It’s been a year since the murders of four promising young University of Idaho students shook the Moscow, Idaho, campus and shocked the nation.
Now, the family of one of the victims is reflecting on the charity work done in his honor.
The University of Idaho’s Sigma Chi chapter, of which slain student Ethan Chapin was a member, awarded its first memorial scholarship in honor of his brother Hunter. His parents are hosting a fundraiser for their own scholarship fund for the first year, and his triplet brother and sister are still studying at the school.
Ethan Chapin, mother of Idaho murder victim, surprises true crime convention with surprise cameo
Ethan Chapin’s family was honored at a Sigma Chi dinner the day before the slain triplets turned 21. Member Brother Hunter received the organization’s first memorial scholarship, one year after it was donated in Ethan’s memory. Ethan’s sister Maisie also attends the University of Idaho. (Garrett Britton/University of Idaho)
Ethan, Hunter, and his sister Maisie are triplets and celebrated their 21st birthdays last month. The three attended college together, and both brothers joined Sigma Chi.
Parents Stacey and Jim traveled from Washington state to Moscow, Idaho, last week. On Monday, exactly one year after the murder, after Ethan’s tuition was cut, his family hosted a secret fundraiser to help future students reach their academic goals. ing.
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A photo recovered from Ethan’s computer, showing the Chapin family together, was released by his mother on Thursday night. (Stacey Chapin)
The family also released a series of previously unseen photos recovered from Ethan’s computer, showing him enjoying a day on a boat and vacationing with his family.
Ethan was majoring in sports and tourism management and was scheduled to graduate in 2025. The university awarded him a posthumous degree at its spring commencement ceremony.
Mother of murdered Idaho student Ethan Chapin announces new foundation: ‘A great way to honor him’
Ethan Chapin salutes in an undated photo recovered from his computer. Monday marks one year since Chapin, his girlfriend Zana Kernodle, and two of her housemates, Kaylee Gonsalves and Maddie Morgen, were murdered in a home invasion stabbing just off campus. . (Stacey Chapin)
As a surprise at the ceremony, the Sigma Chi Foundation also recognized Chapin’s mother, Stacey Chapin, with an honor previously reserved for members and alumni.
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Stacey Chapin carries a memorial plaque for her son Ethan, a member of the University of Idaho Sigma Chi fraternity chapter. The organization donated a scholarship in his memory. (Garrett Britton/University of Idaho)
Her family is the charity’s largest donor, counting the gift from Maisie and a separate gift from Ethan’s own checking account, and has contributed to the fund so that Sigma Chi can award scholarships every year going forward. supported the donation.
“He would have thought it was the best thing ever,” Stacey Chapin told FOX News Digital.
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Triplets Maisie, Hunter, and Ethan Chapin all started classes at the University of Idaho at the same time. (Stacey Chapin)
As a result, Sigma Chi fraternity members will receive a $5,000 annual scholarship at the University of Idaho in perpetuity, she said.
The Chapin triplets in an undated family photo recovered from Ethan Chapin’s computer. The triplets all attended the University of Idaho together. (Stacey Chapin)
Days after the murder shocked the campus community, the fraternity established the Ethan Chapin Memorial Scholarship Fund and pledged to award a scholarship to an undergraduate member once a year. So far, the chapter has raised more than $125,000 for him.
Separately, the Chapin family established a memorial scholarship foundation in his honor, Ethan’s Smile, to provide financial aid to students attending the University of Idaho from his hometown of Skagit Valley, Wash. did.
Ethan Chapin photographed in the doorway of his Sigma Chi fraternity house on Greek Row in Moscow, Idaho. The fraternity donated a scholarship in his memory. (Stacey Chapin)
The university is also working on a memorial garden, which Stacey Chapin said will be designed by architecture students already on campus.
She said parents met these students during a visit last week.
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“Jim and I gave our children the gift of education with the intention that one day they would be able to ‘stand on their own two feet,'” Stacey Chapin wrote on Instagram Thursday, adding that Ethan shared an old photo. “With that in mind, we created the Ethan’s Smile Foundation, which provides scholarships for kids after high school so they can pursue their dreams. Even better, kids can learn more about Ethan’s I can’t think of a better way to honor him by having a scholarship in his name. ”
A very young version of the Chapin triplets seen in one of Ethan’s old photos. (Stacey Chapin)
The fraternity house on Greek Avenue was the home of Ethan, his girlfriend Zana Kernodle, and two housemates Kaylee Gonsalves and Madison Morgen, who were found dead on Nov. 13, 2022. It is about a 200 meter walk from the crime scene on King Road where police discovered it.
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Brothers Hunter (left) and Ethan Chapin pose in their Sigma Chi basketball jerseys. Hunter posted a photo of him on Instagram as a tribute to his brother. The two, along with her sister Maisie, are part of triplets attending the University of Idaho. (Instagram)
After a weeks-long investigation, police arrested Brian Koberger, a 28-year-old with a Ph.D. in Criminology. He is a student at neighboring Washington State University and is at home in Pennsylvania.
In May, a judge entered a not guilty plea on his behalf to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony robbery. If convicted, he could face the death penalty. He is being held without bail at the Latah County Jail in Moscow, Idaho.
