P.L. & Elizabeth Cook Milkint Scholarship Fund
The Peter L. and Elizabeth C. Milkint Scholarship Fund provides an annual scholarship to a deserving college student from Tucker or Preston County who demonstrates strong work ethic, community involvement, and financial need.
TYPE OF FUND: Scholarship
DATE ESTABLISHED: July 1997
PURPOSE: To provide an annual scholarship to a Tucker or Preston County college student. The student(s) should have good work ethics; be well-rounded individuals involved with school, community, and church; and receive some consideration for financial need.
DISTRIBUTION: For an annual scholarship to a Tucker or Preston County college student, with the Hope, Love and Charity Foundation Board of Directors recommending $2,500 per year. Recipients will be chosen by the TCF Scholarship Committee with approval by the TCF Board of Directors.
VARIANCE POWER: If, in the judgment of the TCF Board of Directors, the restrictions and conditions of the fund become unnecessary, incapable of fulfillment or inconsistent with the charitable needs of the community, the TCF Board of Directors maintains the right to modify the terms of this fund. TCF has exclusive legal control over any contributed assets.
FUNDING: $45,000 from the Hope, Love, and Charity Foundation, and $5,000 from Our Lady of the Pines. An additional $25,000 was added by the Hope, Love and Charity Foundation on February 1, 1998.
BACKGROUND: Peter Louis Milkint and his wife, Elizabeth Cook Milkint, both natives of Thomas, WV, were involved in numerous business ventures and left a legacy of community generosity. Mr. Milkint served on the board of Miners and Merchants Bank in Thomas from 1927 until his retirement in 1973. Despite contracting infantile paralysis at the age of six, he graduated from Thomas High School in 1915 and Mountain State Business College. Over the years, he and his family operated various businesses including a grocery store, soft drink plant, car dealership, and sand and stone plant. He developed Silver Lake into a tourism destination, constructing a ten-acre lake, cabins, motel, and scout camp. He and Elizabeth also built Our Lady of the Pines, reputed to be the smallest church in 48 states, as a tribute to their parents. The couple had no children and directed their estate, through the Hope, Love and Charity Foundation, to support the education of future generations in their community.
