Phillip ’40 and June Lighty were the consummate Cougs. Driven by a passion to pay it forward and provide young people with the opportunity of a college education, the Lightys gave more than $10 million over five decades in support of endowed scholarships, Cougar Athletics, WSU Libraries, Washington State Magazine, the WSU Alumni Association, and Student Services.
In 1980, the Lightys established the Phillip M. and June E. Lighty Scholarship to support first-year students from California—where Phil grew up—who demonstrate academic achievement, leadership, and a commitment to community service. In their own words, the Lightys hoped recipients would “dream big, lead boldly, and create meaningful change.”
In 1993, they also gifted $5 million for the establishment of what at the time was the largest scholarship and student leadership endowment at WSU, the Phil and June Lighty Opportunity and Presidential Scholarship, for WSU undergraduate and graduate students who have achieved academic excellence and have demonstrated leadership.
Although the couple’s many gifts continue to make an impact, the Phillip M. and June E. Lighty Scholarship always remained closest to Phil and June’s hearts. Soon after its creation, Phil and June began an annual tradition—a luncheon celebrating fellowship and the accomplishments of the Lighty scholars. Traveling from California each year, the Lightys met the students, learned about their courses and aspirations, offered encouragement, and Phil shared his story of paying it forward. Always on the menu was Phil’s favorite dish—turkey tetrazzini. For Phil, these gatherings felt like family reunions, and many of those connections lasted a lifetime.
The annual gathering continued until 2019 right before COVID hit and a year before June Lighty’s passing, who had kept the event going for the 11 years after Phil’s passing in 2008.
A new generation of the Lighty family
Today, the Lightys’ granddaughter, Jennifer Lighty ’99, proudly carries forward the family tradition. An elementary educator in Northern California—and a proud Coug who every year teaches her first-grade students how to sing the WSU Fight Song—Jennifer is committed to supporting the Lighty scholars with the same enthusiasm as her grandparents.
On November 14, Lighty scholars gathered once again with the Lighty family, including Jennifer’s father, Thomas Lighty ’72, and her brother, Scott, his wife, Kelly, and their three children. Together, they celebrated the scholars’ achievements, giving back to the community, and family.
Though BLT sliders, fruit slices, and bite-sized desserts replaced the turkey tetrazzini, the spirit of connection and gratitude remained. Ava Davis and Matthew Jewell, two scholars, shared their stories with the Lightys about their paths to WSU and how the Lighty Scholarship made that possible.
Davis, a black belt in Wu Ying Tao and a former sophomore-class president who also led a district-wide cleanup effort for the Sacramento River Project and served on Shasta County’s Peer Court, helping dozens of first-time juvenile offenders get a second chance, hopes to become a dentist serving children through Global Dental Relief.
Jewell, a sports management and data analytics major who in high school served as the stage manager leading student-run productions for 200-plus performers and dozens of musical numbers, and who spent a month in Mexico helping to build homes for families in need, aspires to a future in sports analytics. Both credited the Lighty Scholarship and Phil’s decision to “pay it forward” for making their WSU journey possible.
A legacy of paying it forward that lives on
In 1936, Phil Lighty arrived at Washington State College from Sacramento, California, during the height of the Great Depression—a time when one-fourth of America’s workforce was unemployed, nearly one-third of farmers had lost their land, and more than one-third of the nation’s banks had failed. Upon learning that Phil’s parents could not afford to send him back to Washington State College—as WSU was then known—one of Phil’s professors, recognizing his goodness and potential, wrote him a check for $60 to cover next year’s tuition (a significant sum in 1937—about $1,350 today).
Phil could hardly believe it, telling the professor he didn’t know when he would be able to repay him, to which the professor replied, “I know you will. I only ask that when you make something of yourself, you pass it on.”
Phil certainly did. Soon after earning his degree in business, World War II broke out. Before serving in the Army Air Corps as a combat gunnery officer in the South Pacific, he met June E. Miller, who had recently graduated from Stanford. In 1943, while the entire world was at war, the couple married. In 1946, Phil joined Dean Witter & Co. in San Francisco. After managing the San Francisco office, he opened two branch offices in Palo Alto and two in San Mateo, playing a significant role in building Dean Witter into one of the nation’s largest stock brokerage and securities firms, all while he and June built a life together, raising three sons. In 1983, Phil retired as senior vice president for investments.
Phil was deeply involved in his community—from the Kiwanis to the Shriners to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church to his time as a Boy Scout leader.
“But WSU was like his family,” said Jennifer. “That professor’s kindness was why he had an unconditional love for WSU students.”
Phil and June’s generosity has inspired Lighty scholars to follow their example. Among them is Bruce Cramer ’92, managing director of Lionshead Advisors and co-founder of Expedition Earth, who was moved to establish his own scholarship in honor of his father, Gail L. Cramer.
“I wish Phil Lighty was still here,” said Davis at the luncheon, “so I could thank him for allowing me to pursue a dream—to make a future.”
The Lightys’ story reminds us that one act of generosity can ripple across decades, shaping lives and communities. Phil and June didn’t just pay a kindness forward—they helped create futures for countless students who dream big and lead boldly, and left behind a legacy of generosity and impact.
If you would like to give to WSU scholarships, contact Tara Howe, senior director of central scholarships, at 509-335-1240 or at tkhowe@wsu.edu.