Hendley Scholarship to benefit business students from Anson County

By Luanne Williams

Behind most every Wingate University scholarship is a story of difference-making: how Wingate made a difference in the life of the donor or how the donor seeks to make a difference in the lives of recipients. The new Hendley Family Scholarship, a needs-based award for deserving business majors from nearby Anson County, is no different. It's a testament to a civic-minded entrepreneur's appreciation for his family's roots and a hand up for students who want to use their education to make a difference in their communities.

"For several years, I have been thinking of how I could give back to my roots and make a positive impact, in particular to younger folks," says Larry Hendley, the self-taught Durham native who started the scholarship fund. "While I became a successful business owner in my 40s, a college education would have helped me along the way."

Larry Hendley and Jan Beatty-Hendley

As he became familiar with Wingate, where his wife, Jan Beatty-Hendley, and his first cousin, John Hendley, both serve on the Board of Trustees, he realized how close it was to Ansonville, the home of his grandparents and where he spent several summers during his youth. From there, he says, the idea of working with the University to help Anson County students with limited resources afford a Wingate education "seemed a perfect fit."

Hendley's father, Grover Hendley, was the youngest of 13 children (two died at birth), all born and raised in Ansonville. Grover's eldest sibling, Annie Jane Hendley Ross, taught school for 42 years, becoming somewhat of a legend among Ansonville educators before retiring in 1958. Meanwhile, Larry Hendley got a very practical education each of the summers he spent with his grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.

"I have fond memories of those summers and learned a lot about farm life," he says. "Anson County has a lot of rich history, but also a lot of poverty. Farming is a hard life."

John Hendley, who remembers similar summer experiences, offered his support by also donating to the new scholarship fund.

"His contribution, along with my pledge, will help accelerate when the scholarship can be awarded," says Larry Hendley, who lives in Kannapolis.

The funds will go to a business student, as a nod to his 25-year career at Lowe's, which started as a part-time job when he was just 17. After his time at Lowe's, he began a second career as owner and operator of multiple car washes and also dabbled in real estate property management. He credits another Wingate trustee, Chuck Howard, for helping him get the proper equipment to open his Concord car-wash location (formerly known as Sparky's).

"From an early age, I have always been entrepreneurial," Hendley says. "As a youth, I had a paper route, I sold sunshades and rain ponchos at Duke ballgames, and I worked at a local drugstore's soda fountain. I became known for my great milkshakes. Before and during my teen years, my brothers and I all worked at my father's gas station after school and on weekends." While he moved up the ladder at Lowe's and enjoyed his time in management, opening stores in Atlanta, Gastonia, Kannapolis and Matthews, he said not having a college degree held him back in some ways.

John Hendley

It's those hurdles that he'd like to remove for potential students headed to Wingate from Anson County, an area that he says hasn't changed a great deal over the years.

"It's still rural and has many people living below the poverty line," Hendley says. "I can't think of a better way to honor my grandparents and all the offspring from their children than to create an educational path for students from Anson County."

Since 2019, Wingate and South Piedmont Community College, which has campuses in both Anson and Union counties, have partnered to offer Gateway Scholarships to associate-degree grads to make it easier for them to complete their bachelor's at Wingate.

That partnership made the idea of establishing an Anson County-based scholarship even more attractive to Hendley, as did his growing understanding of the educational opportunities at the University.

"With Jan, John and Chuck all being on the board of directors, it provided me greater insight to the values the University believes in and their commitment to educating our next generation of successful adults," Hendley says. "I would be proud to know that I helped a student or two gain their education there."

Richard Heins, major gifts officer at the University, said the scholarship will certainly make a difference in a student's ability to attend Wingate. He said anyone wishing to join Hendley in his cause or to pay tribute to the greater Hendley family can add to the scholarship in any amount by sending a check to Wingate University, Office of Advancement, P.O. Box 159, Wingate, NC 28174 (write Hendley Scholarship in the memo line) or by visiting Wingate.edu and clicking on the "Give to Wingate" tab.

"Better yet, plan an in-person visit to see Wingate's beautiful campus, just 35 minutes east of Charlotte," Larry Hendley says. "Once you get to know Wingate, you'll want to start your own endowed scholarship, which individuals, families and/or businesses can do with a contribution of at least $25,000."

June 25, 2026