The Only One to Answer

Simpson College fulfilled the American dreams of the late Inja Pak Lew ’60. Inja’s family is expressing its profound gratitude by establishing the Inja Pak Lew Memorial Scholarship. The generous gift will help make it possible for future first-generation and international students to realize their educational aspirations at Simpson.

The family says the scholarship is the perfect way to honor Inja’s transformational Simpson experience.

“It might sound like an exaggeration, but without Simpson College, my siblings and I might not be here today,” said Pamila Lew, Inja’s daughter. “My mother was an ambitious young woman who dreamed of leaving South Korea to pursue an American education. Simpson answered the call–and the rest, as they say, is history.”

Although today South Korea is known for its advanced technology and award-winning musicians, television shows and movies, the country was devastated shortly after the war ended in 1953. Bright and hardworking, Inja’s desire to study in the United States was constrained by the reality of her family’s limited finances.

With nothing to lose, Inja, in an act of faith, sent letters to several American colleges explaining her plight. Simpson College was the only one to answer, offering her admission and a full scholarship.

At Simpson, Inja immersed herself in liberal arts education. She passed on the lessons she learned to her children, creating a foundation that would serve them well: an emphasis on the importance of good grammar, a wide vocabulary, and, most importantly, critical thinking.

Inja and her husband of 57 years, Dr. Sanghwan Lew, never took for granted the doors that Simpson helped open for her and their children. Now the family can take heart knowing that Inja’s inspiring legacy will live on forever at the College.