Foundation Announces Charles Martin Scholarship Recipient

The Community Foundation of St. Joseph County has announced Marcus Henderson as the recipient of this year’s Charles Martin “Touch a Life” scholarship. Henderson is a graduate of Riley High School in South Bend and will attend Purdue University this fall to study psychology.

The four-year renewable Charles Martin “Touch a Life” Scholarship awards $5,000 in tuition assistance to African-American high school seniors who live in St. Joseph County. Also, Charles Martin Scholars receive an opportunity to give back to their community through a paid $3,750 summer internship.

Charles E. Martin, Sr., Executive Director of the YMCA Urban Youth Services Program for more than 20 years, had a special ability to relate to young people. He knew how to challenge them to think about the future. Dream big, Charles would say. Set goals. Commit to achieving them. Because of Charles, literally hundreds of young African-American students from South Bend went onto college—and, once they were there, Charles pushed his “kids” to work hard, earn good grades, and finish school. For Charles, the greatest demonstration of love was to help a young person succeed.

Charles Martin continues to impact lives today through the “Touch a Life” scholarship, created in his honor by “Charles’s kids,” friends, colleagues, and others in partnership with the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County. Because of Charles Martin, local students who receive this scholarship are able to attend and graduate from top-notch colleges and universities, shaping their futures for the better. Over $250,000 has been awarded to local students from the Charles Martin “Touch a Life” Scholarship Fund over the past decade.