Scholarships awarded to graduating seniors, spouses

  • Published
  • By Hanscom Spouses Club
HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. --  The Hanscom Spouses Club awarded scholarships to graduating seniors and military spouses during the 54th annual HSC Scholarship Awards Night at the Minuteman Commons May 13.

HSC officers awarded $37,500 to 17 high school graduates and two spouses, each of whom will pursue bachelor degrees in technically-challenging degree programs in the fall.

Nicholas Giurleo, who will attend Tufts University in the fall, was awarded The Chief of Staff Award and $5,000 as the top academic achieving student.

Other students were awarded scholarships named in memory of former members of the Hanscom community. Those scholarship recipients include:

The Lt. Gen. Melvin F. (Nick) Chubb, Jr., Award, $4,000 - Riana Wirthlin, Brigham Young University
The Jeanne M. Richter Memorial Award, $500 - Emma Ferguson, Gordon College
The Brian D. Sweeney Memorial Award, $2,000 - Stephen Brao, John Hopkins
The Col. Chuck Jones Memorial Award, $3,000 - Samuel Pridotkas, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Several other students awarded scholarships were: Cameron Zamot, U.S. Naval Academy; Brianna de Jesus Banos, University of San Francisco; Brenna Gonsalves, Christopher Newport University; Lamia Farah, Northeastern College of Engineering; Mitchel Hulihen, Clemson University; Alexis Sprowl, University of Massachusetts-Amherst; Branson Leonard, Louisiana State University; Harold Hodge, University of Massachusetts-Amherst; Ryan Abele, New York University; Laura Morissette, Colby College; Rebekah Pierce, Brigham Young University; Nathaniel Heitsch, Rochester Institute of Technology; Patrick Ducey, Syracuse University; and David Brao, Babson College.

Military spouses Emily Dore, attending Hawaii Pacific University, and Rosine McKenna, attending American Military University, were awarded scholarships at the event as well.

The spouses club raised $37,500 this year from many corporate donors and benefactors. Without these contributions, and the work by HSC members through the Thrift Shop, auction and scholarship committee, the HSC scholarship program would not be possible.

For those HSC members attending the annual event, listening to the biographies of each student awarded a scholarship is said to be motivation for the hard work done by the selection committee.

Throughout the past 54 years, the Hanscom Spouses Club has offered scholarships to military dependent children and spouses. The intent of these scholarships is to support graduating high school seniors and spouses of members of any branch of the armed forces.

The first scholarship award was for $250 to Fred M. Raskind from Boston English High in 1961.