Dorothy Lawson is no stranger to hard work. The 1949 alumnae grew up on a farm in rural Oklahoma, and her first job involved weighing wheat for farmers as they prepared it to be sold. Her strong work ethic grew while she attended Oklahoma State University.
Dorothy followed her interest in business administration, studying both economics and statistics. After completing her undergraduate degree, she began working at the Social Security Administration and pursued law school. These experiences built on the foundation she nurtured for years — planning for retirement is crucial.
After many years of traveling the world, training attorneys and practicing law, Dorothy retired.
“I’ve saved and invested throughout my whole life,” she said. “When I was planning where my estate would go, I wanted to choose something that would be worthy of the hard work I put in.”
In creating those plans, Dorothy always knew she would include her alma mater. “I just loved OSU when I got there,” she said. “It was my school.” She discovered she has several orange passions and decided to split her estate accordingly using a charitable bequest.
Farming runs deep in the Lawson veins, and Dorothy chose to designate part of her estate to the B.N. & Etta Lawson & Dorothy Lawson Memorial Endowed Scholarship for the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.
“I have such a love for farming and for farmers,” Dorothy said. “Daddy always said farmers feed the world.” This scholarship will honor the legacy of the Lawson family, supporting the mission of this land-grant university.
Dorothy also has a strong affiliation with the college she attended at OSU, and she designated the other portion of her estate to create the Dorothy A. Lawson Memorial Scholarship for the Spears School of Business. She said that she loved her experience at OSU and wanted to leave a lasting legacy in the areas that affected her most.
Dorothy’s charitable bequest ensures that her estate will offer support to the areas of OSU she is most passionate about.
Learn more about charitable bequests and other giving vehicles!