Erik Sohlberg Memorial Scholarship Impacts Students
The bonds made at UW-Madison last a life-time and the people you form bonds with affect your life forever. Such is the case with a group of 9 Bradley Hall friends. The group stuck together as one by one they each graduated from UW between the years of ’86 to ’92.
Erik Sohlberg ’91 was one of the first people the group met in Bradley Hall during freshman year. Erik graduated in 1991 with a degree from the Business School and eagerly entered the business world. Not long after starting his first job, Erik became sick with flu-like symptoms. When they didn’t go away, doctors ran tests and discovered two malignant brain tumors. A few weeks later, while undergoing treatments for the tumors, Erik passed away at only 24. Erik entered the UW with a unique perspective on life. Unknown to those around him, he also battled and beat Leukemia as a teen. He never shared that experience and instead, chose to live his life in a very inspiring way. Erik didn’t live in the past. He was a man of action who savored the moments of each day.
Since Erik’s passing, the group of friends has met together every year for a weekend at the end of April to celebrate and remember the difference Erik made. The lessons that these friends learned from Erik inspired them to create the Erik Sohlberg Memorial Scholarship fund, allowing them to support the university, honor their friend and to support students in need and let them know who Erik was. Since it was established in 2013, the fund has continued Erik’s legacy through supporting 4 Badger students, with that number set to grow even larger with the 2017-18 class.
(Photo, left to right: Erik Sohlberg ’90; Rett Summerville ’92; Dan Fernandez ’90; Gary Vieaux ’91, ’03; Rob Heen ’92; Darin Buelow ’91; Mark Hoggatt ’90; Patrick O’Connell ’90; and Steve Peterson ’90)
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