Six local high school seniors were the recipients of the Kankakee Valley REMC Operation Round Up scholarship totaling $8,000. Two $2,000 scholarships and four $1,000 scholarships are given annually to graduating high school seniors whose parents/guardians participate in the Operation Round Up program.
This year’s $2,000 scholarship recipients were:
- Lillie Recker, Valparaiso High School;
- Jaelynn Goins, Knox High School;
The $1,000 scholarship recipients were:
- Anyssa Heinold, Kouts High School;
- Alexander Bryan, Morgan Township High School;
- Gavin Hein, Washington Township High School;
- Jordan Williams, Indiana Academy For Science, Mathematics and Humanities.
Scholarship recipients were selected based on their scholastic achievement, extra-curricular activities, volunteerism, and honors. Additionally, students were asked to write an essay response to a question that had them describe a community or neighborhood improvement project. In addition to describing the project, they were required to prepare an itemized budget.
“We feel that investing in our youth is investing in the future leaders in our community. This is very important to our organization and part of our commitment to the community. The Operation Round Up scholarship provides financial support to students and recognizes these extraordinary individuals for being leaders in the classroom and the community,” stated Amanda Steeb, director of marketing and communications for Kankakee Valley REMC. “We applaud the academic achievement of these scholarship recipients and wish them luck as they continue their education this fall.”
Operation Round Up Trust is funded by Kankakee Valley REMC members who volunteer to round up their utility bills each month. The extra change goes into the Operation Round Up Trust fund. Funds are distributed quarterly to not-for-profit organizations in the community. Since 2000, Operation Round Up Trust has awarded over one million dollars to not-for-profit community organizations.
