Philanthropy
Philanthropy
The Scudders involvement with “Service to Others” can be traced to a thunderstorm at a New England college in 1806. Five students from Williams College took shelter from a thunderstorm in a haystack. In what became known as the “Haystack Prayer Meeting”, they came to the common conviction that “the field is the world” and inspired the creation of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions four years later. These young men sounded a clarion call that excited and inspired the youth of America caught up in the age of Romanticism sweeping the country in the early 19th century.
Over a 1000 Years of Service
A recent medical graduate of Princeton University, John Scudder, responded to the thunderclap call heard that fateful day in Williamstown, Massachusetts . He was the first of many generations of Scudders to hear it. In 1819, young Dr. Scudder and his devoted wife, Harriet, left Boston to begin a tradition of family service that has left a legacy of more than 1,250 combined years of medical mission assistance by four generations of the Scudder family in Sri Lanka, India and Saudi Arabia.
The spirit of “Service to Others” that John Scudder responded to continues to live through The Scudder Association Foundation. As Scudders, we take pride in the pioneering medical mission work our relatives embarked on. The Foundation was founded to assist in supporting and perpetuating this work. The Foundation’s purpose is to provide a base and a voice, for those members of the founding American Scudder families, to gather in support in fulfilling Dr. John Scudder’s vision. The Foundation provides a direct connection for Scudders from around the world, with the vast medical community, in India, that resulted from that vision. A medical network that is nothing short of miracle.
Every miracle requires a saint. Enter Aunt Ida.
Ida Scudder was the granddaughter of Dr. John Scudder, Sr. She grew up in India. At an early age she recognized that the women of India were denied the advantages of western medicine due to the cultural taboo of India women being attended by male doctors. Ida returned to America to attend the Cornell Medical School, becoming one of America’s first woman doctors.
She returned to Vellore, India and began a medical practice catering to the women of Vellore and surrounding countryside.
Her dedication and unswerving commitment of “service to others”, over the course of 70 years, resulted in what is today India’s finest and largest private hospital and medical schools. In time, she became known to the people of India affectionately as, “Aunt Ida”. To those Scudders back in America, she became a source of pride and inspiration.
That was then, this is now
Today the Scudder Association hopes to continue and support that family tradition of “service to others”. In order to do so, we need your participation and help. There is no shortage of areas for you to take an active interest. We encourage you to take a moment to discover the many opportunities listed below to become involved.
Medical Missions
Since its founding the Scudder Association has played an active role in supporting two primary medical missions in India:
Christian Medical College – Vellore
Founded in 1900 by Dr. Ida S. Scudder, CMC has grown to become India’s largest and most prestigious teaching hospital and medical educational institution. Serving 1.3 million inpatients a year and offering 179 courses in nursing and medical postgraduate specialties, as well as PhD in a number of related disciplines. You won’t believe what Aunt Ida’s Donkey Cart has turned into – Learn More
Scudder Memorial Hospital
Silas Scudder, John Scudder’s son and Ida’s uncle, started the Scudder Memorial Hospital, in Ranipet, India, in 1866. It is one of India’s oldest hospitals and provides the healthcare needs for Ranipet and over 65 surrounding villages.
Discover what John and his son’s vision have become today. – Learn More
Secondary Schools
We have long supported two schools founded by Scudders which provide a high quality education to low income students.
Arni School
Ezekiel Scudder, “Pioneer John’s” son, founded a secondary school in Arni in the mid-1870s. In 2023 SAF granted Arni Secondary School $6,000 and an SAF director donated an additional $4,000 to pay for an 11th grade and a 12th grade teacher. This allows students to receive a high school diploma making them eligible to apply for higher education. This one change will uplift whole families.
Walter Scudder School
Walter Scudder founded the school in 1872 when he turned the village school in Tindivanam into an accredited high school. He did not have funds for a good building, so he was forced to erect one with mud walls and burlap partitions that divided the facility into rooms.
He tried for many years to raise funds for a proper building, but money came in slowly and it was only after the end of World War I that he was able to raise money for a suitable facility. It officially opened in 1925.
The school is coed today and has over 900 students in grades six to twelve.
Please Make Yourself at Home, You’re Family.
We encourage you to spend time exploring our website and be witness to what one family’s commitment to helping others can accomplish. We think you’ll be impressed. Of course, any time you visit a hospital (or their web page), you run the risk of picking something up. We hope you do.