We believe that everyone with a desire to learn should have access to higher education, not just the wealthy and privileged. In partnership with the Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Idaho, the Treasure Valley YMCA, and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Idaho, we have been providing scholarships since 2018. The foundation has donated over $490,000 and continues to support youth in their higher education journey.
“Without the scholarship provided by [the Lincoln Family Educational Foundation], I would be working a full-time job and struggling to build my future. With your help, I can build something for myself and change the path I was headed towards…
I am so THANKFUL for your support.”
Abigail M. Cox
Scholarship Recipient and Third Year Student, Boise State University
LFEF is a non-profit private foundation incorporated in the State of Idaho and qualifies as a 501(c)(3) organization under the Internal Revenue Service code.
The taxpayer identification number is 83-4094267.
LFEF is governed by a Board of Directors
Learn more about them here.
John Lincoln joined Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Idaho as a Big Brother in 2010. His Little Brother came from a large family where no one had attended college, reinforcing John’s belief in education as a path to self-improvement. Recognizing his Little Brother’s financial barriers to higher education, when their match ended John established a $6,000 scholarship through Big Brothers/Big Sisters, aimed at helping program graduates pursue post-high school education.
John and his sister Catherine (Lincoln) Wolfson established the Lincoln Family Educational Foundation, with the mission to provide scholarship funding to economically disadvantaged youth for post-high school education. Unlike typical one-time awards, scholarships are renewable for up to four years based on satisfactory academic progress, and can also fund shorter programs such as associate degrees or trade school.
The Foundation launched in 2019 with a single scholarship for a Big Brothers/Big Sisters graduate, and a donation to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Ada County to support their Youth of the Year scholarship. The Big Brothers/Big Sisters scholarship program has continued to grow, and in 2023 the Foundation partnered with the Treasure Valley YMCA — which has access to all Treasure Valley high schools — to expand the candidate pool. By 2025, the program had grown to award five new four-year scholarships annually, with a total of 15 students receiving Foundation funding that year.
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