Beckley family honors patriarch's legacy by establishing college scholarship
beckley – A Beckley family is honoring the legacy of its patriarch by helping students achieve their dreams of earning a college education.
David Quesenberry, in partnership with the Beckley Area Foundation, recently established the Quesenberry Family Memorial Scholarship Fund in honor of his father, Amos Edward Quesenberry, who was known as an advocate for education.
'Having grown up with humble beginnings and with little means, he never knew if he would be able to achieve his lifelong dream of being a funeral director,' David Quesenberry said in a press release.
From a very young age, Amos Edward Quesenberry had dreamt of one day becoming a funeral director. However, he wasn't able to achieve that goal until after he joined the U.S. Navy, served honorably and returned home to Beckley. Like many Americans of 'The Greatest Generation,' he took advantage of one of his military benefits and went to mortuary school.
'Thanks to the GI Bill, Amos was afforded the opportunity to attend mortuary school, and go on to start Rose and Quesenberry Funeral Chapels,' David Quesenberry said.
Humble Beginnings
Born in the spring of 1921, Amos Edward Quesenberry was 2 years old when his father, a coal miner, lost his eyesight in a coal mine explosion, 'and the large family fell on hard times.'
From a very young age, Amos Edward Quesenberry did his part to help out his family by working odd jobs. He also went hunting and fishing to help provide food for his family. Yet, through all of the adversity, he never gave up on his dream of becoming a funeral director.
Amos Edward Quesenberry loved his father and went on to follow his lead by going to work in the coal mines. As a 20-year-old, while coming out of the mines one afternoon, he learned about the breaking news of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor. Like many young men and women of that era, he enlisted in the military because he wanted to help his country.
After basic training he was deployed to the European Theatre where he served aboard the USS Mallory while World War II escalated around the globe.
In the winter of 1943, three ships, including the USS Mallory, were torpedoed and sank in the icy waters of Iceland.
'Amos was one of eight men that survived the attack on the USS Mallory, having spent days on a raft praying.'
Shortly after his rescue, the U.S. Navy honorably discharged Amos Edward Quesenberry.
Post War
Still determined to fulfill his childhood dream of becoming a funeral director, Amos Edward Quesenberry used his GI Loan to attend what was known at the time as The United States College of Embalming in New York City. As the years passed, the college grew in stature, and its name would change to the Renouard Training School for Embalmers. While attending school, Amos worked long hours at a Jewish grocery store where he delivered groceries.
'While away at school, Amos never forgot about his community and the relationships he had forged with so many of its members,' David Quesenberry said. 'Upon returning to Beckley, he knew his life of service would continue.'
That's when he founded Rose and Quesenberry Funeral Chapels.
'He found a way to give back by helping his community when it came to the loss of their loved ones. In the beginning, Amos would take forms of payment such as money, eggs, and baked goods,' David Quesenberry said.
He said his father taught him early in his life how to respect people from different backgrounds and to live by the Golden Rule of treating others as you wish to be treated.
'David never forgot that and, till this day, continues that moral code. The foundation that Amos built, the community that he loved, was the driving force for the Quesenberry Family Memorial Scholarship,' states the press release.
Established in the fall of 2024, the scholarship is available to Shady Spring High seniors who reside in Raleigh or Summers counties. Students must have a grade point average of 2.0 or higher and will be attending a four-year college or university in West Virginia. The need-based scholarship, which is renewable annually, does not require a written essay. Students who will be high school seniors in the fall of 2025 are encouraged to apply.
More information is available online here.
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