As of Friday morning, James Madison University had confirmed that just over $25,000 in gifts and pledges to support the Alison B. Parker Memorial Fund had been received to date.
Later in the day on Friday, local alumnus and member of the JMU Alumni Association Board, Joe Showker (’79) and his wife Debbie (’78), pledged to match the NEXT $25,000 given, dollar for dollar. Their hope is to help the Parker family in celebrating the memory of Alison at JMU through the legacy of a permanent endowment. The Parker family has asked that the scholarship be awarded to a student in the School of Media Arts and Design at JMU.
WDBJ television reporter Alison Parker and her colleague were killed on Wed., Aug. 26, 2015 while reporting live from Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia. Another individual was seriously injured. Alison graduated from James Madison University in 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in media arts and design. She was a reporter and editor for the student newspaper, The Breeze.
Gifts to the fund can be made online at http://bit.ly/1K3SgXq or by sending a check to:
James Madison University
ATTN: Alison B. Parker Memorial Fund
Advancement Gifts & Records MSC 3603
Harrisonburg, VA 22807
Source: JMU Media Relations