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Boys & Girls Club awards Youth of the Year Scholarship

Jamey Archie Boys & Girls ClubThe Boys & Girls Club of Waynesboro, Staunton, and Augusta County announced today the winner of its Youth of the Year Scholarship.

Jamey Archie, a seventh-grader at Kate Collins Middle School, was chosen as the award recipient from among five talented and worthy finalists. The finalists included Patrick Brooks, a sixth-grader at Kate Collins Middle School, Adaria Simmons, a seventh-grader at Kate Collins Middle School, Sydney Bowles, a seventh-grader at Kate Collins Middle School, and Adyn Moehring, a sixth-grader at Shelburne Middle School. The finalists will be honored at a dinner Thursday evening generously provided by the Green Leaf Grill.

The Youth of the Year Scholarship is a $2,000 award funded by the Lt. Larry W. McDowell Fund. To be in the running for the scholarship, a student must be a member of the Boys & Girls Club and be chosen as a Youth of the Month. To apply, students complete an essay, answer written questions, and participate in an interview session with a panel of community and board members. The scholarship funds are held in a Community Foundation account until the recipient applies to post secondary school. In 2015, the fund paid $2,000 to a former Youth of the Year Recipient, Angel Carter, to help cover her expenses at Liberty University.

“We are very proud of Jamey and all of our scholarship finalists,” said Annie Sachs, Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Club of Waynesboro, Staunton, and Augusta County. “Each of our finalists embodies the Club’s values of leadership, service, academic excellence, and living a healthy lifestyle. As the 2016 Youth of the Year, Jamey Archie will be a great ambassador for the club. She has been a member of the club since 4th grade and is a strong and helpful leader. She wants to use the scholarship towards training or education that will allow her to help others, such as cosmetology or nursing.”

“I am very thankful to have been chosen as this year’s scholarship winner,” said Archie. “Being a member of the Boys and Girls Club keeps me out of trouble and gives me a safe place to be with friends. I’ve had a lot of opportunities at the Club to be a leader and was able to start a Step team, the Royal Heat. We now have a step teacher and have had several performances. Being chosen as the Youth of the Year definitely boosts my confidence and I can’t thank Ms. Sachs and the scholarship committee enough for choosing me.”

“We are thankful for supporters like the McDowell family who are committed to our mission of enabling all young people, especially those who need us most, reach their full potential as productive, caring responsible citizens,” said Emily Stevens, President of the Board of the Boys & Girls Club of Waynesboro, Staunton, and Augusta County. “Choosing a recipient was not an easy task for our scholarship committee. All of our finalists are fantastic role models who embody the Club’s values. We hope, with the support of our donors, to grow our programs and scholarship opportunities so we can continue to support and positively impact the lives of young people in our community.”

 

About Boys & Girls Club of Waynesboro, Staunton, and Augusta County

Founded in 1998, the Boys & Girls Club of Waynesboro, Staunton, and Augusta County enables young people most in need to achieve great futures as productive, caring, responsible citizens. One of more than 4,100 Clubs in the United States, the Boys & Girls Club of Waynesboro, Staunton, and Augusta County, provides a safe place, caring adult mentors, fun, friendship, and high-impact youth development programs on a daily basis during critical non-school hours. Priority programs emphasize academic success, good character and citizenship, and healthy lifestyles. To learn more or donate today, please visit www.openthebluedoor.org.

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