Charles L. Wilson Scholarship

BLAISE CORDERO HOMETOWN: Kettle Falls, Wash. ACADEMIC YEAR: Senior MAJOR: Music MINOR: Psychology

Charles Wilson graduated from Whitworth in 1953 with a double major in economics and business management. With a bequest to Whitworth in his will, Wilson established an endowed scholarship—the first of which was awarded in 2007. To date, 15 students have benefited from Wilson’s legacy gift.

This year’s recipient of the Charles L. Wilson Scholarship, Blaise Cordero ’21, shares its impact on his own life: “This scholarship was a torch of light in a dark time. It’s so daunting to face what’s owed every year for tuition, and this scholarship helped lighten that load. This scholarship also helped energize my faith in myself and my path—Whitworth is where I’m supposed to be right now, and this scholarship helped prove that.

“I have greatly enjoyed many aspects of my Whitworth experience, but the most significant experience I’ve had thus far at Whitworth is my Psychology of Trauma course. Our professor, Dr. Mark Baird, masterfully guided us through eye-opening and sometimes disturbing material with compassion. This course, to me, truly encompasses Whitworth’s goal of an education that focuses simultaneously on the mind and the heart.”

Blaise hopes to honor Wilson’s contribution to his education by continuing to pursue music throughout his lifetime. “I hope to pursue a career that combines my love of music and composition with psychological therapy by researching how music can heal hearts and change minds.”

With the support of planned gifts like that given by Charles Wilson, students like Blaise are able to serve a world that desperately needs them.