Young Clairbourn Alums Give Additional Scholarship Funding in Honor of Headmaster
Alumni Richard and Eric Dong returned to campus to give an additional $20,000 to the Richard and Eric Dong Scholarship for Music and Arts at Clairbourn School in honor of Dr. Nafie’s thirty-nine years of service to the school and the community. When the scholarship fund was initiated in 2014, the boys contributed $30,000 to establish the fund. This year, they wanted to contribute $20,000 to the fund in Dr. Nafie’s honor and to express gratitude to him as their wonderful former headmaster. As philanthropy is a core value in the Dong family, they wanted to show young people the importance of generously giving back to others. Richard and Eric also performed a musical recital and shared with students their exemplary piano playing skills. Dr. Nafie introduced them both and shared a biography of their accomplishments, followed by a short speech by Richard Dong. Watch the videos and read Richard Dong’s speech below:
Thank you, Dr. Nafie, for your very kind and well-spoken introduction. We are very humbled.
Good morning everyone, we feel tremendously overjoyed to be back home at Clairbourn to see Dr. Nafie and this amazing community. Clairbourn is a wonderful school we truly love!
On this special occasion of Thanksgiving and the School GivingTuesday tomorrow, it is our great honor to offer additional funding from our personal investment earnings over the years to “ The Richard and Eric Dong Endowment Fund at Clairbourn ” in honor of Dr. Robert Nafie . It is our way of showing our appreciation for his outstanding leadership, dedication, and commitment during his tenure as Headmaster of Clairbourn in the past 39 years and his half-century of dedication to education. Dr. Nafie is indeed a Clairbourn treasure; he will always be part of this school’s history. Thank you Dr. Nafie and Mrs. Nafie.
We are extremely proud that Clairbourn is among the very best schools in the area with its balanced offering of academics, sports, music and the arts, culture and community service. It is an inspiring, strong and close-knit community. As alumni, we are very proud! Malcolm X once said “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” My brother Eric and I believe there is no age limit when it comes to education and leadership which are essential to a great country like America. This is why we made our first gift to Clairbourn three years ago when I was 14 and Eric was 12 to support student scholarship, athletics, music and the arts, and leadership training because we learnt in school that philanthropy is an American virtue. Tomorrow is GivingTuesday for the annual fund and we hope more students, alumni, parents, and the whole community will support education for the next generation of America, for us, and for the future! As Khaled Hosseini said “Marriage can wait, Education cannot”, so let’s Hurry Up!
In conclusion, we would like to repeat the memorable words Robert F. Kennedy once said, “Your future is not a gift, it is an achievement.” Let’s all come together to help build a bright tomorrow for Clairbourn, for our community, and for our great country. Together we can make the world a better place! Again, our thanks and best wishes to Dr. Nafie, Dr. Patzlaff, Dr. Janny Chang, and Ms. Nancy Ward, to our beloved school, and to all of you. Thank you, thank you all!
Clairbourn School Provides Private School Education for Preschool, Kindergarten, Elementary School, and Middle School Grades | Serving Families in the Pasadena, California, Area and Surrounding Cities (K-12 Private Schools) | Clairbourn is a 501(c)3 charitable organization. Click here to request information.