Educator’s service to alumni scholarship committee helps provide financial support for Craig grads

In June 1988, on a sunny Saturday morning, Linda McCurdy suffered multiple injuries in an automobile accident. After seven weeks at Denver Health, including six weeks in ICU, her doctors recommended that she go to Craig Hospital for rehabilitation.

“I stayed at Craig Hospital until the end of October. During those three months my friends at Craig gave me the skills to navigate my strange new life and the strength to take back my old one. While I was

working hard every day, my husband and parents were also getting their own education in all the ways to support me,” McCurdy recalls.

The following January, McCurdy returned to her job as a teacher at West High School in Denver. She retired from Denver Public Schools in 2001; then worked part time for the University of Denver’s Volunteers in Partnership Program (VIP), a special community program that encourages students to help other students. She continued to work with high school students as VIP co-chair until 2012.

Over the years McCurdy, her husband Phil, and her mother Mary maintained a very close bond with Craig Hospital. One way that McCurdy has stayed connected with Craig is as a volunteer. Among her many volunteer roles, her favorite combines her passion for education with her dedication for Craig. For the past 25 years, she has served on the Hahn Scholarship Committee.

Named for Dr. Harry Hahn, the medical director at Craig Hospital from 1979–1985, the Craig Hospital Alumni Scholarship Fund provides support for patients to pursue educational opportunities after they have completed their rehabilitation. Community donations provide students with financial assistance for tuition and books at institutions of higher education throughout the U.S.

“I can’t imagine what my life would have been without Craig. I am forever indebted to those who changed my life for the better and will continue to support Craig Hospital in any way possible,” McCurdy says.