FUND PROFILE

Leola Sudduth & Thomas Foster Kennedy Scholarship Endowment

The Leola Sudduth and Thomas Foster Kennedy Fund provides scholarships for college-bound Black and African American students from underserved areas in greater Pasadena. Established by Councilmember John J. Kennedy and his siblings in 2014, the fund now also honors John’s lasting legacy of civic leadership and dedication to educational equity.

OVERVIEW

About the Fund

The Leola Sudduth and Thomas Foster Kennedy Fund was established to honor the parents of the Kennedy children with a permanent legacy for the community in which they raised their family and were actively involved. The purpose of this fund is to provide scholarships to outstanding college-bound Black and African American youth from economically challenged areas in the Greater Pasadena area.

The Kennedy Scholarship Endowment was established by Pasadena Councilmember John J. Kennedy in 2014, with help from his nine siblings. After the Councilmember’s untimely death in 2022, the family requested that memorial gifts be made to the Kennedy Scholarship Fund. Councilmember Kennedy had also left a bequest to Pasadena Community Foundation in his estate plan, which helped grow the fund significantly. Today, the scholarship also serves as a tribute to John’s deep commitment to education and to Pasadena.

Detail shot of an Art Deco-style building showing detailed friezes and brickwork

Scholarship Fund Impact

Through this scholarship fund, PCF has been able to

  • Provide sustained funding for scholarship programs for students throughout Greater Pasadena.
  • Expand equitable educational pathways
  • Empower educational organizations to expand their services and reach more students in need.
  • Support flexibility
  • Allows PCF to direct resources when and where they are needed most, respond quickly to emerging needs, and fill funding gaps that restricted gifts can’t cover.

Contact Us

For more information about PCF giving opportunities, please contact
Pasadena Community Foundation
301 E. Colorado Blvd., Suite 810
Pasadena, CA., 91101
626.796.2097
pcfstaff@pasadenacf.org