By Kathy Chouteau
Contra Costa College (CCC) Foundation Board Member Jaswant (Jay) Singh Gill seized the opportunity at his 80th birthday party—attended by 200 friends and family members—to give a gift benefitting those who really need it.
The gift? A $250,000 donation to CCC Foundation to support endowed scholarships, according to the foundation. The endowment will generate approximately $15,000 each year for student scholarships through the “Gill Family Educational Aid to Students Scholarship.” Executive Director Sara Marcellino accepted the gift on behalf of the foundation.
Mr. Gill knows all too well how a donation to education can change lives. He once benefited from scholarships in India when his family couldn’t afford higher education. He relocated to the United States in 1972 equipped with his education and $6 in his pocket, and worked at Johnson & Johnson and other companies before launching a business with his sons in 1987.
“We should remember the path we’ve been through and how many others may be on the same path behind us,” said Mr. Gill. “And once we cross that bridge, it’s always important to extend a helping hand for others to cross that same bridge, too.”
Throughout the years Mr. Gill’s wealth grew, and in 2015, he established scholarships at the college in India where he once received a free education, according to the CCC Foundation. His friend, Shamsher, was a statistics professor at Contra Costa College at the time and shared stories about struggling students living in their cars and not having enough money to fix a tire or to buy food. So he saw fit to donate to CCC too.
Mr. Gill made his first gift of $5,000 to the CCC Foundation in 2017. After attending the Scholarship Awards Ceremony where the students received their scholarships and showed appreciation, he continued with annual donations. He also joined the foundation’s Board of Directors.
At his recent birthday party, Mr. Gill shared the story of his educational journey in India and wondered where he would be today if a helping hand had not been extended to him. “Being a top-notch student throughout my schooling, I still would not have been able to achieve my degrees if scholarships and tuition-free education was not available to me.”
Today, Mr. Gill “walks the talk,” said the foundation, by challenging everyone to do philanthropic work by finding a place where a small helping hand can make the largest difference.