Kay and Merle A. Horst, (UNK Communications, Courtesy)
KEARNEY — Alumni Merle A. and Kay (Puttergill) Horst left their family farms years ago to attend Kearney State College, now the University of Nebraska at Kearney, but their affinity for their alma mater and farming has never dwindled.
The Horsts, of Miromar Lakes, Florida, made a $500,000 gift to endow the Horst Brothers UNK Business Scholarship in the College of Business and Technology. The scholarship will help undergraduate students from Nebraska farming communities complete their education while easing their student debt.
Three scholarships will be awarded annually to students – a sophomore, a junior and a senior – majoring in accounting or business administration. The generous gift was made through the University of Nebraska Foundation; Merle and Kay are both foundation trustees.
“We are deeply grateful to Merle and Kay Horst for their generosity,” said Brooke Envick, newly appointed dean of the College of Business and Technology. “The Horst Brothers UNK Business Scholarship creates meaningful opportunities for students from farming communities to succeed as leaders in business and accounting. This investment in our students’ futures reflects the values of hard work, character and education that define both the Horst family and our college.”
Merle, ’70, and his brothers, Bernie, ’72, and Ron, ’76, are all UNK graduates. They grew up and worked on their parents’ livestock and crop production farm in the southwest corner of Hamilton County, graduating from high school in Giltner. It was on the farm where the boys learned how to work, which carried forward into their lives and careers.
“My dad said we were the best hired men he ever had,” Merle said. “Our pay was great: corn for our 4-H livestock – sheep, cattle and hogs. The four days at the county fair were essentially our only vacation from farming.”
The Horst brothers were encouraged to attend college by their parents, Merle E. and Imogene Horst. Their parents agreed to pay for the first year of college, but expenses beyond that first year were the responsibility of each boy. All three chose Kearney State because “that was all we could afford,” and majored in business administration, Merle said. Merle was a four-year letterwinner in track and field, specializing in the 400 intermediate hurdles and the 4×400 relay.
UNK was also where the brothers met their future wives, who were all from Nebraska farms and ranches and majored in education. Bernie’s wife, Margene (Kuhlmann) Horst, and Kay both graduated in 1971. Ron’s wife, Rita (Freese) Horst, earned her degree in 1975.
To be eligible for the Horst Brothers scholarship, students must have grown up in a farming household, be a sophomore or above working toward a degree in accounting or business administration and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher. Students also must demonstrate a strong character and the ability to work hard. Scholarships may be renewed if the recipients remain in good academic standing and continue to meet the criteria.
“We believe in education and hard work,” Merle said. “Establishing the Horst Brothers UNK Business Scholarship is just our small way of paying it back while providing some encouragement to students from similar backgrounds to pursue an education and career in business.”
Merle and Kay Horst also previously created scholarships for UNK Athletics and the College of Arts and Sciences.
Their scholarship gifts support Only in Nebraska: A Campaign for Our University’s Future. The campaign seeks to engage 150,000 benefactors to raise $3 billion to support the University of Nebraska. UNK’s goals are to engage 12,000 donors to raise $70 million. Support for students is the campaign’s top priority.
