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Origin
In 1994, Dr. Pullikattil Chacko Simon founded the Chacko and Lize Simon Scholarship Fund to
provide scholarships to bright children from devastatingly poor families in and around his native
village of Keekozhur in the Pathanamthitta district of Kerala state, India. Later, Malappuram district
was included in the project.
The objective of this philanthropy was to provide recipients of the scholarship an opportunity to
escape their poverty-ridden backgrounds and build better lives for themselves, their families, and
their communities.
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Administration
The fund, capital of which is provided solely by Dr. Simon, is administered by a Board of five
Directors; Ted Hawthorne, Bill Giesbrecht, Margaret Harris. Lize Simon, and Chacko Simon.
Scholarship applicants are recruited by two agents resident in India; Mr. V.C. George for the
Pathanamthitta District and Mr. V.J. Thomas for the Malappuram District. These agents solicit the
applications, screen the students for eligibility by interviewing them and visiting their homes,
ensure that all required supporting documentation (photograph, official transcript of last three
years’ marks, supporting letters from teacher, priest, doctor, and other responsible members of
community, official statement of family income, autobiographical profile) is provided. They then
forward all of this completed package to the fund’s headquarters in Vancouver, B.C., Canada.
When applications are received, they are evaluated and presented to the Board of Directors for
approval. Funds are then allocated and sent directly to the institution the student wishes to attend.
Students may renew their scholarships for up to four years.
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Scholarships Granted Since 1996
Since 1996, the fund has provided 2412 scholarships to impoverished students attending more
than 75 post secondary institutions.
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Areas of Study
Thirty-five areas of study have been pursued by our recipients. They include:
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