Edwin and Ina Ayers Scholarship Grant

The Edwin and Ina Ayers Scholarship, established by the Ashland County Community Foundation, honors the legacy of caregiving in the Coe/Ayers family. This scholarship supports students pursuing baccalaureate nursing programs across the U.S., reflecting the family's commitment to healthcare and education. With nearly 200 years of nursing service from family members, this fund not only commemorates Edwin and Ina Ayers but also empowers future generations of nurses dedicated to compassionate care.

We pool resources from community members, invest them and then use them to make grants for the betterment of the entire community. Nonprofit organizations receive grants from community foundations to support their programs and projects.
The Edwin and Ina Ayers Scholarship Fund was established to honor Edwin and Ina’s hard work and perseverance and the long history of care giving by Coe/Ayers family members.
Sarah Letitia Coe Ayers, Edwin’s mother, traveled from the Perrysville area in the early 1900’s to Cincinnati to attend a nursing program. Due to an epidemic in the Cincinnati area, she came home before completing the program and never returned. Her sisters Winifred, Grace and Louise lived in Perrysville, with Winifred providing home care for families during the early part of the 20th century. Ina Ayers, while not a paid caregiver, provided for the care of Grace and Sarah Letitia in their older years and also cared for Edwin at home for 2 year after he suffered a stroke, an undertaking that required tremendous effort and patience on her part.
More recently, the family has included a number of Registered Nurses, those being Salome Ayers Truax, Dorothy Ayers Stitzlein, Nancy Ayers Heasley, Janet Scott Ayers, Jackie Truax, Kathryn O’Connell Truax, and Carly Ayers. Amazingly, as Registered Nurses, these family members have provided nearly 200 years of nursing service!

Eligibility

This scholarship will assist students in baccalaureate nursing programs throughout the entire U.S. and will honor the memory of Edwin and Ina Ayers as well as the service of all the nurses and care givers in the Coe/Ayers family while supporting the education of future nurses.