Cynthia & Larry Woiderski and Lois Barnett

Cynthia Woiderski, Director of Disability Services from 1993 to 2015, and her husband Larry Woiderski established an endowed scholarship to help students with disabilities to honor the memory of Lois Barnett, Cynthia’s mother.

Mrs. Barnett was born July 19, 1933 in Ludington, Michigan and grew up on the LaPointe family farm in Carr, MI. She graduated from Mercy School of Practical Nursing in 1953. While married to her husband Lt. Cmdr. Robert Barnett she lived and traveled many places in the United States; however, her love and heart always belonged to Michigan.

She left a legacy of service and caring for others. Her children and grandchildren remember her open door, where she always had a bed and some hot food for wayward teenagers. Mrs. Barnett involved herself in community service and often volunteered to help raise money for March of Dimes, MDA, Cancer Society, St. Jude’s Hospital, and the PHI scholarship fund.

Mrs. Barnett believed strongly in the value of education and loved to travel, especially to warm beaches with family. When she was not working, she was reading to her grandchildren. Her and her husband sacrificed much to send their five children to Catholic schools. She was thrilled when her daughter, Cynthia Woiderski, obtained a Masters of Administrative Science from SVSU.

Students applying for assistance with technology must be enrolled in a degree program at SVSU, full or part time, must have a disability and a financial need. This fund will pay $100 towards disability-related assistive technology that helps remove barriers to learning. For further information contact the Disability Office directly.