The impact we’ll never know

Mark and David in Hawes, the North Yorkshire town where they now live.

Handing back essays to the students in his writing class at Pleasant Valley High School in the early 1980s, Rex Grove could never have guessed that 40 years later, one of those students would be setting up a scholarship in his name.

“He had no idea what was going on for me at the time and the impact he had in my life,” said Mark Murphy, now a global marketing director who lives in the north of England with his husband, David. “Somehow, he made a safe space for me as a 16-year-old. He just gave me feedback on my writing and allowed me to continue sharing in a way that I couldn’t with anyone else.”  

The Rex Grove Creative Writing Scholarship isn’t just a fitting tribute to the teacher who made such a meaningful difference in Murphy’s life. As one of seven brand-new scholarships he and David recently established at the Pleasant Valley Education Foundation, administered by the Quad Cities Community Foundation, it’s also a window into the story of Murphy’s passion for education, his connection to the place he grew up, and his spirit of generosity.

Born the youngest of five children in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1965, Murphy spent his childhood and adolescence in Bettendorf, where he attended Pleasant Valley schools. “My dad, who grew up in Chicago in the heart of the depression and only finished 10th grade, found his way to being ridiculously supportive of our education and of the school district,” he said. “I tie all this back to him. His passion funneled to me, and I’ve always cared about education and our youth.”

“Mark’s father, Chuck, exemplified community spirit in his overwhelming support of Pleasant Valley,” said Dave Borcherding, president of the Pleasant Valley Educational Foundation. “Mark’s generosity is a testimony to the apple not falling far from the tree.”

When Chuck died in 2002, the Pleasant Valley Education Foundation started a scholarship in his name. Though Mark made annual contributions to the fund, it was only relatively recently that he conceived the incredible gift he would make on the twentieth anniversary of his father’s passing. After studying at Creighton University, living for nearly three decades in San Francisco, and following a career opportunity abroad, Murphy found that he and his husband were in a position to begin thinking seriously about philanthropy.

Through months of conversation, they decided to fully endow two scholarships in honor of important Pleasant Valley teachers in Mark’s life along with five new scholarships, one in each of the five Murphy siblings’ names. The Russ Murphy Pay It Forward Scholarship, for example, will go to a student who has made a difference for someone without calling attention to themselves, while the Chris (Murphy) Grillot Nursing Scholarship will support a student who has demonstrated a kindness and caring for others in the health care field during their high school years. Mark’s own scholarship will honor someone who takes difference to heart and has invested the energy to empower others to be exactly who they are.

During the process of establishing these seven scholarships, the couple learned of six other Pleasant Valley scholarships that had been opened but not fully endowed. Extending their generosity one step further, they committed to “topping up” those scholarships, making them permanent resources for generations of students to come and bringing their total gift to $250,000.

“What a privilege it is for us to support gifts that have such personal significance for Mark and his family—and that will mean so much to the students who receive these scholarships,” said Anne Calder, vice president of development at the Community Foundation. “Mark and David’s generosity sets a powerful example for anyone who wants to give back.”

In fact, their gift has already inspired several other families to fully endow scholarships at Pleasant Valley. “Just start the conversation,” Murphy encourages anyone else thinking about supporting whatever cause is close to their hearts. “Verbalize your idea. Get it out.”

For his part, Rex Grove may not have known what he meant to Mark 40 years ago, but he knows today. “When I shared what I was doing and why, he was in tears,” said Murphy. “He had no idea! Now take my experience and multiply it over all those decades of teaching.” He paused. “We all make choices every single day of our lives. Through those choices, we have the ability to impact people’s lives in ways we’ll never know.”