Emily Zimmerman '89 Lived to Serve, from the Marines to Funding a UNF Scholarship
If you have ever doubted your ability to make a valuable difference in the world, consider the story of UNF graduate Emily Zimmerman. Ms. Zimmerman enlisted in the Marine Corps on her 20th birthday, October 27, 1943, and was trained in airplane assembly and repair. Her enlistment lasted nearly three years, until the end of World War II. Thinking her marching days were over, she joined the Marine Reserves in 1949 expecting to attend drills one night a week and make friends. However, the outbreak of the Korean conflict brought her back to active service as a supply sergeant in New York City.
Ms. Zimmerman relocated at the end of her second term of active service to the warmer weather of Jacksonville to work for the Prudential Insurance Company in the legal and data processing and programming departments. Her higher education journey started in 1943 with an insurance class in New York City and ended 46 years later in 1989 with a bachelor's degree in insurance from the now Coggin College of Business at UNF.
Emily Zimmerman had a desire to help other UNF students enjoy the same learning experience and growth she had at UNF. The Emily R. Zimmerman Endowed Scholarship was established upon Ms. Zimmerman's death in 2013 after she named UNF as a residuary beneficiary in her will. Ms. Zimmerman said, "I would encourage others to include UNF in their wills because it is important to help people with their education. My gift will perpetuate endowed scholarships and leave a legacy for years to come."
