SIDNEY — Sidney American Legion Post 217 has announced the awarding of six $1,000 learning scholarships. The scholarships were offered to successful candidates seeking an education from any technical/trade school, a two-year college, and any four-year college or university of higher learning. The scholarships were opened to all qualified and eligible graduating 2022 high school seniors from Sidney High School, Lehman Catholic High School, Christian Academy Schools and Fairlawn High School.
In addition, any high school senior attending any Shelby County school, who lives in Shelby County, and who is a direct descendent of a current or deceased member in good standing with Post 217 were eligible to apply. Sidney American Legion Post 217 awarded six $1,000 scholarships to the top six students from any of the high schools listed above. There was no specific allocation to any one school. In order to qualify for the award, a student must have been accepted to any accredited university, college or technical/trade school, all of which, must be based and operated within the borders of the United States of America.
The scholarship winners are Meghan Chamberlin of Lehman High School, and Carson Taylor, Luke Bemus, and Riley Throne of Sidney High School. Claire Henman and Chloe Weigandt were scholarship receipients from Fairlawn High School.
hamberlin is the daughter of Chad Chamberlin and Stephanie Rank. She will be attending the University of Toledo. She plans on becoming a physician assistant.
Taylor will be attending Ohio State University to study business. He is the son of Jason and Sarah Taylor.
Bemus, the son of Dave and Tammy Bemus, plans on studying mechanical engineering at Ohio Northern University.
Throne will be attending Bowling Green State University to study business. His parents are Steve and Kelly Throne.
Henman will also be attending Bowling Green State University. Her parents are Mitch and Lorrane Henman. She will studying statistics and actuarial science.
Chloe Weigandt, will be attending the Honors Program at Miami University to study dietetics and nutrition. Her parents are Gwen and Jason Weigandt.
The 2022 Sidney American Legion Post 217 learning scholarships were awarded to the successful winners based on their academic performance, leadership abilities, extracurricular participation both in school and the community, and personal characteristics. They were also judged on their letters of recommendation, participation in sponsored American Legion programs such as, Legion Baseball, Americanism and Government Test, and the American Legion Oratorical Programs. In addition, candidates also received scoring credit for participating in a week-long 24/7 program in either Buckeye Boys State or Buckeye Girls State. Buckeye Boys State is sponsored and supported by the American Legion. Buckeye Girls State is supported and sponsored by The American Legion Ladies Auxiliary. Both Buckeye Boys State and Buckeye Girls State are designed to educate Ohio’s young men and women in the duties, privileges, rights and responsibilities of good citizenship. By getting involved in the process, Delegates learn more about City, County and State Government in one week than they will learn in an entire semester of high school.
Sidney American Legion Post 217 Scholarship Committee was composed of Veterans of the Post. They are Judy Johnson (U.S. Army), Theresa Manteuffel (U.S. Air Force), Gary Bonorront (U.S. Navy), Jim Moorman (U.S. Air Force), and committee chair, Dale Peterson (U.S Army). The committee had the privilege of reviewing qualifications of each of the many applicants. Ten applicants were interviewed by the committee at Post 217.
The awarding of the six scholarships took place at Sidney American Legion Post 217, where the receipients were invited to a luncheon held in their honor, and for the presentation of their scholarships. During the luncheon, the scholarship receipients had the opportunity to meet the other scholarship recipients. They also were also briefed by each committee member in regard to each of their respective military service history. They learned that serving one’s Country in the military is a privilege and an honor. It was a positive experience that none of the veteran committee members regretted. Post Commander Rick Lunsford attended the luncheon. He too, shared his military experience of serving in the U.S. Navy.
The consensus of the committee was that it was a most rewarding experience. Most of the committee were so enthused with this year’s positive scholarship process, that they have indicated they will “re-up” for next year. All committee members wish to thank the high school guidance counselors of each of the four high schools for their genuine concern and support of each of their students. A special shout out goes to Sidney High School English teacher, Sara Olding. In her classroom, Olding is a strong proponent of promoting American Legion programs. Her dedication was displayed by Sidney High School students who submitted scholarship applications indicating their participation in American Legion programs.
Sidney American Legion Post 217 serves the nation’s veterans, their families, and to the community in which we live. For more information on Sidney American Legion Post 217, call the Post and ask for Gary Bonnoront, or the post commander at 937-492-6410.
For more information regarding this article, please contact Dale Peterson at 937-492-5577 or email at [email protected]
