The Abington Education Foundation Receives $5K Donation From The Forst Foundation

ABINGTON, PA — The Abington Education Foundation, which provides financial support to local school students, announced that it was the recent recipient of a generous donation from a local charitable organization.

The foundation said that it was gifted $5,000 from The Forst Foundation, which is the charitable foundation for Lincoln Investment, a local firm founded by the Forst family more than five decades ago.

The donation will benefit the John H. Engelhardt Memorial Scholarship Fund, which was created back in 2019 in honor of John Engelhardt, a beloved, former teacher at Highland Elementary School in the Abington School District for 35 years.

The scholarship was created on the one-year anniversary of Engelhardt's passing by his widow, Josephine, also a longtime teacher in the Abington School District.

Scholarship funds are available to those students within the district who attended Highland Elementary School, with special focus given to students with financial needs and/or those who are interested in pursuing a career in the education field, according to the Abington Education Foundation.

Recipients of the scholarship money are chosen by Josephine Engelhardt along with members of the Abington Senior High School counseling department.

The money goes toward the cost of college tuition, room and board, technology, books and other materials needed for higher education, according to the foundation.

Christine Strange, chair of the Abington Education Foundation, was recently on hand to receive the generous financial donation.

"We greatly appreciate the generosity of The Forst Foundation and the family of 'Mr. E.' for supporting the post-secondary education of Abington Senior High School graduates," Strange said in a statement.

Strange said that the scholarship fund began with $10,000 and has since grown to more than $35,000 after the incorporation of the gift from The Forst Foundation.

John Gallagher, a Certified Financial Planner with Lincoln Investment, said in a statement that advisors at his firm were happy to get involved with the donation as it was considered a "meaningful way to contribute to future generations of Abington students."

Gallagher said he worked with the Engelhardt family to make sure their contributions would have a "meaningful and lasting impact," and he encouraged The Forst Foundation to also contribute since it has been longtime supporters of the Abington Education Foundation, according to a foundation news release.