BOTKINS —The Botkins Education Foundation will hold its sixth annual Awards Banquet on Monday, May 9, at The Palazzo.
The Education Foundation will recognize members of the Class of 2022 who will be receiving the various available scholarships. Also recognized will be Wall of Honor recipients Robert Meyer, Sue Wirick Geis and Susan Ludwig Ware.
Doors to The Palazzo will open at 6 p.m. with the dinner beginning at 6:30 p.m. The Rev. Kyle Schnippel, a Botkins Alumnus, is the guest speaker for the evening.
Schnippel is a Botkins Alumnus of the class of 1995 and is currently a Dayton Regional XII Pastor of St. Peter in Huber Heights, Holy Cross and Our Lady of the Rosary in Dayton.
Meyer will be honored honored posthumously. Meyer was a member of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Botkins. He served during World War II in the Merchant Marines and dedicated his life to the Botkins community by being the caretaker of the Catholic Cemetery for 55 years, was a charter member and past president of the Botkins Community Club, president of the PTA, and served on the school board as both a member and president for 12 years. He was also a member of the Miami Valley Dairy Board and president of the Shelby County Farm Bureau, member of the Shelby County Right to Life and the American Legion. His life’s work and love was farming, family and his Catholic Faith. He is surivived by his wife of 66 years, Flo. They are the parents of seven children.
Wirick Geis is a Botkins alumna from the class of 1955, where she was a cheerleader, played in the band and was very active in various clubs throughout high school. She worked at Provico/Hubbard for 43 years. Wirick Geis volunteered much time and effort to the Botkins Community. She is a member of St. Paul Lutheran Church, where she served on the church council as financial secretary. She also served as a Sunday School teacher and sang in the church choir, and sang in many weddings. She also served on the Community Club and was a member of the Botkins Pool Committee. Wirick Geis continued to serve the community when she became a member of the Botkins Local School Board of Education, serving from 1974 to 1989, with 12 of those years devoted to serving as president. Education has always been a priority for Wirick Geis. She has been married to Carl Geis for almost 63 years; they are the parents of five children.
Ware came to Botkins Local Schools, where she taught third grade from 1973 to her retirement in 2004. Having taught four years prior to coming to Botkins, she ended her 35-year teaching career with Botkins Local Schools, only to continue to be a substitute, filling in wherever needed. She also became a volunteer for the reading program in her hometown school, Jackson Center. Ware was an extremely dedicated teacher. In addition to teaching third graders, she also assisted with the elementary gifted program as well as the monitor for the Saturday School program. Her pride and inspiration was always her third grade students. Her own inspiration was, in turn, the inspiration for countless students throughout the years. During her tenure as a teacher, Ware touched the lives of nearly 1,000 students. She will always be remembered for her dedication in both time and talent, her patience with her students and her passion to ensure that no student would leave her classroom unable to read. For many years, she also volunteered as a Sunday School Teacher and Bible School leader at Grace Evangelical Luthern Church in Jackson Center, where her creativity is still visible in the church. Ware is the proud mother of one daughter.
The Botkins Education Foundation Awards Banquet is the primary fundraiser for the Foundation. One hundred percent of the banquet proceeds go toward providing scholarships for Botkins graduates, enabling a “kickstart” for their careers.
