Eugene Nagowski never had any children of his own, but a few minutes around him is enough to confirm that he is something of a big kid himself. He loves life and likes to have fun in his 2010 Chevrolet Corvette, but his real joy comes from spreading happiness to others.
“I’ve been very fortunate,” the Texas resident says. “I was married for 44 years to the perfect person and with her, every day was special. How many people can say that?”
Since his wife Patricia passed away in 2009, Eugene has set out to honor her memory by being good to others. He’s donated money to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital to help with medical care and the expenses of families staying there for treatment. “There really is no feeling like the one you get when you hear from a child who has been given some joy in the middle of all that suffering.” Eugene said.
“I’m an out-of-the-box kind of thinker,” Eugene added, “so it occurred to me that the Corvette Museum could give a lot of joy to underprivileged kids, too. Kids need fun in their lives and a reason to get excited. What’s more exciting than Corvettes? If a kid could come to the Museum, enjoy a day there and get away from it all, that could make a big difference in their life.”
Toward that end, Eugene has made a donation to establish an endowment and made a commitment to add to the endowment by July 2012. He hopes that his generosity will inspire other Corvette owners to band together and grow this endowment to help others.
“If every Corvette owner would just give a dollar, there would be enough seed money to where the interest alone could fund all kinds of good work. For those able to do more, they should do more to help this happen.” Eugene hopes that the fund can do other great things, like bring in kids from families who couldn’t otherwise afford it to enjoy a day of fun at the Museum and even pay for wheelchairs for use in the Museum by special needs children. He wants everyone to know that the Corvette community cares.
For more information on the National Corvette Museum’s Education Endowment and programs offered for children, visit www.corvettemuseum.org/kids.
