Siena’s student union is named for professional golfer Gene Sarazen H’78. “The Squire” was the first golfer to win all four major golf tournaments to complete the career Grand Slam. During the 1935 Master’s, Sarazen hit a double eagle on the 15th hole. It became known as “the shot heard round the world.” Sarazen also invented the sand wedge and, for more than 30 years, has been ensuring that Siena College students don’t get stuck in a financial trap while pursuing their degrees.
Sarazen received an honorary degree from Siena College in 1978 and subsequently established a scholarship. Although he never finished school, Sarazen’s dream was to set up a permanent way to provide for Siena students with financial need; students who “reflected the high personal, athletic and intellectual ideals of he and his wife Mary.”
Today, the Sarazen Scholarship endowment is worth $2 million. In 2013-14, it will provide 20 students (five from each class) with $4,000 scholarships. These funds, like other scholarships, allow students to receive the education of a lifetime.
Patrick Glenn ’15 and Angeline Acierno ’15, two Sarazen Scholarship recipients, met Sarazen’s daughter, Mary Ann, at the 32nd annual Gene and Mary Sarazen Invitational golf tournament at Schuyler Meadows Club in Loudonville, N.Y., on July 29.
“It was an honor to meet her,” said Glenn, a history major who is also pursuing a Pre-Law certificate and wants to become a lawyer. “It’s nice meeting people who are helping with your education.”
This year’s golf tournament raised more than $56,000 to be added to the Sarazen endowment.
“Without (the Sarazen Scholarship), I would not be able to afford Siena financially,” Acierno said. “I couldn’t picture myself anywhere else.”
