The Gene & Julianne DeFeudis Endowed Scholarship
Criteria: (Ten $1000.00 Awards) The Gene & Julianne DeFeudis Endowed Scholarship will be awarded to incoming or full-time students with a minimum grade point average of 3.0. The applicant should provide evidence of financial need. Furthermore, candidates should provide a short essay attesting to the need for this scholarship and submit it with the scholarship application. Preference will be given to students entering their freshman year of study.
Worcester State Foundation Board member Gene J. DeFeudis believes that with a little support and a lot of motivation, most people can achieve their dreams. That’s why he established this scholarship to help students pursue their educational goals.
Gene grew up in a family of nine children on Worcester’s East Side. He began working at a young age, excelled at football and track at school, and was offered athletic scholarships to several colleges. But concerns about a serious neck injury kept him from accepting the offers. Instead, he studied accounting before joining a personal finance company, where he became an over-achiever. He put in long hours and moved seven times in eight years, including moves to New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee, and Texas.
Gene’s hard work paid off. In 1974 he launched his own consumer finance business, specializing in boats, manufactured homes, and recreational vehicles. The company became nationally recognized and was operating in twenty-two states when he sold it to a bank in 1999. He also founded a realty corporation, an insurance agency, and an investment company and was an original investor in and director of Flagship Bank and Trust Company.
Today, Gene divides his time between his business interests and his philanthropic interests, which include UMass Medical School / Worcester Foundation for Biomedical Research, The Greater Worcester Community Foundation, The Hope Lodge, Jeremiah’s Inn, the American Red Cross, the United Way, and the YMCA.
When Gene decided to make a substantial donation to an educational institution, he chose Worcester State University because “it’s a college where people who have financial needs can go with some support. I believe that with a little support and a lot of motivation, almost anyone can achieve their dreams.”
This generous gift from Gene will enable countless students to continue their educational pursuits and achieve their dreams.