KEARNEY, Neb.- A UNK alumni couple is helping to create a business scholarship with a large gift.

Giving over $500,000, Merle A. and Kay Horst, of Miromar Lakes, Florida, are endowing the Horst Brother UNK Business Scholarship.

Though the couple is gifting the money, the scholarship is in honor of the three Horst brothers who all graduated from UNK majoring in Business Administration in the 70’s along with their wives who they met while attending UNK.

The brothers, Merle A., Bernie(Margene), and Ron(Rita), all grew up working on their parent’s farm, where they were encouraged to go to college by their parents.

Their parents paid for their first year of school, then the brothers were on their own. “That was all we could afford,” Merle said in a news release.

“To be eligible for the Horst Brothers scholarship, students must have grown up in a farming household, be a sophomore or above working toward a degree in accounting or business administration and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher. Students also must demonstrate a strong character and the ability to work hard. Scholarships may be renewed if the recipients remain in good academic standing and continue to meet the criteria,” according to the news release.

The scholarship will be given annually to three students, a sophomore, junior, and senior.

“We are deeply grateful to Merle and Kay Horst for their generosity,” Brooke Envick, newly appointed dean of the College of Business and Technology said in a news release. “The Horst Brothers UNK Business Scholarship creates meaningful opportunities for students from farming communities to succeed as leaders in business and accounting. This investment in our students’ futures reflects the values of hard work, character and education that define both the Horst family and our college.”