Donors Rally to Support East-West Center Students

HONOLULU, HI (April 22, 2025) – In a remarkable show of generosity and support, East-West Center’s alumni and donors committed over $530,000 for student and participant scholarships in just a single month spanning February and March, after the East-West Center Foundation began reaching out to supporters to share how the Center is navigating the changing US federal government landscape and the need to support students and participants in completing their EWC programs.

One donor couple who answered the call are Jerry and Tsue Ostermann, EWC alumni who met 60 years ago as graduate students living at the Center. They have been actively involved in the EWC alumni community ever since and have generously donated to the EWC Foundation for 27 years. “Back in the 1960s, our experiences at the East-West Center opened up a whole new world unknown to us until then, and we very much want the young students today to have the same opportunities we had,” they shared. “When we were asked to consider providing additional financial help at this time, we were pleased to respond.”

Another EWC donor who stepped up to give is Eddie Flores, Jr. Chairman of L&L Hawaiian Barbecue, who said, “I support the East-West Center because it is a world-class organization with top-notched programs that have cultivated many leaders around the world. We are fortunate to have an organization like this based in Hawai‘i.”

Donors like these in Hawai‘i and beyond are rallying around EWC’s mission, recognizing the transformative impact the Center has on students and participants from across the Indo-Pacific and the United States. The $530,000 in commitments in the last month include new gifts and donor-approved drawdowns on existing endowments.

“The overwhelming support we’ve received is a clear reflection of how deeply our community values the mission of the East-West Center,” says AJ Halagao, Chair of the East-West Center Foundation Board of Directors. “It’s inspiring and humbling to see how many people are stepping up to support our students during this time. We are deeply grateful to all our alumni and donors who answered the call to help.”

For more information on how to support EWC scholarships, visit https://give.eastwestcenter.org.

ABOUT EWC FOUNDATION: The East-West Center Foundation is a private non-profit organization, established in 1982 to broaden and diversify private support for the Center. Private philanthropic investments allow the EWC to leverage its government funding to innovate, support, and deliver on its mission.