Growing a Legacy

Fourteen dollars, fourteen days. That was the challenge that Geoff Weathersby, a senior at the University of Richmond, heard from his professor on the first day of class. The goal: to get students studying entrepreneurship to take a step of faith and see what venture they could succeed in with fourteen dollars over fourteen days. For Geoff, this became a personal challenge.

The Weathersby family is raising funds to endow an annual scholarship in honor of the life of Dr. Terry Weathersby at Eastern University. Dr. Weathersby, a beloved Eastern psychology professor, passed away on Oct. 23, 2011, after a five year battle with cancer.

The Dr. Terrence Weathersby Memorial Scholarship will be awarded annually to a rising senior who has demonstrated excellence in the classroom, as well as motivation and a passion for the psychology field.

“We are so excited. There is no better gift that we can think of to give back to Eastern, the Psychology Department and the students, than something like this—something that will live on—a legacy,” Mrs. Jill Weathersby said. “We wanted to do something for Eastern because they did so much for Terry and were so wonderful, caring and loving. It was such a blessing for us as a family to see.”

Geoff extended the length of the campaign to 60 days, with the specific goal of reaching $20,000. At a 5% interest rate, that will guarantee the $1,000 scholarship to continue indefinitely.

Geoff launched the project at 7 pm on January 15. “By the next day, we had raised over $3,000, just through putting it on my Facebook,” he said. “I encouraged others to make it their statuses—by the end of the night fifty people had done so . . . I think that’s what generated the flurry of activity.”

The donors’ names are posted either on the bulletin board in the Psychology Hallway or around the tree planted in memory of Dr. Weathersby outside of McInnis Hall, depending on the donation.

“I want people to see the impact of their gift,” Geoff said. “No matter what day or what amount, your donation affects my family and, in a very tangible way, the Psychology Department.” A full explanation of the rewards system is located on the R

ocketHub page.

The campaign will continue on RocketHub until March 15, 2012.

To contribute to Dr. Weathersby’s legacy and follow the fund’s successes, visit http://rkthb.co/5194. Geoff also shares updates through the Twitter account @rtwmemorialfund.