News & Stories

Since 1986, The Community Foundation of Frederick County has been the leading source for post-secondary scholarship funding in Frederick County.

During the summer of 1998, Joel Stephens was battling colon cancer after being diagnosed the year before. The 22-year-old Baltimore Orioles minor league baseball player had received extensive treatment and his cancer was in remission when he made a courageous attempt to return to baseball that summer with the Frederick Keys. His goal was to get one more professional at-bat with the local team at Harry Grove Stadium. While he was building his strength to reach his goal, after several weeks, Joel’s cancer returned. The Elmira, N.Y. native died on September 30, 1998.

After Charles Worthington “Chipper” Hoff IV became president of Farmers and Mechanics Bank in 1977, he quickly became involved in some of the community’s largest and most active organizations. Owing in part to his enthusiasm for and involvement in his adopted hometown of Frederick, Chipper was also one of the first people to whom Don Linton and the late Charlie Main reached out to in 1986 when they decided to try to form a community foundation here in Frederick County.

In 1999, Jessica Murphy, the 14-year old daughter of Don and Sue Murphy, died from injuries sustained in an automobile accident. Jessica was days away from starting her sophomore year at Governor Thomas Johnson High School, where she was an involved student who worked hard academically and excelled at volleyball, basketball, and softball. She also tutored students at Spring Ridge Elementary School and worked part-time. Don, Sue, and their son Brad wanted to honor Jessica’s life and preserve her legacy, and so they created The Jessica Lee Murphy Memorial Fund with the Community Foundation. Now, in December 2019, the fund is in its 20th year and has disbursed more than $64,000 in scholarships and grants within Frederick County.

Fifteen years past his death, Jacob E. Engelbrecht is still very much alive in Frederick County.