Jerry Torrence, North High Class of 1953, was an only child. And he never had children of his own before he died in 2015 at the age of 80. But he’s going to have plenty, posthumously.

Mr. Torrence, who was buried in his hometown of St. Charles, Iowa next to his wife, Judith, who preceded him in death, bequeathed $1 million to his high school alma mater to provide scholarships for deserving students. The primary criteria for eligibility are a cumulative high school GPA of at least 3.0 and attendance at one of Iowa’s three regent universities: the University of Iowa, Iowa State University, or the University of Northern Iowa. A Jerry M. Torrence Scholarship may only be used for tuition. This is in addition to a donation North received earlier this year from his estate for $250,000, bring the total Torrence scholarship fund to $1.25 million.

Here’s an excerpt from Mr. Torrence’s obituary:

Jerry’s entire education was through Iowa schools, from elementary school in Des Moines, to his years at North High, to his graduation with a BA in Business from the University of Iowa in 1957 … And for all his success and travel in later life, that Iowa foundation remained the single most important facet of his life, a memory that he supported emotionally and financially throughout his years…an offer from Regal Rugs in New York in 1960 brought him to the city that became his life. He drove through the Lincoln Tunnel that May in a convertible with Iowa plates…

“(In 2015) we learned that a gift was coming,” said North principal Ben Graeber, who was then a School Improvement Leader at the school and signed a notarized document last week to acknowledge receipt of the gift.  “We did not know this…chunk of money was going to be this large.”

Mr. Torrence’s obituary went on to say, “The lasting legacy of the Torrence family, however, was their connection to St. Charles…”

We would not dispute that, but it should certainly be noted that an equally lasting legacy will spring from North in the futures made possible by an alum who never forgot where he came from and whose family will continue to grow for generations to come.

A childless only child turned out to be one of the most prolific Polar Bears of them all.