John & Lois Elorriaga Endowment

John Elorriaga is the son of Basque immigrants who ran a boarding house in Jordan Valley, Oregon. After serving in the U.S. Air Force, Elorriaga graduated from Boise Junior College and then finished his undergraduate work at the University of Oregon. He began his career with U.S. Bank, and it was there he met his wife of 58 years, Lois Elorriaga. He became a chief architect in shaping the U.S. Bank empire. He became president in 1972 and was CEO of U.S. Bank from 1972 to 1987. He served on the business advisory board for Boise State University and won the Distinguished Alumni Award in 1988. Over the years the Elorriagas have been very supportive and generous to Boise State University. Among many other gifts to the University they created the John & Lois Elorriaga Endowed Scholarship in 1991.