A memorial endowment has been established in honor of an Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts instructor who died during the fall semester.
The Clifford O. Happy Memorial Endowment honors Cliff Happy, a humanities instructor who joined the ASMSA faculty in August 2006. Happy died unexpectedly in September 2014.
The endowment will allow ASMSA to offer confidential financial assistance to needy students throughout the school year. It honors Happy’s efforts to help at least one student a year. Happy worked with ASMSA’s dean of students to identify a needy student annually in order to confidentially provide that student with spending money each month.
Happy’s family wanted to continue helping ASMSA students in his honor. Georgia Happy approached ASMSA about establishing a fund that would continue her husband’s legacy of aiding students. The family made a gift of $20,000 to establish the fund, ensuring that the endowment will be able to aid students in perpetuity.
Georgia Happy said the family felt it was important for Happy’s legacy of giving to continue at the school that he loved. She said Happy would tell her about the various needs of his students and how he wanted to help take care of them.
“ASMSA was the favorite part of his life,” she said. “Having known him since he was 22 years old, teaching at ASMSA was the most joy he had. … I know that was his heart to help the kids who were financially strapped.”
The endowment will provide $50 gift certificates to a minimum of 15 low-income ASMSA students each year. As the endowment matures and additional gifts are contributed to the program, funding may be used for additional support throughout the year at the discretion of the Happy family.
The Happy family also gave ASMSA $750 in December to provide the first round of gift cards to 15 students before the endowment was officially established.
Georgia Happy said the outpouring of love and stories the family has received from alumni, students and their parents since Happy’s death has been tremendous. She was surprised at the number of handwritten letters the family has received.
“In this age of Facebook and emails, it’s amazing how many handwritten letters we received from students and parents sharing stories I didn’t know about — stories about how Cliff had helped them. It has been such an outpouring. He would be so surprised. I don’t think anyone could know how humble he was,” she said.
One student’s father shared in a letter how Happy helped his daughter with an emotional struggle through which she was going. Happy served 22 years in the U.S. Marine Corps before retiring as a First Sergeant in 2003 and becoming an educator. From his military experience, he recognized that the student was suffering from symptoms similar to post-traumatic stress disorder after an undisclosed incident.
“He was the only person who broached the subject with her and her family and got her help,” Georgia Happy said.
Vicki Hinz, interim director of institutional advancement, said she has heard similar sentiments about Happy’s impact at ASMSA.
“Students and alumni have shared with me the impact that Cliff Happy had on their lives,” she said. “He left his mark on ASMSA and the students he so deeply cared and provided for each year. This year’s senior class is planning to plant a tree in honor of their teacher and mentor. Whether a tree or the Clifford O. Happy Memorial Endowment, Cliff’s lifetime of giving will be remembered at ASMSA.”
To make a gift to the Clifford O. Happy Memorial Endowment, visit http://asmsa.me/happyendowment.