Polson Scholarship and Education Foundation names award recipients

Polson Scholarship and Education Foundation awarded 26 scholarships totaling $40,500 to Polson High School seniors and former Polson High School graduates who are currently attending an accredited two-year, four-year, community college, university or vocational school.

The following scholarships are set up through the PSEF with money donated by individuals in memory of loved ones, alumni classes, civic organizations and employees of School District #23 in the amount of $500. PSEF matches the $500 donation with $500 so each high school senior receives a $1,000 scholarship. One exception is the Alumni Class of ‘59, which provides $1,000 scholarship, and PSEF provided $500 for the student to receive a $1500 scholarship. The student receiving the Alumni Class of ’59 scholarships is Margaret Todd.

Additional high school seniors receiving $1,000 scholarships are Bella Farrier, who received the Montecahto Club Scholarship; Victor Perez Carrillo received the Chris Hoyt Memorial Scholarship; Michael Smith and Ali Hupka each received the Jessie Clemans Memorial Scholarship; Keith Erickson the J.V. Holman Memorial Scholarship.

Other individuals and organizations that provided $500 scholarships which are matched by funds from PSEF and the students receiving these scholarships are Leila River Shoemake, the Beta Sigma Phi Scholarship, and Berkley Ellis received the Merle Anderson/District #23 Employees Scholarship. A second District #23 Employee scholarship was awarded to Kyra Spencer. Megan Rost was awarded the George Mahoney Memorial Scholarship. The Travis Dolphin Memorial Scholarship was given to Nina Barfoot, and the Theiler/Oberlitner Scholarship was awarded to Samuel Fisher. The Mildred and Hib Hanson Memorial Scholarship was given to Ara Mercer. Esme’ Yarborough received a $1,000 scholarship as she was a winner in 2020, but because of COVID-19 she was unable to attend school. Polson High seniors received a total of $8,300 in scholarships through PSEF.

The following $2,000 scholarships for students currently enrolled in college were provided. Karlina Lawson was awarded $1,000 from the Emma Sager Women of Rollins Scholarship and $1000 from PSEF. The Alumni Class of 1965 Scholarship was awarded to Robin Erickson. Violet Anderson received the Sue Gregg Lanier Scholarship; Weston Danley was given the Chris Hoyt Memorial Scholarship; Payton Dupuis received a $2,000 scholarship from the Mildred and Hib Hanson Memorial Scholarship Fund and the Polson Scholarship and Education Foundation. The PSEF Scholarship was awarded to Mesa McKee, Shawntaya Burland was provided the Trusler Family Vocational Scholarship and Natasha Gravelle received the Robert Depoe III Memorial Scholarship. Grace Sievert received the Gary Baertsch Memorial Scholarship, Shaeley Brown was awarded the Jessie Clemans memorial Scholarship and Malia Seeley received the Theiler/ Oberlitner Scholarship. Two new scholarships were added this year. The Ken Avison Memorial Scholarship in memory of Ken Avison who was an educator and businessman in Polson was awarded to Beatrix Frissell. The second new scholarship is the Chris and Odin Scholarship. The Strom’s have been involved in education for many years as both were teachers in the Polson school system and Salish Kootenai College. Chris Strom was also one of the founding members of PSEF in 2002. Heidi Bowman was awarded the Strom Scholarship.

Thanks to donations from sponsors for the Lake City Open Golf Tournament that is held in conjunction with Polson Bay Golf Course and PSEF and donations from individuals and organizations these college students received a total of $26,000 in scholarships.

Polson Scholarship and Education Foundation, is a local non-profit organization established in 2002 as Polson Dollars for Scholars. The purpose of the organization is to expand access to post-secondary educational opportunities for Polson High School graduates and assist parents and students with college expenses. Since its inception we have provided over 347 PHS students with $387,000 worth of scholarships. Tax-deductible donations, individuals leaving money in their wills, and fund-raisers provide the funds for scholarships as well as individuals setting up a scholarship fund in memory of a loved one. All donations and monies raised goes towards scholarships. For more information on setting up a scholarship in memory of a loved one or joining our organization please contact board member Chris Strom at stromchris2@gmail.com.