LEROYPENNYSAVER&NEWS -MAY 31, 2015
Dr. BobMilne and theR.E.A.MilneScholarship
byLynneBelluscio
Last Thursday,while dedicat-
ed volunteers were placing flags
on veterans’ gravesites atMach-
pelah Cemetery, I happened to
check to see if the flag had been
placedonDr.Milne’sgrave. It’s
not an imposing stone, just flush
with thegroundand Ihad tomove
someof thegrassclipping to take
the picture.
You may have heard of Dr.
Milne,especially ifyouknowofa
studentwhohasreceivedaLeRoy
Rotary Scholarship, because the
scholarshipwasestablished in the
memory of Dr. Robert (Bob) E.
A. Milne. Over the years, thou-
sands of dollars have been given
out tohundredsofLeRoycollege
students.Thescholarship isgiven
throughout four years of school.
Bob Milne was born in
Welland, Canada on April 6,
1900. He graduated from the
Toronto University School of
Medicine in 1925 and interned
atGeneralHospital inHamilton,
Ontario. According to one histo-
rian, he served in the Canadian
armedservicesduringWorldWar
I,but little isknownabouthisunit
or lengthof service.
He practicedmedicine atWa-
terdown, Ontario for nine years
beforemoving toLeRoy in1936.
Hewas active in the community,
serving on the Board of Educa-
tion, and was a member of the
Genesee County Medical Asso-
ciation, Olive Branch Lodge of
Free and Accepted Masons, the
Oatka Hose Company, and the
PresbyterianChurch.
In 1940, he became a charter
member of the LeRoy Rotary
Club. In 1943, although he was
43, he enlisted in the Air Force.
He saw active duty in the Italian
and African Campaigns and
was promoted to the rank of
Major with the 41st Air Group
of the Army Aviation Medical
Corps. Just before he was to be
discharged, he developed men-
ingitis and was seriously ill for
severalweeks.Hisdischargewas
deferred andhe didnot leave the
service until the early months
of 1946. He returned home to
continue his practice. He and
his wife Evelyn, and their two
sons, Bruce andRobert, livedon
Wolcott Street.
His bout with meningitis had
left his health impaired, and in
the springof1948, hewashospi-
talized inRochester. He died on
May4th,1948.His twosonswere
still inhighschooland theRotary
Club was concerned about their
future, so the Club established a
scholarship program. But it was
not solely for theMilne boys. Its
purpose was “To adopt worthy
individuals of the LeRoy area
for thepurposeof assisting them
in completing an educational
programconsistentwith theaims
and ideals of Rotary. It was the
united opinion of the committee
that this fund should not be con-
sidered in any sense as a loan to
the individual assisted. Rather it
was felt that this fundwas to be
an investment inyouth,believing
that by contributing to society,
an educatedman or woman, we
might see progress toward the
purpose forwhichwe seek.”
To raise money for theMilne
Scholarship, the Rotary Club
held a Rotary Show. The show
continued for over forty years,
and then it was replaced by
what is known as “The Graze
to Raise.” Thousands of dollars
are raised each year and given
out in scholarships. The Milne
family continued to give to the
scholarship. But now both of
Bob’s sons have passed away.
This year, the LeRoy Rotary
Club, incommemorationof their
75th anniversary, have designat-
ed Dr. R.E.A. Milne to receive
posthumously the Rotary Paul
HarrisAward.Theawardwill be
announced at the LeRoy Rotary
installationdinner, June24, at the
StaffordCountryClub.
If you know of a student who
lives in theLeRoyCentralSchool
District,whomightneedfinancial
aid for college for next year,
visit the LeRoy Rotary website
at
he
goal of the R.E.A. Milne Schol-
arship Fund is to help students
who reside within the LeRoy
Central School District to fur-
ther their education. Grants are
made on a financial need basis.
The amount distributed each
year is determined by available
funds. Currently, each recipient
receives $750 each year for up
to four years. Recipients must
re-apply eachyear to receive the
full amount. $3,000 per student
is our present limit.
