Scholarship rewards commitment, community service

The Department of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management (HRIM) has received its first endowed scholarship, from Delaware restaurateur Xavier Teixido, AG ’76.

A $25,000 endowment has been established to support the Harry’s Savoy Grill Hospitality Scholarship for a UD student majoring in HRIM. Teixido is the owner/operator of Harry’s Savoy Grill in north Wilmington and Harry’s Seafood Grill at Wilmington’s Riverfront.

“This is a most generous act by Mr. Teixido,” Fred DeMicco, ARAMARK Chair of HRIM, says. “He’s long been a leading restaurateur both in Delaware and nationally, and now he’s providing leadership in hospitality education.”

“I have great confidence in the UD hospitality program, and I’m proud to serve on the HRIM advisory board,” Teixido says. “It’s not every day that one gets to help influence the direction of one of the top 10 hospitality programs in the country.”

Through an annual golf outing fund-raiser, Teixido has been funding Harry’s Savoy Grill Hospitality Scholarship for four years through annual gifts, and he says he plans to continue to provide support to fund the scholarship while the endowment builds.

Scholarship recipients must demonstrate financial need, show a commitment to the hospitality industry and perform community service.

The past president of the National Restaurant Association and a trustee for its Education Foundation,

Teixido also serves on several boards and is involved with local charities concerned with hunger and children’s issues.