WC NEWS

The Weatherford College Foundation has announced it has received a gift of more than $155,000 from the Betty Jo Graber estate. 

Graber coached women’s basketball at Weatherford College for 35 years and was a former member of the WC Board of Trustees. She passed away in January at the age of 90.   

“Betty Jo Graber had a profoundly positive impact on countless Weatherford College students throughout her professional life as both a coach and WC trustee,” said WC President Tod Allen Farmer. “This bequest will continue that lasting influence on WC students for generations to come.” 

The new endowed scholarship will be earmarked for players and managers in the women’s basketball program. 

After coaching at Weatherford High School from 1954 to 1956, Graber joined the WC coaching staff, where she served until her retirement in 1991. She was a national pioneer for women’s basketball at the two-year college level and was inducted into six halls of fame, including the inaugural class of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tennessee. 

She was also involved in international basketball, serving with national teams for the United States for eight years, including as a manager of the 1984 gold medal-winning Olympic Team. 

WC’s gymnasium is the Betty Jo Graber Athletic Center and the female student athlete of the year award from the National Junior College Athletic Association is the Betty Jo Graber Award. 

“Betty Jo was instrumental in the growth and development of NJCAA women’s basketball,” said WC Foundation President Brent Gough. “Her involvement as a coach at many levels, regional director, as well as numerous other pivotal positions all contributed to growing the sport to the point it is today. We are thankful for her gift and the opportunities that it will provide for other athletes to follow in her footsteps.” 

Established in 1978, the WC Foundation exists to raise funds to support Weatherford College and its students.