Home Furniture Plus Bedding Creates the George E. “Ged” Fleming Memorial Endowed Scholarship in Business
The George E. Fleming Memorial Endowed Scholarship in Business at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette grows to over $250,000 as of June 2021.
Home Furniture Plus Bedding's partnership with the University of Louisiana has allowed us to successfully memorialize Ged and carry on his legacy of success. Ged believed in the value of education and its ability to change lives forever.
A recent recipient of UL's endowed scholarships shared the impact of the scholarships by stating: "I may never have the opporttunityto meet the donors who funded the schloarships I have received...And no matter where I go in life, I'll be walking - Together - alongside them, and I am proud to carry their legacy."
Updated 12/20/2021
“We thought it would be a wonderful way to remember him, as a local business man and supporter of education,” says Craig Holston, the HR & Safety Manager out of the Home Furniture Lafayette office.
Ged Fleming established the first Home Furniture store in Lafayette in 1972. His father had opened up the first store in Lake Charles back in 1945. Over the course of 40 years, he purchased his father’s original business and successfully expanded Home Furniture Company to eight retail stores located along the Louisiana and Texas Gulf Coast.
According to his employees and friends, Ged always held a deep and heartfelt gratitude to the 300+ employees of Home Furniture. He appreciated their hard work, sacrifices, and dedication that ultimately led to the success of his company. As of 2019, Home Furniture Company was recognized as a “TOP 100” furniture retailer nationally by the respected trade publication Furniture for the 13th consecutive year. Ged died unexpectedly in 2012, but his wife, Karol, and his devoted employees became inspired to make his legacy live on through an endowment scholarship fund at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.
“We opened the endowment up to the employees and friends to participate, and the response was overwhelming.” says Holston.
Together they created a permanent scholarship named the George E. “Ged” Fleming Memorial Endowed Scholarship in Business from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Although he was unable to achieve his college degree himself, Holston says, Ged greatly appreciated the value of education and its ability to change lives forever.
“We funded the scholarship, and it continues to grow year after year. Actually, people can donate a percentage of their pay checks to the endowment to keep it growing, and they do.”
This endowment recently eclipsed the $150,000.00 mark and continues to grow thanks to contributions from the many employees, friends and business associates of Ged and Home Furniture Company. Junior and Senior students in UL’s B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration maintaining at least a 3.0 GPA are eligible to apply. Coupled with a non-endowed version of the scholarship, awards commenced with the spring 2014 semester and are granted yearly.
If you’d like to learn more about the George E. “Ged” Fleming Memorial Endowed Scholarship in Business at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, please call 337-291-7900.
