Alumnus Chad Cole ’99 and Spring Arbor University announce the establishment of an endowed fund in honor of his late daughter, Miranda Evangelene Cole, who passed away in 2011. Miranda would have turned two on February 5, 2013. As a way to honor her today and for many years to come, Chad Cole is establishing the Miranda Collection at Spring Arbor University, which will assist the Spring Arbor University art department in building a University collection of fine art, which aesthetically enhances the campus, as well as adds to the educational study of SAU art majors.
On his blog, Cole wrote, “My beautiful daughter, Miranda Evangelene, impacted the world in a way that very few children who only live for three days ever have a chance. As I pondered what her life would have been like, who she would have grown to be, what paths she might have chosen to follow, I was inspired to try to remember her in a way that would ‘grow’ and continue to impact people for generations to come. In coming up with the concept for The Miranda Collection, I hope that I have succeeded.”
This fund is open and donations can be made online at arbor.edu/give (please designate Miranda Collection) or by mailing a check payable to Spring Arbor University for “The Miranda Collection” to: SAU Advancement Office, 106 E. Main Street, Spring Arbor, MI 49283.
“The seed has been planted and, just as Miranda would have grown over the years, it is my hope that this fund will grow, too,” says Cole, who recently returned to Spring Arbor University to pursue a second bachelor’s degree. “I hope that there are those who, over the course of time, will find it in their hearts to add to The Miranda Collection. Just as I would have watched Miranda grow, watching anxiously as she matured into the adult I would have hoped her to be, I hope to watch The Miranda Collection with that same nervous anticipation.”
In addition to the endowed fund in memory of his daughter, Cole established a separate endowed scholarship fund to remember his late wife, Sara Jean Cole, who was an art major at Spring Arbor University in 1990s. The Sara J. Cole Memorial Portrait Award will provide a half-tuition scholarship to a full-time Spring Arbor University art student, for use during his/her senior year. It is made possible through the generous contributions of Chad A Cole; the Cole family; Visser and Associates, PLLC; and, many others who loved Sara and the joy and beauty she brought into the world. Sara attended Spring Arbor University from 1994 to 1999 and received her diploma posthumously in May 2011. She majored in Art while attending the university. He also established the Cole Color Award, a scholarship fund for art students, in her honor.
For information about Spring Arbor University’s endowed funds, visit arbor.edu/advancement. For more information about Cole and the establishment of The Miranda Collection, the Cole Color Award or the The Sara J Cole Memorial Portrait Award, visit Cole’s blog at http://sadandchara.blogspot.com.
Comments are closed.