Long Beach State University Athletics
Dan and Desiree Gooch present the first scholarship from the endowment in 2018.
Photo by: Andrew Fischer
Gooch Family Increases Endowment Gift On Giving Tuesday
12/1/2020 8:42:00 AM | Women's Golf
An additional $50,000 gift to the Marie C. Gooch Endowment will increase scholarship funds for Women’s Golf.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Having previously created the Marie C. Gooch Endowment for Women's Golf in 2018, Dan and Desiree Gooch have committed to increasing the endowment by $50,000 in support of student-athlete scholarships.
"Gifts like this have allowed us to continue our progress towards our ultimate goal of really competing at a national level," said head coach Joey Cerulle. "We appreciate the commitment of our University, but the involvement of community members like Dan and Desiree is also vitally important to us. Their assistance helps us recruit student-athletes of a higher caliber with greater talent than we would be able to otherwise. It really helps propel us into the national spotlight."
Dan Gooch is an alumnus of Long Beach State, and the duo have been involved with the program since shortly after, making annual contributions of both time and money to assist with the golf programs at the Beach, but have endeavored to make a larger impact through the endowment.
The initial endowment was made in 2018, and was named in honor and memory of Dan's mother, Marie C. Gooch. "With the help of a lot of people here locally in Long Beach she raised four sons by herself, and always stressed that whenever we were capable we should give back to the community," noted Gooch. "We've really taken that to heart, and are pleased and proud to play our part with the program in this way.
"The University has been a large part of our lives and we feel not only an obligation but great pride and pleasure to be supporting young people in this way," he continued. "We've developed relationships with student-athletes who have gone on to do a great many things all over the world."
Since the first scholarships were awarded from the endowment, Long Beach State has captured two straight Big West Championships, two straight individual championships by Jennifer Yu and Haley Tygret, and have back the programs third and fourth appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
"The progress that the university and that the program under Coach Cerulle have made over the last few years points out to us the benefits that these scholarships provide. The back-to-back Big West Championships have been thrilling, and we recognize what it takes to get there," said Gooch.
"In a time of uncertainty like now, it's nice to be able to look holistically at our budget and know that there is a special foundation to fall back on," stated Cerulle. "As we move forward, it's important to know that we can count on support like this that allows our student-athletes to succeed, and provide equitable support among everyone on our team that represents Long Beach State."
Originally created in 2018 with a $100,000 gift, junior Hunter Pate was the first recipient of the Marie C. Gooch endowed scholarship, a rare out-of-state recruit for the program who has been able to attend and compete for Long Beach State in part because of the scholarship. The latest recipient was Angelina Kim, a highly-touted freshman from Fairfax High School who is a former Southern California Junior Amateur champion.
"It's an absolute honor to represent Long Beach State, and I'm so excited to get the chance to play golf as soon as we can," said Kim. "It's special and memorable to get the opportunity to do so thanks to my scholarship, and I hope to be a true role model of what the Long Beach State experience can be and do for someone."
"Gifts like this have allowed us to continue our progress towards our ultimate goal of really competing at a national level," said head coach Joey Cerulle. "We appreciate the commitment of our University, but the involvement of community members like Dan and Desiree is also vitally important to us. Their assistance helps us recruit student-athletes of a higher caliber with greater talent than we would be able to otherwise. It really helps propel us into the national spotlight."
Dan Gooch is an alumnus of Long Beach State, and the duo have been involved with the program since shortly after, making annual contributions of both time and money to assist with the golf programs at the Beach, but have endeavored to make a larger impact through the endowment.
The initial endowment was made in 2018, and was named in honor and memory of Dan's mother, Marie C. Gooch. "With the help of a lot of people here locally in Long Beach she raised four sons by herself, and always stressed that whenever we were capable we should give back to the community," noted Gooch. "We've really taken that to heart, and are pleased and proud to play our part with the program in this way.
"The University has been a large part of our lives and we feel not only an obligation but great pride and pleasure to be supporting young people in this way," he continued. "We've developed relationships with student-athletes who have gone on to do a great many things all over the world."
Since the first scholarships were awarded from the endowment, Long Beach State has captured two straight Big West Championships, two straight individual championships by Jennifer Yu and Haley Tygret, and have back the programs third and fourth appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
"The progress that the university and that the program under Coach Cerulle have made over the last few years points out to us the benefits that these scholarships provide. The back-to-back Big West Championships have been thrilling, and we recognize what it takes to get there," said Gooch.
"In a time of uncertainty like now, it's nice to be able to look holistically at our budget and know that there is a special foundation to fall back on," stated Cerulle. "As we move forward, it's important to know that we can count on support like this that allows our student-athletes to succeed, and provide equitable support among everyone on our team that represents Long Beach State."
Originally created in 2018 with a $100,000 gift, junior Hunter Pate was the first recipient of the Marie C. Gooch endowed scholarship, a rare out-of-state recruit for the program who has been able to attend and compete for Long Beach State in part because of the scholarship. The latest recipient was Angelina Kim, a highly-touted freshman from Fairfax High School who is a former Southern California Junior Amateur champion.
"It's an absolute honor to represent Long Beach State, and I'm so excited to get the chance to play golf as soon as we can," said Kim. "It's special and memorable to get the opportunity to do so thanks to my scholarship, and I hope to be a true role model of what the Long Beach State experience can be and do for someone."
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