Last Wednesday, Pleasant Valley High School held its annual scholarship night. The Pleasant Valley Educational Foundation has awarded nearly 700 scholarships totallying $700,000. Originally, Pleasant Valley only had enough money to award two scholarships, but the number of scholarships has dramatically increased since then.
This year, Pleasant Valley distributed a school record 89 scholarships to 88 senior students. The school heavily believes in rewarding students for their hard work and dedication to their education and to the school. Many of the scholarships awarded came from families who had experienced tragic circumstances that had taken away the opportunity for loved ones to receive higher education.
The 2018 scholarship night was an extremely emotional one. It was the first year that the Kohn family awarded the Will Kohn Memorial Scholarship. Will Kohn’s story is a tragic one. He spent most of the 2017 year in the hospital waiting for a heart transplant. After he finally received the transplant, he died from cancer on January 24. Christopher Kohn created the Will Kohn Memorial Scholarship to honor his son and keep him alive in the memory of Pleasant Valley students and staff. Austin Halupnik was the very first person to be awarded the scholarship. “It was really awesome to be the first recipient of the scholarship. Will Kohn was an important figure to Pleasant Valley, and earning a scholarship in his name is a honor,” Halupnik stated.
It was also the first time that Cara Neuhaus gave a speech before awarding the Crystal Neuhaus Memorial Scholarship. Her mother also passed away from cancer. Neuhaus gave a sentimental speech about her memories with her mother and her pride in being able to award the scholarship to one of her best friends, Ellie Spelhaug. The award meant a great deal to Spelhaug. “I’ve known Cara Neuhaus since she was born and Crystal was a second mother to me,” said Spelhaug. “I got teary-eyed after Cara began to speak. It was special getting to walk on stage and earning the award from Cara.”
The names and photos of the new scholarship recipients are posted on the scholarship board in the lunchroom. Make sure to congratulate the winners on their achievements in the classroom, as well as in the community.
