Sara L. Bilecke Memorial Scholarship
Sara Bilecke was born and raised in Wilmington, Delaware. She attended Goldey-Beacom College, receiving a degree in secretarial skills. During WWII, she attended a United States Officers Club dance where she met John Bilecke, an army officer on leave, and married him shortly thereafter.
They resided in Detroit for 50 years, raising two girls: Betty Jane and Sally Ann. Sara taught them to be thrifty and self-sufficient. Their first allowance was $0.26 a week, which covered the cost of two Good Humor ice cream bars from the ice cream truck.
Sara spent most of her working years first as a teller and then as a mortgage loan officer for the National Bank of Detroit. She loved to travel and read. In her later years, she tried to only read short novels, as she could not go to sleep until she had finished a book. She was very proficient as a quilter and with crewel and needlepoint handwork. She gave most of her work away to those who admired it.
Impact
Sara and her husband John had a strong believe in the power of education. They assisted six individuals in addition to their own two children with financial aid for higher education. During Sara’s last year of life, she was cared for by a home care professional who had a desire to be a nurse. As a result, Sara decided to further the education of others by creating this scholarship to assist those interested in the nursing profession.