Menu
Scholars, donors celebrated at Community Foundation event
The Putnam County Community Foundation celebrated local scholars and donors earlier this month during their Donor Scholar Reception.
The annual reception at the Putnam County Fairgrounds Community Building is an opportunity for scholarship recipients and donors or representatives to meet one another and celebrate their continuing education. Forty scholars who received scholarship awards through the Community Foundation were present among more than 120 attendees.
The event offered an opportunity for two scholarships to be featured, with both donors and recipients alike sharing the impact of scholarships. Dean Gambill, director of community development, spoke of the Ethel V. Frazier Putnam County Hospital Guild Scholarship, the newest scholarship awarded for 2017.
Frazier was a longtime Hospital Guild volunteer who left a legacy gift in her estate that has funded the scholarship. Tatum Straziscar, a 2017 recipient, told those gathered the importance that scholarships have played in her education and how the Ethel V. Frazier Scholarship is allowing her to pursue her graduate degree in bilingual speech pathology this fall at Marquette University.
Alyson Lyon, daughter of the late Rob Lyon, spoke about her father and his desire to help students achieve college degrees, and Vickie Parker, cousin of Rob Lyon, gave the history of the Lyon Family Scholarship.
Parker then presented Miriah Cherry, one of three 2017 Lyon Family Scholars. Cherry, a senior safety management major at Indiana State University, told her story of selecting safety management as her major following the death of her friend, Riley Sutherlin, in a farm accident.
Cherry observed that she is one of only a handful of women in the safety field and that she desired to put her education to use in Putnam County. The Lyon Family Scholarship will afford her the opportunity to pursue graduate work and be selective choosing an employer.
This year’s Donor Scholar Reception was sponsored by First National Bank who also provided a bit of a surprise for the evening by providing a $250 scholarship. Scholars were given a backpack of goodies. One backpack included a special note pad signifying the winner of the scholarship. Lillian Boyd, a 2017 Cloverdale High School graduate, is the recipient of that scholarship.
The Putnam County Community Foundation administers 60 diverse scholarship funds. A common application is used to apply for 40 of those scholarships. The Community Foundation Scholarship online application will be available Nov. 1 at www.pcfoundation.org.
The Foundation is a nonprofit public charity established in 1985 to help donors establish endowments, award grants and provide leadership, enriching the quality of life and strengthening community in Putnam County. The Community Foundation has been entrusted with more than 279 funds and endowments for donors, supporting a variety of charitable purposes.
To obtain additional information, persons may contact the office at 653-4978 or visit the website at www.pcfoundation.org.