It wasn't supposed to work out precisely like this. At least not at first.
"It was 1979. And I wasn't from a military family," retired U.S. Army Captain Warren Bishop ('83) told an audience of current ROTC students at Wake Forest on Veterans Day in 2022.
But when an opportunity presented itself, Bishop knew where he was headed - academically, professionally and philanthropically. For generations of future students hoping to attend Wake Forest chiefly with ROTC scholarships, Bishop's planned gift will help close a loophole and allow recipients to prepare for a future military career in a community united by Pro Humanitate.
"We might as well consider this place Basic Training for a life of purpose," he recently told an audience of veterans and current ROTC students in a Veterans Day ceremony on campus.
Growing up in Toms River, New Jersey, Bishop hoped to attend a prestigious university with merit-based scholarships based on his athletic and academic excellence. (He competed on what became Wake Forest's final swimming team in his first year, 1979-80). He didn't count on something that landed in his mailbox in his senior year of high school.
The U.S. Army was offering Bishop a full, four-year scholarship. In return, he'd owe the military six years of service.
"I was stunned," he said. "I sought out several adults I respected and asked them what I should do. And they all said, 'This is an incredible opportunity for your benefit and for your parents."
Bishop soon discovered they were right. Wake Forest provided the perfect landing spot.
"The Pro Humanitate motto really fits well with the servant mentality that you need to maintain if you're going to be leading our nation's treasured soldiers, Bishop said. "That motto and that philosophy set a tone for what leaders do and where their eyes should be."
Bishop was commissioned a Second Lieutenant upon graduation and worked his way up the Army's leadership structure. He jumped out of aircraft and graduated from Ranger School, an elite training program. By 1989, he was a Captain leading a group of 150 soldiers in Operation Just Cause, the mission that successfully deposed Manuel Noriega from his leadership of Panama. All 150 of Bishop's men returned safely. Noriega went to federal prison.
Bishop retired and put his military skills to work in private business sectors such as supply-chain management. That success put him in a position to consider a major commitment to Wake Forest. And he knew where to direct it.
"My logistics and supply-chain career was furthered by my military career, and my military career was made possible by ROTC," he said.
Bishop had a four-year ROTC scholarship, but he learned that not all Wake Forest ROTC students have that degree of support. Some are offered a three-year financial-aid package. What if that gap could be bridged or at least reduced? He met with current leadership of the Wake Forest program, including Lt. Col. Tom Gaines, a highly decorated veteran, to find out.
"Lt. Col. Gaines suggested the best use would be to direct scholarship funds for the benefit of three-year scholarship recipients because their families would have to determine how to meet financial obligations in the first year. That made total sense to me."
Bishop intends to initiate a current-use scholarship during his lifetime and to direct a testamentary gift to create an endowed fund through his estate plan. Others can donate to the funds.
Warren Bishop didn't plan on becoming Captain Warren Bishop. But the country will be grateful for the new plans he did make.
