W I N T E R 2 0 1 8 1 5 Eachyear,ThePittsburghFoundationawardsnearly$2.5millioninscholarships,makingitone ofthelargestcommunityfoundation–ledprogramsinthecountry.Scholarshipfundshonorthe legaciesofcommunitymemberssuchasattorneysSamuelJ.GoldsteinandJohnD.S.Truxall. The financialassistanceawardedintheirnamesreducedtheburdenofexpensivelegaleducation for scores of law school graduates in the region. Members of both scholarship selection committeeswereimpressedbythelifeexperiencesofthisyear’sawardees.Twofeaturedhere, plantousetheirlawdegreestofightinjustice. SARA WATKINS WINNER OF THE SAMUEL J. GOLDSTEIN, ESQUIRE, SCHOLARSHIP Sara Watkins was in eighth grade when the ridicule she faced throughout most of her life became more than words. The Shaler Township native says she found swastikas drawn on her locker. As one of few Jewish people in her neighborhood, this moment shaped her worldview and has motivated her to “snuff out inequities” in America by becoming a lawyer to defend and protect others. The Samuel J. Goldstein, Esquire, Scholarship Fund, provides scholarships to students from Allegheny and contiguous counties, giving priority to Jewish students who have a demonstrated financial need. Watkins, in her final year at Duquesne University School of Law, is focusing on public interest law. “I want to make an impact on the world. I think the best place for me to make a real difference is in public service,” she says. Watkins interned in the Allegheny County District Attorney’s office and for Judge Patricia A. McCullough of the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania. Her goal is to become a judge after practicing law. “A lawyer’s job, in the simplest of terms, is to take on other people’s legal problems,” Watkins says. “I want to use my education and my voice to help others deal with any inequities they have experienced.” Watkins always wanted to be a lawyer, but meeting tuition costs has been a struggle. The Goldstein scholarship helps financially and in ways that go beyond defraying the costs of law school. “People from Pittsburgh care about the next generation,” she says. “I decided years ago, after receiving my first scholar- ship [from the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh], that I, too, will help the generation after me by setting up a scholar- ship fund. The generosity of previous generations plants a seed to pay it forward, to keep this city alive and educated.” By Deanna Garcia Scholarship awardees Rondell Magic Jordan, left, from University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and SaraWatkins, from Duquesne University School of Law, plan to combat injustices they have experienced and observed in their young lives.