Avery Longsdorf Memorial Cardington Rotary Scholarship Fund
This designated fund was created in 2025 by Jan & Carol Garverick in memory of their grandson, Avery Longsdorf. It supports students of Cardington-Lincoln Schools and is intended to help graduates pursue post-high school education or training. Scholarships are awarded to students who demonstrate good character, empathy, and care for others and have attended the school for at least a full year. Special consideration is given to Rotary exchange students.
Avery was a university student at Asia Pacific University in Japan at the time of his passing. He loved to travel and experience other countries, religions, and ways of life. He had a global perspective and many of his friends considered him more Asian than American. Even though he was raised in Cardington, he felt more at peace in his birthplace of Japan surrounded by his numerous Southeast Asian friends.
He graduated from Cardington-Lincoln High School in 2021. During his sophomore year, he attended Seinan Gakuin High School in Fukuoka, Japan as a Rotary Youth Exchange student. After graduation, in April 2022, Avery enrolled in Asia Pacific University in Beppu, Oita, Japan, to study International Relations.
Avery was dedicated to international development, and he dreamed of dedicating the rest of his life to the building up of Myanmar. The month before he died, he had raised $30,000 thorough Rotaract to help Myanmar refugees. He was president of his Rotaract Club, the first ever non-Japanese person to hold that title. Membership of the Rotaract club doubled in size during his presidency.
Avery developed a love of hiking, karate, and body building and spent much of his time dedicated to this lifestyle. Avery was fluent in Japanese and Korean, conversational Chinese, and was learning Burmese.
Avery was very tolerant and curious of various aspects of life, including different religions. While he was a Christian in faith and a member of First Presbyterian Church in Marion, he devoted his time and talents at a local shrine, Hachiman Asami Jinja, in Beppu every New Year. Avery was the first and only foreigner to work at the shrine in its 800-year existence.
