Response to Councilwoman CdeBaca
The Daniels Fund has great respect for all of our Daniels Scholars, current and past. However, we feel it necessary to respond to former Daniels Scholar, Councilwoman CdeBaca’s inaccurate and inflammatory comments on social media regarding our scholarship application. While we honor a diversity of viewpoints, it’s important to share our thoughts.
First and foremost, we are stewards of Bill Daniels’ legacy and we have an obligation to fulfill his direction for his foundation, the Daniels Fund. Our top priority is finding students who meet the criteria that Bill Daniels defined and who share his values. As a veteran who defended this country in two wars, Bill Daniels was a patriotic American with a strong love for his country and its freedoms.
Bill Daniels was also a champion of business and our free enterprise system, which allowed him to build successful companies that employed thousands of his fellow Americans. And in his final years, to establish the Daniels Fund to benefit people in the four states he loved. The Daniels Scholarship Program is a direct result of Bill Daniels’ success in the free enterprise system.
Unlike some donors, Bill Daniels left explicit directions as to his funding priorities. It is our job to respect and carry out his wishes. Every day, Bill Daniels lived his deeply held belief in America and the free enterprise system. Different scholarship programs have different criteria. He wanted Daniels Scholars to understand and reflect the values that were important to him, including love of country, free enterprise, honesty, respect for others, self-reliance, and compassion. For these reasons, we have developed a scholarship application to help identify applicants who share his values.
We believe these are core values that people across the political spectrum can share. Bill Daniels embraced and supported people of all backgrounds and walks of life. As stewards of Bill Daniels’ foundation, it is our responsibility to uphold his values and his directives.
First and foremost, we are stewards of Bill Daniels’ legacy and we have an obligation to fulfill his direction for his foundation, the Daniels Fund. Our top priority is finding students who meet the criteria that Bill Daniels defined and who share his values. As a veteran who defended this country in two wars, Bill Daniels was a patriotic American with a strong love for his country and its freedoms.
Bill Daniels was also a champion of business and our free enterprise system, which allowed him to build successful companies that employed thousands of his fellow Americans. And in his final years, to establish the Daniels Fund to benefit people in the four states he loved. The Daniels Scholarship Program is a direct result of Bill Daniels’ success in the free enterprise system.
Unlike some donors, Bill Daniels left explicit directions as to his funding priorities. It is our job to respect and carry out his wishes. Every day, Bill Daniels lived his deeply held belief in America and the free enterprise system. Different scholarship programs have different criteria. He wanted Daniels Scholars to understand and reflect the values that were important to him, including love of country, free enterprise, honesty, respect for others, self-reliance, and compassion. For these reasons, we have developed a scholarship application to help identify applicants who share his values.
We believe these are core values that people across the political spectrum can share. Bill Daniels embraced and supported people of all backgrounds and walks of life. As stewards of Bill Daniels’ foundation, it is our responsibility to uphold his values and his directives.