HISTORY

In 1931, fourteen-year-old Bernard Mann caught the Greyhound bus from Americus, Georgia to Madison, Wisconsin after he convinced his parents to let him travel north in search of a better life here. He graduated from Central High and attended the University of Wisconsin- Madison for three years where he studied accounting before having to drop out for financial reasons. When he approached the Wisconsin state employment office, he was offered a position ..... as a janitor. Bernie said "no thank you” and continued his search for employment more consistent with his education. He later was employed by the Wisconsin Department of Revenue as an accountant and not long after received the State of Wisconsin's highest merit award (granted by the State at that time) for developing a device to increase the efficiency of validating machines and thereby speed processing of income-tax returns and taxpayer refunds. For that same innovation, he also received The State Merit Suggester of the Year Award. He resolved that education would make the difference for his children.

Bernie met Kathy in Milwaukee and married her in 1958. They had five children, four daughters and a son (including a set of twins). With a diploma from the business school, Kathy ran a small home-based business, Capital Secretarial Service, while her children were growing up. Later she was Administrative Assistant for Governance and secretary to the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Education Association.

The children were educated in the Madison Public Schools. Always supportive parents, Kathy and Bernie attended athletic events, parent-teacher conferences, and neighborhood gatherings in as many as three different schools at one time. Kathy took an active role in the battle to maintain Franklin Elementary as a neighborhood school and served on the Superintendent's Citizen Human Relations Advisory Committee in the crucial years, helping to bring attention to the need for curriculum review and supportive services for children of color. Active members of their church and community, they were also engaged in the political life of Madison, serving organizations dedicated to civil rights and improving life for people of color. They did not hold high office, nor always make big headlines. . .their activism, integrity and community engagement were simply the works of two Madison citizens who made a difference in their community.

When Bernard and Kathlyn passed away in the late 1980's, family, close friends and the community joined forces to create the Mann Educational Opportunity Fund (MEOF), an endowment housed at the Madison Community Foundation and incorporated by MEOF's founding Board of Directors in November 1992. The funds that are annually generated by this investment make it possible to award multiple scholarships to Madison high school students who show strong promise for academic achievement but face significant challenges in attaining their full potential. The lessons they taught and the values they demonstrated live in on in the next generation and those who continue to admire and respect the example they set.