Iowa carpenter left nearly $3m; 33 students he funded later gathered to honor him
Dale Schroeder, a frugal Iowa carpenter, left nearly $3 million to fund college scholarships for 33 students after living a modest life. The beneficiaries, known as 'Dale's kids,' gathered years later to honor the man who enabled their education.
Why it matters
This human-interest story illustrates the profound impact of individual philanthropy on social mobility and education.
Dale Schroeder spent 67 years working as a carpenter at the same business in Des Moines, Iowa. He grew up poor, never went to college, never married and had no children. He lived a simple life, owning only two pairs of jeans and an old rusty Chevrolet truck. But over the years, he quietly saved almost $3 million.When Schroeder died in 2005, his savings were used to create a scholarship fund for small-town Iowa students who wanted to attend college but could not afford it. The fund eventually paid for the college education of 33 people.Fourteen years after Schroeder's death, those 33 students came together to remember the man whose money had changed their lives, even though most of them had never met him.
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