Megan Butz Memorial Fund

Megan Butz ’12 Memorial Scholarship Honors Carmel Grad

Helps Reduce School’s Carbon Footprint, Assists Service-Oriented Students in Need

“Megan was a source of light for everyone that she ever came in contact with during her time on earth, and this is such a wonderful way to honor her memory.”

Larry Butz fondly recalls his daughter as one of the most caring individuals he has ever known. Whether it was participating on three weeklong mission trips during her sophomore, junior, and senior years at Carmel Catholic, multiple Big Brothers Big Sisters programs, or being active in a North Texas nonprofit that provides education and foster programs to eliminate the killing of dogs, Megan Butz was always thinking of others before herself.

Following the untimely passing of Megan in January of 2020, Larry and his wife Mary Jo say that navigating the family’s grief would take them in one of two directions. “You can choose to live in the light or live in the dark,” recalls the executive with Lake Zurich-based OEO Energy Solutions, a company that provides commercial and industrial customers the latest in LED technology.

With two younger daughters who are also Carmel graduates and a business partner who has put four children through Carmel, it didn’t take long for another light bulb to go off: What if OEO could help Carmel replace all of its lighting with energy-efficient LED and help the school save hundreds of thousands of dollars in electricity?

That’s when school President Brad Bonham chimed in even further. “Let’s take proceeds of the savings on our electric bills and use it to help service-oriented students in financial need, so they have a chance to attend Carmel.”

And thus, the Megan Butz Memorial Scholarship Fund was created.

“Megan was a source of light for everyone that she ever came in contact with during her time on earth, and this is such a wonderful way to honor her memory,” said Larry. “Even as a high-schooler, Megan was kind and driven to volunteer, like when she taught a yearlong religious education class and got involved in multiple service projects.”

Over the past several months, OEO has helped Carmel secure thousands of LED fixtures which are currently replacing all existing lighting across the school campus. A similar transformation took place last year at the grade school Megan attended at St. Francis De Sales School in Lake Zurich, saving roughly $3,000 on electricity each month. Butz estimates the savings at Carmel can be more than triple that based on the size of the school and the scope of the project. “Kudos to Brad (Bonham) for thinking out of the box with the idea of using a portion of the energy savings to help fund the scholarship,” added Larry. I didn’t ask for that, but at the same time, we wanted to do something that would be lasting. To have a perpetual scholarship in Megan’s name is very heartwarming.”

Following her graduation from Carmel Catholic in 2012, Megan would attend and graduate from the University of Dayton before going to work for Miller Electric and moving to Appleton, WI. While she was there, she befriended a young girl and served as a mentor to her through Big Brothers Big Sisters. Two years later she would begin a career with Traulson refrigeration and move to Fort Worth. Her passing shortly after arriving in Texas sent shockwaves through the entire Carmel Catholic community.

“Many people are under the impression that Carmel Catholic is only for the affluent,” said Larry. “I think about people who would love to send their kids here if only they could afford it. Knowing that Megan’s fund can offer these families the opportunity for a Carmel education and for their children to realize their dreams would be amazing.”