Gilbert and Jane '61 Palmer

Gilbert A. Palmer was an Associate Professor of Math at Geneseo from 1958 to 1987. His wife, Jane B. Palmer graduated from Geneseo in 1961 with a degree in Elementary Education. Gil wanted to help students monetarily who were going into the field of mathematics so when his wife passed away in 2006, he felt he could honor her memory and also help students by setting up a scholarship in her name.
Gil and Jane were both educators and devoted themselves to their students. Gil started a math tutoring program at Geneseo and was its advisor through his tenure there. It was a program where students tutored other students who needed help. Many of the recipients of this scholarship have participated in this program over the years. Both Gil and Jane were avid golfers and after Gil retired in 1987, they built a house in a golfing community in Bradenton, Florida and moved there in 1993. They both loved to read and Gil was a sports enthusiast, watching sports on TV (especially golf and basketball). They were both meticulous and organized in everything they did which included their finances. Gil took care of his finances, including making decisions about his investments, right up until a couple of months before he passed away in Feb. 2016 at the age of 91.
Gil enjoyed his years of teaching at Geneseo and was genuinely interested in his students. One of his greatest joys was reading the thank you letters he received from the recipients of his scholarship and knowing that he may have made a difference in their lives. He kept up his interest in Geneseo after his retirement by reading about changes and updates that were reported in the alumni news he received. Gil regularly donated to the college and kept in touch with many of his colleagues during his retirement. It seemed only natural to him to set up a scholarship at Geneseo to help students succeed and achieve their goals.
-Donna Goodfriend