Alexis Pearson's father passed away after serving 21 years as an active duty firefighter
Folds of Honor supports families of first responders alongside NFL and Bud Light
Folds of Honor founder Lt. Col Dan Rooney and Alexis Pearson, a scholarship recipient, discuss the impact of the organization's educational assistance.
Folds of Honor, Bud Light and the NFL make a great team, and Alexis Pearson's heartwarming story of healing serves as testament of their impact.
Partnering with the other agencies, the nonprofit stepped up for Pearson, whose father passed away after 21 years as an active duty firefighter, by awarding her a scholarship that turned her educational dreams into reality.
"[It's] so beyond amazing because they were able to give me a scholarship to help me achieve my dreams of going to school," she said Monday on "Fox & Friends."
"The journey with Folds of Honor has been so honoring and healing – achieving my dreams while being able to tell my story and about my dad and how amazing of a man he was. I'm graduating this spring from Oregon State University with a degree in civil engineering, and it's because of the people that Folds and everybody who supports them that makes this possible."
FAMILIES OF FALLEN FIRST RESPONDERS ARE NOW ELIGIBLE FOR FOLDS OF HONOR SCHOLARSHIPS
Alexis Pearson (left) was awarded a Folds of Honor scholarship and continues to tell the story of her father David (right). (Fox News/Alexis Pearson)
Folds of Honor founder Lt. Col. Dan Rooney said the nonprofit's 14-year partnership with Anheuser-Busch has created many opportunities for students.
"They've donated over $26 million, our largest partner by far. And it was a couple of years ago I was actually just watching the climate around our first responders in this country, and it felt to me a lot like Vietnam, and then I would realize that every six seconds in this country, 911 is dialed. That's 240 million times a year," he said.
"These first responders are coming to rescue us, but there was no organization providing educational assistance to the families of fallen and disabled first responders. And I went back to Brendan Whitworth, the CEO, Anheuser-Busch…and I was like, ‘We’ve got to do something for first responders,' and he said, 'I'm in.' Bud Light came on, and the NFL is founding partners with a $3 million donation to support our first responder initiatives. It is a long overdue but a heroic outreach to the heroic first responders that rescue us every day."
FOLDS OF HONOR PROVIDES AID, SCHOLARSHIPS TO GOLD STAR FAMILIES
Alexis Pearson's father David Pearson served as an active duty firefighter for 21 years. (Alexis Pearson)
Scholarship checks were presented by 11 teams during this past Sunday's games. Over the past 17 years since its inception, Folds of Honor's partnership has brought academic scholarship opportunities to 62,000 students, coming in at a whopping $290 million.
The 2024-2025 academic year has set a record, with approximately 10,000 scholarships valued at nearly $50 million.
To donate to the cause, FOX viewers can visit www.foldsofhonor.org.
Taylor Penley is an associate editor with Fox News.
