Dr. Lili Sarnyai (KC 2011) studied for an MPhil in American Literature at King's, following her undergraduate studies in English at Fitzwilliam College. An exceptionally bright and able student, Lili was elected to represent her fellow postgraduates on the Board of the School of Arts & Humanities and went on to obtain her doctorate in Comparative Literature at the University of London in 2016. An avid ultra-trail runner, writer and artist, Lili tragically lost her life in August 2020 at the age of 30, in a sporting accident in Switzerland where she lived.
The Life-à-la-Lili Fund
The Life-à-la-Lili Fund was established in Lili's memory in 2021 by her mother, Dr. Monika Erős-Sarnyai. The fund supports annual prizes for postgraduate (MPhil and PhD) students in the arts and humanities who display daring, positive individualism, excel in their academic studies, and show exceptional courage in overcoming significant barriers. Donations will be used to support recipients' understanding of the world and help find unique ways to make it a better place, and for initiatives to further explore their own potential.
Prizes will be awarded in the following three categories:
The Lili Sarnyai: Life-à-la-Lili Opportunities Prize to encourage postgraduate students to seek and take advantage of academic or extra-curricular opportunities within and beyond the College, and to support their undertaking of initiatives and projects of environmental, charitable, intellectual, or entrepreneurial value, which will broaden their experience and have a positive impact.
The Lili Sarnyai: Life-à-la-Lili Travel Prize to support periods of study or work away from Cambridge. These can either be related to the students’ degree courses or research, or allow the recipients to undertake voluntary work or other study.
The Lili Sarnyai: Life-à-la-Lili Health and Wellbeing Prize to help students engage and excel in activities that support their own and others' health and wellbeing in an environmentally conscious way. The prizes may be awarded to students to cover expenses associated with training in outdoor sports such as trail-running, to pay for entrance fees and insurance for races, or to cover the costs associated with training and purchase of equipment.
Other Ways to Donate
Donations can be made by card via the button above. Gifts can also be made by cash, cheque, bank transfer or CAF Voucher. To make a gift by cash or cheque, please complete the donation form and send it with your gift to The Development Office, King’s College, Cambridge CB2 1ST. Cheques should be made payable to 'King’s College Cambridge'.
If you wish to make a bank transfer, please use the account details below:
Account Name: KING'S COLLEGE DONATIONS ACCOUNT
Account Number: 53962342
Sort Code: 20-17-68
IBAN: GB84 BARC 2017 6853 9623 42
SWIFTBIC: BARCGB22
Barclays Bank Plc
9-11 St Andrews Street
Cambridge
Please use your name as the reference as this will make it easier to ensure that the donation is properly accounted for, and email members@kings.cam.ac.uk once the transfer has been made to specify that it is a donation for the Lili Sarnyai: Life-à-la-Lili fund..
If you are resident in the USA, you can make a tax-efficient gift to Cambridge in America (CAm), a professional development and alumni relations office based in New York. CAm is a registered 501(C)3 organisation enabling American donors to give tax efficiently for the benefit of the University and the Colleges. Donations can be made online or alternatively please send a donation form with your check, made payable to 'Cambridge in America', to: Cambridge in America, P.O. Box 9123 JAF BLG, New York, NY 10087-9123, and request that the Directors of Cambridge in America allocate your gift to the Lili Sarnyai: Life-à-la-Lili fund at King's College.
