Christopher Lyon Memorial Scholarship Grant

The Christopher Lyon Memorial Scholarship, established in 2007 by friends and family, honors the artistic legacy of Christopher Lyon. A graduate of Western Carolina University and the University of Pennsylvania, Chris was a talented artist whose life was tragically cut short in a car accident. This scholarship aims to support full-time art students at the University of Texas at Tyler, fostering their creative pursuits and helping them achieve their academic dreams.

East Texas Communities Foundation
The strong leadership of early organizers like Isadore Roosth, Norman Shtofman, “Dub” Riter, and an investment of the United Way of Tyler/Smith County launched the Foundation. By 1994, the Foundation’s assets had grown to more than one million dollars.
Scholarships
East Texas Communities Foundation administers a variety of scholarships that have been established by generous individuals to assist students with their educational pursuits. Each scholarship expresses a deep belief in the power of education to help young people achieve their dreams.
Established in 2007 with gifts from the family and friends of Christopher Lyon, this scholarship honors the memory of a young man known for his art, delicate soul, and quirky laugh. Chris was born on October 24, 1973, in Greenville, S.C. An artist by profession, he received his BFA in Drawing, Painting and Photography from Western Carolina University in 1996. He completed his MFA in Painting from the University of Pennsylvania in 1999, where he met his wife Alexis, also an UPenn graduate and now an art professor at the University of Texas at Tyler. The couple moved to Whitehouse in 2004. Chris died in January 2007 as a result of a motor vehicle accident.
This scholarship was created to remember Chris, encourage young art students, and reward them for their hard work.

Eligibility

The recipient must be a full-time student who, at the time of application, has declared his or her major to be art in an undergraduate program or is enrolled in an art master’s degree program at the University of Texas at Tyler.