Pete and Naomi Fast Scholarship

Scholarship Criteria: Eligible recipients must be enrolled as full-time students, demonstrate financial need, maintain a GPA of 3.25 or higher, be enrolled in the Music program at the University of Northwestern (including Music Education majors), actively participate in extracurricular music and/or ministry involvement, and represent the high ideals of the Mission, Vision, and Values of the University.

Scholarship Story:

The Pete and Naomi Fast Scholarship was established in 2007 through a generous and sacrificial gift from Peter W. and Naomi S. Fast, longtime friends of Northwestern whose lives were marked by a shared love for Christ, music, and ministry.

Pete Fast graduated from Northwestern College Seminary in 1942. One year later, he married Naomi Slay, an exceptionally gifted musician who had been nicknamed “Miss Songbird” while attending West Texas State University. Together they began a ministry partnership that would span more than six decades.

Pete served as a Minister of Music and Education in churches across Texas, Colorado, South Dakota, and Oregon. Known for his inspiring singing, he touched countless lives through songs such as “Ship Ahoy,” “Life Is Like a Mountain Railroad,” and “The Love of God.” Naomi complemented that ministry with remarkable musical talent of her own. She played piano, violin, accordion, and organ, directed musical groups, accompanied choirs and soloists, and used her gifts to encourage generations of believers.

For many years, Pete and Naomi directed performances of Handel’s Messiah and participated in extensive music ministry throughout the United States. Following retirement, they formed the Fast-Seven-Way Team and conducted more than 600 revival and singing engagements throughout the Pacific Northwest. They also participated in numerous mission trips around the world, using music as a means of sharing the Gospel and encouraging others in their faith.

Even in the final years of her life, when Alzheimer’s disease had taken much of Naomi’s memory, her love for music remained. Family members recalled how her face would brighten at the sound of music and how she continued to respond joyfully to the songs that had been central to her life and ministry.

Pete and Naomi established a charitable gift annuity with Northwestern Foundation with the intention that the remaining funds would one day support students studying music. After both had gone home to be with the Lord in 2006 and 2007, the remainder of that gift became the Pete and Naomi Fast Scholarship. Their daughter, Renée, and son-in-law, Ed Heathcott, enthusiastically supported the creation of the endowed scholarship as a way to honor Pete and Naomi’s legacy.

Today, the scholarship supports students who share the Fasts’ commitment to musical excellence, Christian service, and ministry involvement. Through this scholarship, Pete and Naomi’s lifelong devotion to Christ and their passion for music continue to influence new generations of Northwestern students.