We are saddened to report that a great friend to our school, Mr. Eugene “Gene” McMahan, has passed away. He was 92 years old.
Gene was an extraordinary, generous person. For 25 consecutive years, he donated a full, in-state tuition scholarship to a pharmacy student in memory of his daughter and CU Pharmacy alumna Teresa McMahan-Shulkin, beginning at a time when in-state tuition was approximately $4,000 and continuing through last year when in-state tuition was nearly $31,000.
Gene established an endowment to maintain Teresa’s scholarship in perpetuity – a monumental legacy, the only one of its kind on our campus. Teresa, who passed away in 1993 after a battle with Lupus, graduated from the School of Pharmacy in 1976. In addition, Gene also funded a full, in-state tuition scholarship at his alma mater, the Colorado School of Mines.
“What is most remarkable about Gene is that he was not wealthy by the standards of most donors who give at this amount,” said Ralph Altiere, Dean of the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. “To have maintained this level of giving for a quarter of a century speaks to how much he valued education.”
Wendy Serrano is the current recipient of the Teresa McMahan-Shulkin Memorial Scholarship. “Words cannot express how much your generous support means to us. Scholarships do more than provide financial relief – they inspire us to do good, and carry forward the legacy behind their names,” said Serrano as she addressed the crowd, including McMahan, at last December’s SSPPS Scholarship Luncheon.
We are proud to have had Gene as a kind and generous benefactor to our school, and we are grateful for his legacy that will live on for our students.