Pat Haden, center, and scholarship recipients Bert Gonzales and Alexandra McElroy
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The Cycle of Generosity
George H. Mayr Foundation Scholarship
By Katherine Yungmee Kim
Roberto Gonzales has been named a Mayr Scholar — not once but twice. A
senior from Fremont, Calif., majoring in political science, with a
minor in news media and society, Gonzales said that he has used both
scholarships to help his parents pay for the cost of college.
“I feel honored to be a recipient of this scholarship multiple times,”
Gonzales said. “When I met the administrators of the scholarship, I was
told about Mr. Mayr and his wonderful contributions. I became amazed at
how this man could overcome sickness and other obstacles.”
George Henry Mayr, born in 1868 in Illinois, was a self-made
entrepreneur and real estate developer. As a child, he wanted to be a
doctor, but it was an impossible dream due to the prohibitively
expensive educational costs. In his late 30s, he contracted typhoid
fever, which led to a chronic stomach disorder. He discovered a French
remedy that worked for him, bottled it, and prescribed it to others —
creating Mayr’s Wonderful Remedy, a $9,000-a-month business.
Eventually, he moved to Southern California, where he pursued real
estate.
As someone who never earned a college degree, Mayr believed in the
opportunities of education and helped several students financially
pursue their academic dreams. In 1949, he formally established the
George H. Mayr Foundation. He asked that support be available to
California students, who have at least finished the eighth grade, and
who would not use the funds to study medicine. (Apparently, Mayr had a
bone to pick with doctors, as no one had ever properly diagnosed his
ailment.)
Alexandra McElroy, another 2004-5 recipient, will use her scholarship
to travel to Spain. “I hope that studying abroad will broaden my
perspective on international affairs and aid me in my studies of
foreign relations,” said the sophomore international relations major.
USC Trustee Pat Haden (’75), who is on the College’s Board of
Councilors, chairs the Mayr Foundation. Although he never met Mayr, he
credited the philanthropist with having great foresight. “All he was
trying to do was help people chase their dreams,” he said.
Haden said that the $25 million trust uses its proceeds to help
students from some 67 schools in California. He said the Mayr
Foundation also supports many inner-city high school students. “Kids
tend to underdream,” he said. “We want them to have legitimate,
big-term dreams.”
The message Haden wants to deliver to recipients is to pass on the
generosity. “I tell them, ‘You’ve never met George Mayr and he did
something nice for you. Do something nice for someone who comes after
you.’”
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