After finding love and their calling as Master of Divinity students at Duke Divinity School in the mid-1970s, David and Carol Goehring faced a financial challenge that changed their lives—for the better.

“I really had thought about maybe dropping out,” said Carol, now 72, “and maybe it would be better if I had a job that paid money and could help David get through. That had been discussed and was on the table. But good people, wonderful angels all around us, seemed to open the door, and now we need to do the same.”

The Goehrings said the angels in the Duke Divinity financial aid office helped them put together several small scholarships that made a big difference. They were able to stay in school, graduate with their master’s degrees in 1978, and serve God in many ways over long, distinguished careers.

That experience moved them to become the earthly angels for others through 40 years of continuous giving to the Duke Divinity annual fund. A gift in their estate plan will establish a scholarship that will continue opening doors for students long after they’re gone.

David and Carol attended high school in Durham, N.C., although they studied at different schools and did not know each other then. David felt a calling to ministry at age 11, while Carol didn’t feel God’s call until she was a senior at her undergraduate university.

They both chose Duke Divinity. Carol said Duke Divinity especially encouraged her to follow God’s leading wherever it took her, a rarity for women in the 1970s when they were often steered exclusively into Christian education careers.

David and Carol met on their first day of orientation and married a year later. Financial struggles eventually set in, and the angels showed up. The Goehrings took the moment to heart.

“Duke was very good to us in our married years in giving us a way and means to graduate without debt,” said David. “That may be one of our bigger motivations to create a scholarship. We want to give other people the same opportunity.”

Now retired, the couple often visits the Duke Divinity campus, where they mentor students and assist school leaders. The Goehrings said they were also inspired to make their gift by the examples of their parents, C.C. Woods Jr. and Joe and Catherine Goehring, who each created scholarship funds later in life.

Carol said she’s often moved by the notes she receives from students who benefit from her late father’s scholarship fund.

“One recent letter writer expressed gratitude and her hope for the future, and it was just the most beautiful letter,” she said. “I would hope for those two things from recipients of our scholarship years from now: gratitude that God has provided a way and the hope that pastoral ministry in the Christian church offers for all kinds of people.”

You can join the Goehrings in sharing the financial burdens of future students by including a gift to Duke Divinity in your estate plan. Please call Rev. Daniel Corpening, D.Min. at 919-660-3534 or external@div.duke.edu to learn about the many giving options that are available to fit your needs.