When John and Julie Karbula consider the scholarship they’ve created at Colorado State University, they don’t think of it in formal terms such as “financial aid” or “tuition assistance.”

For them, it’s about far more: It’s about transformation.

“Education transformed our lives,” John said. “We were able to do things for our daughters and for ourselves because of higher education. We just thought it was important to try to help others who are going through that same education process, because we know that it can be transformative.”

John and Julie grew up in Iowa, where they first met. Julie’s family moved to Colorado during her college years, and she received a bachelor’s degree in technical journalism at CSU in 1978. The Karbulas eventually moved to Fort Collins to raise their two daughters in the 1990s. John earned a master’s in education in 1998 and a Ph.D. in education and human resource studies in 2009, both at CSU.

Julie spent 17 years as a development officer for CSU, and John had a 34-year career in public education, both as a teacher and an administrator.

About five years ago, after long consideration, the Karbulas established a scholarship at CSU.

“I really had no financial support from my parents,” Julie said. “I know that even a small amount can make a big difference in helping a student not face such a big financial burden.”

John and Julie came from modest backgrounds. Julie’s father was an auto mechanic, and her mother took a job when Julie was in sixth grade to help with family expenses. John’s father was a first-generation college graduate and worked for 30 years as a teacher. His mom worked as an administrative assistant at the school.

When the Karbulas decided recently to update their will, they included a planned gift that will be added to their current scholarship fund.

They made sure to involve their daughters in the estate planning process.

“That was really important,” John said. “Our daughters grew up knowing that we believed that giving back, not just to the University but also to the communities that all of us are a part of, was really important to us. So, they were very supportive of this.”

Both daughters graduated from Colorado State University and have followed in their parents’ footsteps. Caitlin is a development officer at the University of Washington, and Lauren is a public school teacher in Seattle.

Having a scholarship in place today lets John and Julie meet the people their gifts are helping, while their planned gift creates the joy of knowing their help will continue indefinitely.

“It’s really not about the money,” John said. “It's about giving real people opportunities to do something with their life that maybe, without your help, they wouldn’t be able to do.”

To learn how you can create a transformational gift, contact the Office of Gift Planning at (970) 491-4254 or giftplanning@colostate.edu.