Couple Boost Alumni Chapter Tri-Star Scholarships with New Endowment

The Tri-Star Scholarship Program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has received another boost, this time from Class of 1973 alumni Phil and Brenda Wenk. In October, they established the Phil and Brenda Wenk UT Alumni Chapter Tri-Star Scholarship Endowment.

“Small gifts combine into larger ones, and so our motto is, ‘Give any way you can,’” Brenda says. “We established this endowment because UT provided the education that enabled us to reach a point in our lives where we can give back.”

The couple's gift comes at a time when the Tri-Star Scholarship Program is expanding to serve more students. The university recently expanded its Flagship Scholarship program, which is part of the Tri-Star. Students at 38 Tennessee high schools are now eligible to have their tuition and mandatory fees at UT covered (when combined with the state’s HOPE Scholarship) for up to eight semesters.

One Tri-Star Scholarship Program recipient, Hayden Thorton, became part of the program when he was awarded the Memphis Alumni Chapter Scholarship. A freshman nursing major, Hayden says that despite the online learning that defined 2020, he felt instantly part of a community thanks to the local chapter alumnus who lived near him in Memphis.

“I felt completely surrounded and supported,” Hayden says. “When I was initially uncertain of whether or not we’d be on campus, one of the chapter representatives who lives nearby brought me a welcome gift with a bunch of UT apparel that made me feel so loved.”

This sense of camaraderie and inclusiveness is exactly what Phil and Brenda Wenk sought to foster with their gift. They pointed out that the need for financial aid goes well beyond tuition for many students, as does the need for a sense of belonging.

“UT is where the adult phase of our life together began,” Brenda says. “Phil and I met there and were married during our junior year. After he completed dental school, everything in our lives revolved around UT football. Our two children were raised to be Vol fans. Our daughter, Andrea, was a Whittle scholar at UT, and our son Alan attended and would have likely graduated had cancer not interrupted his college years. Now we’re doing everything possible to influence our three grandchildren to want to be University of Tennessee Volunteers. And we proudly wear orange!”

To learn how you can lend your long-term support for Vols, like the Wenks did, contact the Office of Gift Planning at 865-974-3388 or giftplanning@utk.edu.