Dugger Legacy Continues Through Scholarship Fund

Bus and Freda Duggar Scholarship

AMARILLO, TX –

The Amarillo Area Foundation is the benefactor of a major gift from Bus and Freda Dugger in the amount of $1 million. The gift, finalized after Bus Dugger’s passing in April of this year, will establish an endowed scholarship fund for juniors and seniors attending West Texas A&M University. It is the largest principal scholarship gift designated specifically for high school students from the Texas Panhandle the Foundation has ever received.

Born, raised, and originally educated in Oklahoma, Dugger’s career in sales brought him to Amarillo where he met Cal Farley. Dugger and Farley formed Kids Inc., Amarillo’s youth sports organization, in 1945.  While garnering support for Kids Inc. from Glenwood Elementary’s PTA, Bus met his wife, Freda – an Amarillo native and music teacher. They married in March of the same year.

The Dugger’s were strongly connected to our local Panhandle postsecondary institutions. Freda began her education at Amarillo Junior College and finished with a Master’s in Education from West Texas State University. Bus completed his Bachelor’s and Masters at West Texas A&M University in 1955 and 1956, respectively.

Both Freda and Bus were educators themselves. Freda taught in Enid and Shallowater as well Humphrey’s Highland and Forest Hill once she and Bus returned to Amarillo. Bus was the Supervisor of Adult Education at Amarillo College from 1961-1966 until Cal Farley convinced Bus to take a position at Boy’s Ranch. Bus stayed at Boys Ranch until his retirement in 1982.

Bus was inducted as the 137^th member to the Texas Panhandle Sports Hall of Fame for his work with Kids Inc. and his role as a basketball and football official for high school, college, and the NIBL for 33 years.

Kids Inc. President & CEO Jimmy Lackey, a close friend of the Duggers, had this to say about the intent behind their gift to AAF: “Mr. and Mrs. Dugger were unable to have children of their own. This scholarship endowment is their way of extending their genuine care for young people that will provide educational opportunities for students from the Texas Panhandle from now on. What a gift.”

College juniors and seniors with a 3.0 GPA attending or planning to attend West Texas A&M University who completed high school in the 26 northernmost counties of the Texas Panhandle are eligible to apply for the $2,000 annual scholarship. The scholarship is renewable for two consecutive semesters for college juniors.

To apply for the Dugger Scholarship please visit www.amarilloareafoundation.org/scholarships. Our general scholarship application for the 2017-2018 academic year will open on November 1, 2016 and close on February 10, 2017 at 12:00pm.

To donate to the CC “Bus” and Freda Dugger Endowed Scholarship Fund please contact Kasey Long, Director of Development, by email kasey@aaf-hf.org or phone 806-476-4521.