Heather Portillo recently received an unexpected scholarship as she works to fulfill the requirements for a social work degree. In a gesture of respect and appreciation for her mentor at HSU, alumna Consuelo Kickbusch, guest speaker for the Abilene Southwest Rotary Club's "Top Fifty Plus" banquet, asked that the honorarium for her talk be awarded to a deserving Hardin-Simmons student in honor of Dr. Julian Bridges.

Delbert Allred, Past President of the Abilene Southwest Rotary, presents the scholarship check to Heather Portillo as Dr. Bridges looks on

Retired Lieutenant Colonel Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch, a 20-year U.S. Army veteran, is a 1976 law enforcement graduate of Hardin-Simmons University. She earned her commission as a second lieutenant in the United States Army through the Hardin-Simmons University Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) and became the first woman commissioned as an ROTC officer in the state of Texas.

Born in Laredo, Texas, and raised in a small barrio near the border, Kickbusch is a strong proponent of life-skills and mentorship. She credits a "social experiment" at HSU for giving her the skills and knowledge to succeed. In 1973, Dr. Julian Bridges, then professor of social work, led a program that brought 30 disadvantaged Hispanic youth to HSU as students. Consuelo was among the group of poor, non-English speaking students who were the beneficiaries of Dr. Bridges' encouragement, guidance, and compassion. He helped them find the strength and resolve to succeed at the University despite the alien environment they first encountered.

Since retiring from the army, Consuelo has chosen a path of teaching--reinforcing her belief that a nation with strong leaders will be globally competitive. She has been recognized nationally for her selfless devotion and dedication toward improving the lives of children who are dealing with low self-esteem, crisis of identity, poverty, gang involvement, and lack of education.

Dr. Julian Bridges taught at Hardin-Simmons University for 31 years as a professor of sociology. Bridges earned five degrees over a 21-year period from 1952 to 1973. He completed the PhD (1973), MA (1969) and BA (1952) from the University of Florida at Gainesville, and the bachelor of divinity (1956) and doctor of theology (1961) in Christian ethics from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

A former minister, Dr. Bridges served with the International Mission Board from 1959 to 1973, and served in Costa Rica and Mexico where he was director and professor at the University (Baptist) Student Center at the 125,000-student University of Mexico in Mexico City. He also taught while on sabbatical at the Baptist Theological Seminary in Madrid, Spain, Hong Kong Baptist University, and in Arusha, Tanzania.

Dr. Bridges has been a deacon at Abilene's First Baptist Church, a city council member, and active in numerous civic and professional organizations. He was recently elected president of the HSU Former Faculty, Staff Administration Fellowship.

Members of the HSU financial aid staff selected Portillo on the basis of academic performance, character, need, and the potential to "pay it forward" through a career in social work. Portillo carries a 4.0 grade point average.