Our Story
Creating Hope Through Education
Colonel John McHugh
McHugh family members welcomed Colonel John McHugh home from a year-long deployment in June 2008. Pictured, left to right, Kristen, Kelly, John, Maggie, Connie, David, Michael and his wife Angela. PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE MCHUGH FAMILY
Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund was founded on a simple belief: the gift of education is a permanent, generational way to honor military service—creating stability, opportunity, and a path forward for military families facing loss or life-altering service.
After Army Colonel John “Johnny Mac” McHugh was killed in action on May 18, 2010, while serving during Operation Enduring Freedom, his classmates from the United States Military Academy Class of 1986 came together. Knowing the family he left behind—five children and a grandchild—they committed to ensuring the McHugh children could pursue higher education.
What began as a promise to one military family revealed a broader need. We recognized that thousands of children of fallen or disabled service members face similar uncertainty—and that education offers more than financial support. It opens doors, provides direction, and carries forward a legacy of service.
Formally established in 2014, we now provide military scholarships to veterans and military family members nationwide, with a particular focus on children of our nation’s fallen or disabled. For more than 11 years, we have awarded over $41 million in scholarships to thousands of Johnny Mac Scholars across the country. Through each scholarship, we honor service, recognize sacrifice, and help the next generation move forward with confidence.
