Forever 28
Scholarship Honors Legacy of Daughter Gone Too Soon
Allison Morris Keim, pictured on her wedding day with her parents Chuck and Laurie
Allison Morris Keim was a people person. Her entire life, she was always on the go—always getting together with loved ones or making instant friendships with strangers.
Fueled by a passion for helping others, Allison graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with a bachelor’s and master’s degree through the communication sciences and disorders program. She then worked at a rehabilitation center in Phoenix as a speech therapist.
On December 8, 2016, just a few weeks after her wedding day, Allison was rushed to the ER and diagnosed with a brain aneurysm. After 21 days in intensive care and nearly two months in the hospital, she was approaching a full recovery when she suffered a second aneurysm.
This time the doctors couldn’t save her. Allison died June 2, 2017, at the age of 28.
The following year, Allison’s parents, Laurie and Chuck Morris decided to establish a memorial scholarship to honor their daughter and support students whose mission was to serve others. To raise the necessary funds, they began planning a memorial golf tournament, the sport that was a shared pastime for Allison and her dad.
“At the beginning, we thought, ‘We’ll just raise enough money to create a scholarship for a student who would be starting the speech and language program,’ thinking we’d raise $3,000 to $4,000,” recalls Laurie. “We raised $10,000.”
The Morrises met with staff at the UNI Foundation, who explained that they could either create a one-time scholarship with their gift or they could use the money as the basis to endow a scholarship and leave a lasting legacy.
Though her time on earth was brief, Allison’s legacy lives on through her family, friends and the Allison Morris Forever 28 Endowed Scholarship. The Morrises have since made provisions in their estate plans to add to the endowment.
“I liked the fact this was going to go on forever—Allison’s name and the Forever 28 Scholarship, it will go on forever. That sold me on the endowed scholarship.”
—Laurie Morris