Harry and Mary Meinhardt Memorial Scholarship for Student Veterans

To provide a scholarship to an honorably discharged veteran of the United States Armed Services pursuing an undergraduate degree. Preference will be given to an in-state student in good standing.

The scholarship was established in 2017 by Lise Meinhardt in memory of her parents Harry and Mary Meinhardt, to honor the men and women of the United States Armed Forces.
Harry Meinhardt enlisted in the United States Army right out of high school and served for thirty-one years. He was a veteran of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. He rose from Private to Staff Sergeant before attending Officer Candidate School and being commissioned in 1952. During his Army career, Harry earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and a Master’s degree in Secondary Education. He retired as a Colonel in 1976 and received his Doctorate in Adult Education from NC State University in 1979. Harry’s passion for encouraging higher education continued into his retirement as the Director of Continuing Education at North Carolina Wesleyan College, with employment at The College Board, and through the support of the Military Officers Association of America, Cape Fear Chapter’s ROTC Scholarship Fund.

Mary Meinhardt was Harry’s high school sweetheart, his beloved wife for sixty-seven years, mother of their seven children, and a proud Army wife. She was an active volunteer in Army wives’ organizations, military hospitals, and Post chapels wherever she and Harry were stationed, and on into retirement. She was an excellent seamstress and a talented musician. Mary’s love for her husband and family was unending, and Harry’s accomplishments are a tribute to her encouragement and support throughout their lifetime together. Harry was the head of the family, and Mary was its heart and soul.

Harry and Mary Meinhardt continued to be active in their church and the military community until their deaths just six weeks apart in the fall of 2015. They truly epitomized service and commitment to family, God, and country.