One of Green River Community College’s biggest supporters isn’t an alumnus. In fact, he didn’t even go to college.
Kent resident Dan Zgolinski, 94, is a longtime friend of the Auburn-based community college, which also has a campus in Kent. A scholarship he started has helped 36 students pay tuition there, and his years on the Green River Community College Foundation Board of Directors have helped garner important funds.
Now, his name will be connected to the school’s new Zgolinski Welcome Center, due to an $800,000 gift he gave to ensure students find a helping hand as soon as they walk through the college doors.
It all started with a golf tournament.
“I got started with (GRCC) when they used to have this pro-am golf tournament fundraiser,” Zgolinski said. “I really wanted to start a scholarship program somewhere, and when I played in the tournament and saw how nice the people were at Green River, I thought this was the place to do it.”
The South King County-born man graduated from Renton High School but never went to college, instead serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II before starting his career. He said his many years working at Sears Roebuck, where he stayed until his retirement, taught him the importance of having a higher education.
“I didn’t have a college education, but I would train these people coming in who did but were less experienced than me,” Zgolinski said. “Pretty soon, they would be in management positions over me. I began to see having a college education as having kind of a sheep skin that allows you to get to the top.”
His knowledge of the importance of education coupled with his positive experience with Green River Community College led him to endow the Dan and Helen Zgolinski Scholarship in 1988. The scholarship has now helped 36 students pay for an education, and their benefactor said he tries to keep tabs on their success. He even keeps in contact with some of them after graduation.
“Thirty out of the 36 achieved 3.5 to 4.0 grade-point averages, and the others got at least above a 3.0,” he said. “Several of them have become nurses; others have become teachers; one of them became an architect … I think that’s pretty good.”
In addition to the scholarship endowment, Zgolinski got involved with GRCC’s fundraising efforts early on. He first sat on the board for the golf-tournament fundraiser, later being named to the Green River Community College Foundation’s Board of Directors. He served there from 1991-1998, helping secure important funds for the school.
More recently, Zgolinski was inspired to give another generous gift to the college. He said one of his would-be scholarship recipients enrolled but ended up quickly dropping out because of a lack of counseling.
He gave $800,000, which was matched by public funds, to develop the new, $1.6 million Welcome Center, which will provide personal assistance with the college-entry process, as well as connections to appropriate services and academic advising.
“The student registers there at the welcome center, and they have counselors right there to help guide them through their education to help them reach their goals,” Zgolinski said.
GRCC will have a dedication ceremony for the center June 2, honoring the man who made it possible by naming it after him.
“Dan is a man of action,” said GRCC President Rich Rutkowski. “He doesn’t just talk about getting something done. He does it.”
Making it easier for students to get an education has been a longtime passion for Zgolinski. Not only does it better students’ future lives, he said. It also results in a stronger community.
“I like to see people have good jobs for the betterment of the community,” he said. “You’ve got to provide an avenue for kids these days to have a good education and get good jobs, so we have a strong community.”
He said his generosity and good attitude stems primarily from his Christian faith, and it has led to a long and happy life. He remains upbeat and quick-witted even at 94, despite a recent broken hip.
“I try to make people happy around me,” he said. “I always have a smile on my face. I try to look for the good, not the bad, and I’ve had a happy life.”
For more information about Green River and the new Zgolinski Welcome Center, visit www.greenriver.edu.
Contact Daniel Mooney at 253-437-6012 or dmooney@reporternewspapers.com.
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