The Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation (MCSF) in Alexandria, Virginia, has announced a $65 million gift from FedEx founder and Marine veteran Fred Smith.

The largest gift ever received in the history of MCSF, which was founded in 1962 to provide need-based scholarships for military children, includes $32.5 million to establish the Brown Hudner Navy Scholarship Foundation. The foundation is named for Korean War fighter pilots Jesse Brown—the first Black aviator in the Navy—and Brown’s friend and fellow Marine Tom Hudner, who also served as a fighter pilot and was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. Brown and Hudner are subjects of the film Devotion, which was produced by Smith’s daughters, Molly and Rachel Smith.

The Brown Hudner Navy Scholarship Foundation will award scholarships to the children of Navy sailors studying STEM and health sciences degrees. MCSF currently awards about 2,600 scholarships annually but estimates that there are more than 24,000 eligible children of Marines nationwide. For the next academic year alone, Smith’s gift will cover the costs of more than 100 additional scholarships with a long-term outlook of covering the costs of thousands.

Smith graduated from Yale University in 1966. After serving in the Marines for four years, including two tours of duty in Vietnam, he launched the Federal Express network.

“Our family is proud to support the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation and the great work they are doing to make the dreams of military children a reality through higher education. The MCSF is an outstanding steward to manage the Brown Hudner Navy Scholarship Foundation,” said Smith. “As a Marine Corps veteran, I know the sacrifices that are made daily by hard-working military families to provide for their children.”

(Photo credit: Getty Images/Mango Star Studio)