation will award $20,000 scholarships to three students in various cohorts each year.
“It is hard to put into words how much the Lucky Seven scholarship has helped me financially by easing the burden of student loans for my medical education,” said Class of 2024 MD student Shelby Koch. “I hope to be able to pay forward this generosity by helping in underserved communities in Washington State. I want to do this by serving as a primary-care physician and building connections with communities within my state.”
Manson and Frances Backus created the Lucky Seven Foundation, or “Lucky Seven,” with the hope of giving back and improving the Puget Sound Basin community where they lived and prospered for so many years. Since 1996, the Lucky Seven Foundation has provided grants to nonprofit organizations that benefit causes such as health, welfare, education, arts, and the environment. The Lucky Seven Foundation primarily helps organizations working in the Puget Sound Basin.
In addition to scholarship funding, the Lucky Seven will also provide support for emergency funding for WSU College of Medicine students. In a time of need, students can receive support during an unexpected hardship or when they have limited financial resources.
“As I work my way through this unpredictable first year of school, I will have increased ease of mind thanks to the Lucky Seven Foundation,” said MS2 MD student Daniel Prieto.
The Lucky Seven Foundation is playing a huge role supporting the college’s mission to solve problems in challenging health care environments across the state of Washington.
“I am truly excited to be at the stage in my life where I am finally able to give back to Washington communities,” said MS2 MD student Megan Lee.