FORT MYERS, Fla. - FGCU Athletics has received a $1 million gift from The Hillmyer Tremont Student Athlete Foundation. The gift comes following the dissolution of the Foundation and after a unanimous vote of their Board to support scholarships for student-athletes at FGCU.

The Hillmyer-Tremont Student Athlete Foundation was established in December, 1997 to provide Scholarship support to deserving student-athletes.  Further, to continue the long-standing traditions of community service in Lee County and most importantly, assist area young men and women in pursuit of a college education.

"Hillmyer-Tremont Scholarship Foundation was founded in 1997, to provide assistance to Lee County youth, high school students, in pursuit of advancing their education," said board member Sam Crimaldi. "As you know, Florida Gulf Coast University has done that, and has exceeded everyone's expectations. We have been proud to support them over the years and now with this gift. "

Named in honor and recognition of Monk Hillmyer (long-time and successful businessman) and Elmer Tremont (Hall of Fame Coach and Teacher), the Foundation rewards student-athletes that demonstrate characteristics that best represent Monk and Elmer. These include team play, leadership, academic success, a commitment to community service, and demonstrated sportsmanship.  Many of the Scholarship recipients, from Lee County and FGCU, are current local residents, contributing back to our community in a wide range of activities. 

Monk and Elmer became great friends over the years and enjoyed the camaraderie of spending time together at many levels of competitive sports.  Most especially at Lee County games, at FGCU, and often traveling together to National Tournaments. This bond expanded to their personal lives as well. 

"We are blessed to be the continued beneficiaries of The Hillmyer-Tremont Foundation and their amazing group of board members'," stated FGCU Director of Athletics Ken Kavanagh. "Through this most recent tremendous gift, we are afforded invaluable scholarship resources to greatly assist our capabilities to further support our current and future student-athletes to place us on par with the terrific accomplishments that our teams have been collectively producing both in the classroom and competitively.  The timing of their significant additional generosity also comes at a critical juncture, as we both continue to dig our way financially out of these pandemic times and work amidst recent high inflation budgetary effects."

In 2001, the Foundation expanded Scholarship support to Southwest Florida's newest institution of higher learning, Florida Gulf Coast University.  As such, it is with great pride that FGCU now serves as the public "home" of the Hillmyer-Tremont Foundation.  Having cumulatively awarded over $2 million in Scholarships, the Foundation is proud to continue supporting Lee County student-athletes in general and those attending FGCU.

The Hillmyer-Tremont Foundation has also sponsored FGCU's student-athlete Academic Honors Luncheon since 2010 which has seen hundreds of students recognized for having at least a 3.5 cumulative GPA including a record 87 Eagles this past year.

"The Board members from the Hillmyer-Tremont Foundation have made another tremendous investment in Florida Gulf Coast University and FGCU Athletics," added Graham Diemer, FGCU Associate Athletics Director for Advancement. "It has been my pleasure to get to know them, and hopefully help them truly enjoy the impact of their generosity. This gift will enhance the athletic and academic experience for all 15 programs and generations of future student-athletes."


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#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.

ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 92 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 15 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11 seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 45 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn at at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 20, 2021-22), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2022) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as four of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 26 consecutive semesters. The past five semesters (Fall 2019 – Spring 2022) saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher cumulative team GPA. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 - being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.