Nancy and Wayne Cottril

Changing Lives by:  creating three funds for student scholarships: an undergraduate research award connected to the Terry C. Johnson Center for Basic Cancer Research, a scholarship for K-State marching band students and an athletic scholarship.

K-State connection: Wayne and Nancy Cottril became official K-State fans when their daughter, Melissa, enrolled.

Why they gave: “It’s rewarding and fun to be able to give money away,” Wayne said. “There’s something about it. It’s an emotional, wonderful feeling. It feels good to be able to give something for the good of mankind.”

Impact/Why it matters: Thanks to the Cottril’s research award, Erica Hutfless, senior in microbiology from Junction City, Kan., is able to investigate the complex relationship between baculovirus, a virus that infects caterpillars, and the fibroblast growth factor, a gene which is frequently over-expressed in cancer patients.

What people are saying: “It’s time-consuming to be in lab, and I don’t think I would be able to do it without the Cottril Research Award,” Erica said. “I would have to get an outside job. With their help, I can stay in the lab and gain skills that will help me go on to get my Ph.D. and, hopefully, continue work in medical research.”

Rooting for the home teams: Nancy, a retired dental hygienist, adopted the University of Kansas as her home team after moving to Kansas from Texas in the 1970s. Wayne, a retired Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company employee from Fairview, Kan., visited K-State as a young man for 4-H and FFA activities. When youngest son, Mark, decided to attend Washburn University, they started rooting for the Ichabods and Lady Blues, too. Wayne and Nancy have established scholarships for students at both K-State and Washburn.