Like any good parents, especially those of their generation, Ed and Irene Fleis always pushed their children to do more – to reach higher.

“My mother and dad were eighth grade graduates, and they later married and had 12 children,” son Ted Fleis tells The Ticker. “They spent their whole lives encouraging us, telling us that we can do better, that we can excel.”

It was during Irene’s wake in 1996 that the seeds of an idea that captured that spirit were planted. It later bloomed for good in the form of the Ed & Irene Fleis Education Fund, which since 2006 has granted a whopping $757,200 in scholarships to more than 400 students. These scholarships are good for colleges, universities, trade schools and other forms of continuing education.

Every recipient has had roots in Leelanau County, just like the Fleis family itself, and this is not by accident. Leelanau lineage (not necessarily current residency) is required of applicants. It’s a way for the Fleis family to give back to their own community, and it’s something that makes the scholarship extra enjoyable for the family to administer.

“Once you get to two or three hundred families in a community…they can see the impact,” says Larry Fleis, Ted’s brother. “To have someone in a local organization say ‘Your foundation has affected pretty much everyone in this room’ – whether it’s a cousin or a daughter or a son or a friend – that’s such a great feeling.”

“I love it when a grandfather comes up to me and says their granddaughter or grandson won a scholarship – that’s really cool,” Ted adds. “If you look at a grandfather like me, most of us didn’t go to college.”

The fund initially granted four $500 scholarships a year, and is now up to 75 $1,200 scholarships, or $90,000 a year. This is all supported by a variety of fundraising activities, including a golf outing and online auction that began this week and runs through Nov. 24.

“It isn’t just a family thing,” Ted says. “We’re really looking out to the community to raise funds.”

To keep everything above board, the scholarship recipients themselves are selected by either the Cedar-Maple City Lions Club or the Cedar Chamber of Commerce, with no influence from the Fleis family.

Aside from Leelanau lineage, the scholarships are entirely need based. They’re looking for students who might otherwise not go to college without some form of financial assistance, and many recipients use the Fleis scholarship as one piece in an aid package to get the job done.

“It’s strictly based on financial need,” Ted says. “You don’t have to be a jock. You don’t have to be the smartest kid in the room.”

The Fleis scholarships can be won by anyone looking to attend school, not just high school students, and several adult learners have received them. They also can be won multiple times, helping students get through school. Ted recalls an emotional moment when he called one such learner to let her know she had received a scholarship.

“By the time I turned the phone from myself to my wife, who takes care of the details, she was bawling,” Ted says. “And she says, ‘You know, my mom and I were talking this morning about how we're going to make the next payment.’ How heavy is that?

Emma Korson is Glen Lake graduate and a senior at Central Michigan University. She’s studying to be a teacher, and has been the recipient of three Fleis scholarships as she pursues her education.

“It makes a huge difference,” she tells The Ticker. “It really helps, because tuition and living is very expensive, and it really takes some of the burden off. Anything helps when it comes to taking out loans or things like that, and I really appreciate it.”

Korson also feels deep appreciation for the friends and neighbors in the Leelanau community that make the scholarships possible.

“I feel like it really helps connect you to the community as well, knowing that I get support from where I come from,” she says. “It made me feel there’s people out there who want to encourage you to keep going to school and finish your degree.”

Leelanau County educators are grateful to the Fleis fund and the community that supports it. The Fleis scholarship and those like it allow students to “dream bigger and go further in their education” and provide “immeasurable” positive impact, Suttons Bay Schools Superintendent Casey Petz says.

“As a school leader in a community filled with students that come from a very diverse set of family circumstances, I know that every student that has received funding support from the Fleis Education Fund benefited from the extra support these funds provide,” Petz tells The Ticker.

Glen Lake Community Schools Superintendent Jason Misner called the Fleis fund a “true blessing.”

“The entire Glen Lake Schools community is highly appreciative and grateful for this opportunity for our students residing in Leelanau County,” he tells the Ticker.

For more information, visit the the fund's website.

Pictured: The 12 Fleis kids and Ed and Irene Fleis (inset).