SEMO recognizes donors at President's Council dinner

Gratitude was the order of the evening as donors to Southeast Missouri State University were recognized during the President's Council dinner Friday, March 24, at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau.

The event honored members of the President's Council and Horizon Club, as well as the 2023 Friends of the University, Harold and Hermena Holigan.

Carlos Vargas , SEMO's president, thanked the many donors at the event for their kindness in giving to the university in support of the students. He spoke about the success of the university's 150th anniversary celebration Wednesday, March 22. He also said that day coincided with the university's Giving Day and the school more than doubled its goal by raising $360,000.

"I am very energized." Vargas said. "We are ready to start the next 150 years of success for this university."

Vargas introduced the Holigans, saying the Friends of the University recognition is the "highest honor bestowed by the University Foundation." He said criteria to receive such recognition included generous support for the university and "a close alignment with the mission, vision and values we instill here."

Carlos Vargas, president of Southeast Missouri State University, thanks SEMO donors during the President's Council dinner Friday, March 24, at the Show Me Center.Danny Walter

Carlos Vargas, president of Southeast Missouri State University, thanks SEMO donors during the President's Council dinner Friday, March 24, at the Show Me Center.Danny Walter

"Our honorees this year not only meet, but far exceed this threshold," Vargas said.

Vargas said the Holigans both grew up in Puxico, Missouri, and attended SEMO after graduating from Puxico High School in 1959. Harold Holigan founded Just A Math Problem Enterprises, a residential real estate and land development company.

Vargas said the Holigans stayed extremely involved with SEMO and made it a priority to give back to the university and to the town of Puxico by establishing the Holigan Family Scholarship. He said, so far, the scholarship has helped fund the education of 84 students from Puxico High.

In a video, two recipients of the Holigan Family Scholarship thanked the couple for their generosity.

Kasen Barnfield, a business administration major, said he wanted to be the first in his family to obtain a bachelor's degree. Barnfield said when he first heard about the Holigan Family Scholarship, "it seemed too good to be true." Barnfield said he plans to sell insurance after graduating from SEMO.

"The Holigan story inspires me," Barnfield said. "I'd like to give back to my community. I'm super thankful for everything they've done for me."

Lizzie Kight, who is studying to become a professional pilot, said her parents are still paying off their college debt, and they told her, "as much as we'd love to help you, we can't." But her mother told her about the Holigan Family Scholarship. Kight said she has "dreamed of nothing but traveling the world," and the Holigans made that possible.

"The scholarship has ultimately changed my life," Kight said. "I can focus on my studies, I can be better in my career. There is so much weight lifted off my shoulders."

In receiving the award, Harold Holigan said Puxico is not the richest part of Missouri. He said SEMO changed their lives, and gave them an opportunity to get ahead and "not always be the poor folks back home."

"The reason we're making the scholarship available, we want every kid that graduates from Puxico to have an opportunity to come here and work with this university and earn a degree," Harold Holigan said. "We think it's the best thing we can do as a family."

Hermena Holigan added, "The opportunity to give someone else an opportunity has indeed been a great one."

At the event, there were several showcases highlighting university programs where donors and guests met and interacted with students and faculty to learn more about each department.

Vargas visited several of the showcases, including the Communication Disorders Department's display featuring Augmentative Alternative Communication devices. Vargas sat in front of a computer tablet that responded to his eye movements. Emily Obergoenner, instructor and externship coordinator, explained the devices were designed to help people who don't have use of their limbs as well as those who are nonverbal because of autism or stroke.

Another showcase featured dinosaur fossils recovered by SEMO students while on a dig in Jordan, Montana, as part of a program called Paleo X that gives students the opportunity to work with professional paleontologists and experienced field staff.

There was also a robotic arm that poured wine for guests. The robot was programmed by the Department of Engineering and Technology as part of a course in industrial automation.