Wilemal Fund Endowed Scholarship

The Wilemal Fund Endowed Scholarship was established in 2004 through gifts from Mr. and Mrs. William G. Brown through the Wilemal Fund to support students enrolled in Rush Medical College. Mr. and Mrs. Brown are longtime supporters of Rush University Medical Center. Mr. Brown was first elected as a Rush Trustee in 1991 and continues to serve today as a Life Trustee.

In addition to creating this endowed scholarship, Mr. and Mrs. Brown’s charitable giving during the campaign for Rush in the late 2000s was instrumental in transforming information technology at the Medical Center. Their leadership helped Rush become among the first and largest medical centers in the country to fully implement an electronic health record platform, Epic, across all clinical units within the organization in 2009.

Members of the Smith family, Mr. and Mrs. Brown continue the family?s legacy of service and philanthropy throughout the Chicago area. The Smith family?s connection to Rush has spanned six generations. Mr. Brown?s cousin, Mr. Harold B. Smith, has served on the Rush Board of Trustees since 1968 and became its longest-serving board chairman from 1978-1988. Descendants of the Smith family continue to serve Rush in many volunteer leadership positions throughout the organization and provide philanthropic support to various programatic and research endeavors.