Eric Dimmick tackled every construction project with enthusiasm from start to finish remembered his friend and colleague Doug Johnson (’95), vice president at Adolfson & Peterson Construction and Colorado State University alumnus. Dimmick was a senior preconstruction manager for 10 years at A & P before he passed away in 2017 after a lengthy illness.
Two scholarships at CSU in memory of Dimmick – one in the Department of Construction Management, and one in the College of Health and Human Sciences – are helping students in need to reach their dream of earning a degree.
Dimmick grew up in Stoneham, Massachusetts, and moved to Fort Collins in 1996 for graduate studies in his field at CSU. He was an avid skier, bicyclist, radio-controlled car enthusiast, and woodworker. He enjoyed international travel with his spouse, Dr. Angela Marolf, a professor in CSU’s Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences. As a youth, Dimmick was involved in Boy Scouts, eventually earning his Eagle Scout award. He was also a big sports fan, both Colorado and New England teams.
“Although a Colorado resident for a number of years, Eric was still a loyal Boston sports fan, that being both the Patriots and Tom Brady of course, and his beloved Red Sox,” said Carole Dimmick, Eric’s mother. “When the Sox won the World Series, he flew back right away to watch the parade.”
Eric T. Dimmick Memorial Scholarship
Johnson said he got to know Dimmick at various events and recruited him to join A & P, where he specialized in medical and education facilities. “Eric had a commitment to the community, managing projects such as hospitals, police stations, and fire stations – things that make a difference,” said Johnson, who is reminded of Dimmick’s commitment when he drives by Dimmick’s completed projects in the community.
“The loss of Eric is still felt deeply at A & P,” said Johnson. “I’ve worked at A & P for 20 years and within the organization, everyone becomes family. And when you lose someone, you want to do something in their name and preserve their legacy.”
Dimmick had such an overarching impact on so many people, that Adolfson & Peterson set up a fund and matched donations from many in the field who had a connection to Dimmick: subcontractors, co-workers, and friends. With donations and their matching funds, A & P was able to establish an endowed scholarship in CSU’s Department of Construction Management. In recognition of Dimmick’s contributions to A & P, the Eric T. Dimmick Memorial Scholarship was established in 2017 to benefit construction management undergraduate students.
Eric T. Dimmick Future Leaders Scholarship
Additionally, Dimmick’s parents, Carole and Howard Dimmick established a scholarship in memory of Eric in 2019, the Eric T. Dimmick Future Leaders Scholarship which goes to students in the School of Education, Human Development and Family Studies, or Department of Construction Management. Preference is given to first-generation or underserved students, upper-class students, and students who have earned their Eagle Scout or Girl Scout Gold rank.
“My husband Howard and I were inspired to establish the scholarship as we are most enthusiastic about education,” said Carole Dimmick. “We are both retired school teachers. We realized the importance of getting a degree and its relationship to lifelong success in whatever the student’s chosen field. We hope the scholarship will assist first-generation students as we feel they are highly motivated to succeed in their chosen areas of interest and most likely will continue through four years at CSU and perhaps through advanced degrees as well.”
Carole added that they have also established two scholarships at the Stoneham high school where Howard taught for 40 years, the Eric T. Dimmick Memorial Scholarship and the Dimmick Family Scholarship, and hope to endow them in perpetuity.
Student recipients
Each year, CSU students benefit greatly from the two Dimmick Scholarship funds. Tyler Sanders, a junior majoring in construction management and Eric T. Dimmick Memorial Scholarship recipient, grew up in Loveland and is interested in working in commercial construction in Colorado. He wants to make an impact on the community through constructing sustainable buildings.
“The Eric T. Dimmick Memorial Scholarship will help to reduce the amount of loans I need and keep student debt to a minimum,” he said. “Without the generosity of all of the scholarship donors, I would not have the numerous opportunities I have been given. It is because of all of the help and support I have received that I can have future success towards meeting my goals in life. I hope to one day to be able to donate to future CSU students like me and give others the same opportunities.”
Litzy Lastra is a first-generation student majoring in family and consumer sciences in the School of Education. She grew up in Fort Collins, a child of Mexican immigrants who didn’t have the opportunity to go to high school or college. She aspires to be a family and consumer sciences high school teacher and teach classes around catering, health, wellness, nutrition, sex education, and alcohol/drug abuse prevention. Lastra is the recipient of the Eric T. Dimmick Future Leaders Scholarship.
“Thank you so much to the scholarship donors for helping me achieve my dream goal,” said Lastra. “I want to be a role model and an adult who students can turn to with personal issues and questions. By helping me, you are helping a handful of generations learn and be able to pass down information and confidence in one’s self.”
The Department of Construction Management is part of CSU’s College of Health and Human Sciences.
