William R. Hanrahan Scholarship Fund

Bill Hanrahan was born and grew up in South Boston. He graduated from Boston English High School and Boston College. He attended University of Wisconsin and received a Master's Degree in Literature in 1956. Bill remained in the doctoral program and was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to King's College, London. Bill taught Literature and Poetry in numerous universities for over eight years, but returned to Southie to be closer to his family and began a career in the South Boston District Court. He was promoted to the Commissioner's office and also attended the Commonwealth's program for executive management at the Kennedy School of Government. Bill later was appointed first deputy commissioner and retired in 1988 as acting commissioner. Throughout his career, Bill was an advocate for people with addictions and mental and physical disabilities. He was among the founders of the Gavin House program and made a difference in many people's lives.

Bill traveled all over the world in his retirement with his sister and his dear friend. He traveled annually to Florence, Italy and stayed for a month of adventures, food and learning. Bill lost a lengthy battle against macular degeneration and glaucoma. Even completely blind, Bill continued his lifelong learning on subjects ranging from meditation to construction to organic nutrition. He was proud of his home and was dedicated to its maintenance. He was truly a spiritual and intellectual champion.

our gift to help establish the William R. Hanrahan Scholarship Fund will provide valuable resources and honor Bill Hanrahan's legacy of giving to the community by providing scholarship grants for college tuition to Boston residents.  Grants will be administered by the Boston Foundation based upon financial need.

Gift instructions

Thank you for your interest. To donate via credit card, please use the donation form below.

To donate by check, make your check payable to "Boston Foundation, Inc." with "William R. Hanrahan Scholarship Fund" in the memo field and mail to:
The Boston Foundation
Fund Administration
75 Arlington Street, 3rd Floor
Boston, MA 02116

A process for credit card donations will be established soon.

To inquire about transferring other types of assets, please contact our Fund Administration office at (617) 338-2213 or email fundadmin@tbf.org.