The annual Montevideo Scholarship Tea would not be complete without scholarship fund coordinator Darwin TeBeest reminding all in attendance that he loves to give away other people’s money.
He saved the comment for the end of this year’s 22nd annual Scholarship Tea as he encouraged the 80 scholarship recipients to remember that night and reciprocate in the future to help others pursue their post-secondary education.
And his remarks were aimed at the scholarship donors as well, thanking them and previous donors for their incredible generosity over the past 51 years the scholarship program has existed.
“This is a special day,” he told donors. “You deserve to feel good about what you’re doing. When you present your scholarship night, don’t suppress those feelings.”
The winner of the $10,000 Bertha Bonn Memorial Scholarship is Abigail Haugen, who will attend Macalester College in the fall. Elizabeth Albers, who is going to Bemidji State University, was awarded the $8,000 Claude Dziuk, Founder Memorial Scholarship, and Becca Pauling, who plans to attend the University of Minnesota, Morris, received the $4,000 Harold and Alice Rue Memorial.
Megan M. Bothun Memorial scholarships in differing amounts totaling $8,750 were given to 14 graduating seniors, and five Jeff Mann Memorial Scholarships of $1,000 each were awarded.
Brothers Dan and Tom Grages each received four-year, full-ride ROTC scholarships worth $73,000 and $174,000 respectively. Dan will attend North Dakota State University to study electrical engineering, and Tom will attend St. John’s University where he will major in business. Each brother is obligated to serve in the U.S. Army for eight years after college.
Since the Montevideo Senior High School scholarship program was founded in 1959 by the late Claude Dziuk, who taught English at MHS for more than 30 years, more than $1.7 million has been award to graduating seniors.
The scholarship program has grown from four $100 scholarships in 1959 to 94 scholarships totaling $114,600 that were awarded Wednesday night last week. Four new scholarships were awarded this year: the Dennis Christenson Memorial, the Goldleaf Financial, the Trinity Lutheran Sunday School, and the Conrad and Dorothy Stai.
TeBeest closed by reiterating the saying that was printed on the thank you given to each donor after they presented their scholarship: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give!”
Editor’s note: A complete list of scholarship recipients appears in the special graduation section included in this edition of the American-News.)
