Carolyn Watson was a woman of action with a heart for community. The longtime chair and CEO of Shamrock Bancshares loved doing things to assist her community of Coalgate, Oklahoma, and give others the opportunity to go further in life. Born in Ada, Okla., and a graduate of East Central University, she knew where the needs and opportunities existed and understood the value of blessing others with the gifts she was given.
In 1995, she established the Carolyn Watson Rural Oklahoma Community Foundation at the Oklahoma City Community Foundation to benefit the seven communities where Shamrock Bank operated. Through this fund, she supported grants for improvements to firefighting equipment, teaching enhancements for classrooms and public libraries and scholarships for teachers seeking continuing education.
Seeking to help students in rural Oklahoma attend college, in 2010, Carolyn also established a scholarship endowment fund at the Oklahoma City Community Foundation. The Carolyn Watson Opportunities Scholarship provides awards to seniors graduating from rural Oklahoma high schools.
After Carolyn's death in 2014, a substantial gift from her estate increased the endowments, expanding the number of rural communities eligible for grants and impacting Oklahomans for generations to come.
Read more:
- Carolyn Watson: Making a Difference in Rural Oklahoma
- Providing Opportunities for Rural Students
- Sprouting Opportunities in Rural Oklahoma
- A Classroom Grant Helps Enrich STEM Learning