History student receives memorial scholarship, meets family of former LU student killed in house fire

The family of a Liberty University history graduate who tragically passed away in 2011 is keeping his memory and his fervor for history alive through an annual scholarship awarded to a student in the Master of Arts in History program.

On April 24, through a virtual ceremony on Microsoft Teams, the family of Aaron Horton, who graduated from Liberty with a history degree in 2007, officially presented first-year graduate history student Tanesha Higgins with the Aaron Horton Memorial Scholarship. Horton’s goal was to pursue doctoral work in history and one day join the Liberty faculty. A scholarship fund was created in his honor to fulfill Horton’s dream of helping to educate students who loved history as much as he did.

“Aaron was a true scholar at heart; he loved learning throughout his entire life and had a curiosity to discover new things,” Leah Horton, Aaron’s sister, told Higgins during the presentation. “When he passed, our family wanted to carry out his dream of educating students and sharing his passion for history with the world, and I hope this scholarship will play a small part in helping you to accomplish your dreams.”

Aaron and his wife, Rachael, were killed in an early-morning fire in their Lynchburg apartment on April 8, 2011.  He had recently completed his course requirements for a Master’s in Ancient History and Classical Studies from the University of Wales.

The Horton family designed the scholarship as a way to contribute to the next generation of aspiring historians who share his enthusiasm. The winner is selected from an essay submission on why the applicant shares Horton’s love for history and is awarded $2,000.

“We’ve been blessed by God to aid others in their journey and we hope that this will help you in yours,” Aaron’s mother, Barbara, told Higgins. “We will keep you in our prayers as you continue on, we ask the Lord to lead, guide, and direct you in your steps.”

Higgins said that hearing Aaron’s story and learning about his love for history has inspired her to keep pursuing her passion for the subject.

“I would like to think that if I ever had the privilege to have met Aaron that we would have gotten along well and I probably would have looked up to him as a historian,” Higgins said. “I’m very close with my parents, and family is so important to me, so the fact that his parents are the ones choosing who receives the scholarship in Aaron’s memory is so special.”

Recollecting on her Liberty experience from her undergraduate studies in history to her final year that awaits this fall, Higgins said that the history department has always welcomed her and pushed her to succeed.

“There’s always been a family-like side to the history department, and I kind of think of my history professors as family,” Higgins said. “Also, just because they’ve been kind and helped me doesn’t mean that they don’t hold me to a high academic standard, and I feel like here I’m getting the tools I need for my future. I know that life can take you all sorts of places, and I know that in whatever field I end up in I’ll be able to use the analysis and research skills they’ve taught me.”

Following her graduation in 2021, Higgins plans to pursue a career in public diplomacy and will be applying to the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) program, which would give her international experience by being stationed in Japan to teach English. At Liberty, she has worked with Japanese students through an immersion program, teaching them lessons in American history as a way of familiarizing them with English.

Dr. Samuel Smith, chair of the history department and director of the graduate program, was present for the virtual ceremony and told the family, “You have picked a student that is well-deserving. I am delighted that Tanesha is the winner of this year’s Aaron Horton Memorial Scholarship.”

Department secretary Karla Temple said that Higgins embodies what it means to be a Champion for Christ.

“She consistently demonstrates a commitment to excellence in her demeanor and academic work, and she is good humored and much-loved by her peers and professors,” Temple said. “In her aspirations to be a U.S. Foreign Service officer, I am certain she will make significant contributions to our nation’s diplomatic efforts abroad.”

To make a donation to the scholarship fund, send a check (with the memo “Aaron Horton Memorial Scholarship Fund”) to Liberty University, Attn: Donor Services Department, 1971 University Blvd., Lynchburg VA 24502, or call (800) 628-7978.