The Burchfield Family Foundation has pledged $500,000 to endow the Roy and Anna Lee McCreary Burchfield Scholarship at Lincoln Memorial University (LMU). The gift celebrates the legacy of two families with a long history of supporting LMU.
“It would be impossible to overstate how important LMU has been to my family. My mom’s dad and his four sisters attended there over a hundred years ago,” said philanthropist Bobby Burchfield. “My mom’s brother, John, graduated from there. My dad graduated, and his brother and two sisters attended there. Two of my cousins graduated from LMU.”
John P. McCreary, who grew up in Cumberland Gap, Tennessee, enrolled at LMU in 1913 to begin the legacy. His daughter, Anna Lee McCreary would later marry Roy Burchfield, who graduated with a business degree from LMU in 1951.
LMU was especially transformational for Roy Burchfield. “While attending LMU, my dad worked at the JC Penney store in Middlesboro, which led to his successful four-decade career at the company,” Bobby Burchfield shared. “My dad spoke of LMU often and told great stories of his time there.”
Anna Lee and Roy Burchfield were committed to education and continued to give to LMU scholarship funds throughout their lives.
Anna Lee and Roy Burchfield’s son, Bobby Burchfield, a retired lawyer residing in the Washington, D.C. area, established the Burchfield Family Foundation roughly 20 years ago to support his philanthropic interests. Having funded scholarships at his own alma maters, he remembered the impact LMU had on his family. It was that impact which inspired him to establish the Roy and Anna Lee McCreary Burchfield Scholarship.
“What started as small annual gifts from Roy and Anna Lee years ago is now a legacy for the Burchfield and McCreary names,” said Director of Development Donnie Lipscomb. “Bobby Burchfield is committed to continuing his family’s legacy and support the educational dreams of future generations at LMU.”
Fittingly, Bobby Burchfield presented the first installment of the gift at the Lincoln Memorial on the 215th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, February 12, 2024. The remainder of the gift will be given over the next 12 months. The scholarship will be awarded annually to one incoming undergraduate first-generation student based on merit and with a sincere, stated interest in majoring in business.
“I am sure the lives of many other families from this region have been boosted by time at LMU,” Bobby Burchfield said. “I hope this scholarship will allow more families to change their lives at LMU.”
Bobby Burchfield is a graduate of Wake Forest University and George Washington Law School (GW Law). He had a remarkable 42-year career where he never lost a jury trial and argued twice before the U.S. Supreme Court. Bobby Burchfield also represented major corporations in antitrust, class action, constitutional, and commercial matters and is well known for serving as counsel for political parties and officeholders in constitutional political litigation. His client list includes three former United States presidents, the leader of the U.S. Senate and majority leader of the House. Bobby Burchfield serves on the board of trustees for Wake Forest University and as an adjunct professor at GW Law.
Lincoln Memorial University is a values-based learning community dedicated to providing educational experiences in the liberal arts and professional studies. The main campus is located in Harrogate, Tennessee. For more information about the undergraduate and graduate programs available at LMU, contact the Office of Admissions at 423-869-6280 or email at admissions@LMUnet.edu.
