WOMEN OF SUGARMILL WOODS, INC.
A 501 (c) (3) Corporation IRS code 1954
100 West Cypress Blvd.
Homosassa, FL 34446
EDUCATION AND SCHOLARSHIPS
2010 "SCHOOL"ASTIC GOLF TOURNAMENT PHOTOS AND PHOTOS OF SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS ARE POSTED! CLICK HERE TO VIEW. The applications for these scholarships are available at the guidance departments in the Citrus County high schools. See the "Education & Scholarships" page for further information and requirements. In 2002 the WSW began a relationship with the Take Stock in Children Scholarship program. This is a statewide venture targeting low-income at-risk students in grades 6 through 9. A four-year college tuition contract is purchased through the Florida Prepaid Tuition Program. Each recipient is assigned a mentor who works with the student through high school graduation. Many WSW members and their spouses have been and continue to be mentors in this program. Several of our members have also served on the Take Stock Leadership Council. To date, WSW has awarded 22 TSIC scholarships. WSW scholarships are presented annually at our April luncheon. Students and their guests are invited to our luncheon, introduced to the membership, and presented with their scholarships. Several members of the WSW Board attend the high school and Take Stock in Children awards programs each May to officially present the winners with their scholarships. These events are the most rewarding experiences. Please ask to take a look at our Education and Scholarship Album at our luncheons. Read a bio or two and see the future of our community. Our primary fundraiser for the WSW scholarships is the annual "School"astic Classic Golf Tournament held at the Sugarmill Woods Country Club on the last Monday of February. Lady golfers from several area counties participate in the 18 hole event. 100% of the proceeds are directed to our scholarships. The children of Citrus County ARE our priority. Besides the annual scholarship awards our members work tirelessly on behalf of the kids. Just express a need at Homosassa Elementary and our members are ready to solve it. Many members of WSW volunteer hundreds of hours each year at the school helping teachers in the classroom. The following is a list of programs WSW has supported. Some are ongoing and others have been replaced based on the needs and the requests of the Homosassa Elementary School staff: The Reading is Fundamental Program –we host the onsite event and provide a book for every student 3 times each school year Our Writer’s Luncheons - encourage the students to demonstrate their writing skills Students' Needs Fund – provided monies to cover lunch and extreme emergency supplies and administered by the Homosassa Elementary School principal The "Sneaker Tree" – purchased sneakers and socks for the gym closet for the student unable to take the class without these essentials Reading Kaleidoscope Program Multiple Donations for Homosassa Elementary School projects including $10,000.00 in 1999 & $2,000.00 for the sound system Various Sewing Projects including costumes for the HES Chorus A Reading Tag Program Adopt A Student – A Holiday Gift Project for Special Needs Students Stock the Closet – Clothing items from underwear to hats for needy students Personal Care items for classes on daily hygiene Shared experiences included a gingerbread house constructed by WSW members and a group of students The list continues and the hours total many- many thousands over the years. WSW members donated approximately 1,000 hours during the 2007-08 Club Year.
EDUCATION AND SCHOLARSHIPS:
The following tells a lot about our emphasis on Scholarships and Education. Our current scholarship offerings include:
Central Florida Community College Foundation Endowment Scholarship of approximately $500 each for two semesters for tuition & books for graduating high school seniors wishing to attend CFCC.
WSW General Scholarship for $500 for tuition costs renewable for 8 consecutive semesters for graduating high school seniors wishing to attend an accredited Florida college or university.
WSW Technical Scholarship for $500.00 for tuition costs for 2 semesters for graduating high school seniors wishing to attend an accredited Florida technical school program.
JANUARY, 2010
EDUCATION & SCHOLARSHIP COMMITTEE NEWS…
Your E&S Committee has continued to meet through the fall. Our work to date has been to develop written policies and procedures that govern the activities of our area of focus, especially regarding scholarships. The Board of Directors has accepted our work. Now any member new to the Education & Scholarship Committee will have a better understanding of her work, her responsibilities, and how the committee functions.
Judy Hill has also been busy with both RIF (Reading is Fundamental) and Writer’s Club programs at Homosassa Elementary School. We all thank you for volunteering to help out with both programs. Our next Writer’s Club program will be Monday, February 1, so please call Judy at 382-1348 if you wish to volunteer.
The E&S Committee is also working on the murder mystery for the upcoming January luncheon. “Murder Is Par For the Course” will be a fun mystery to solve, and it allows us to create a connection to our next major fund-raiser – the 14th Annual Schoolastic Classic Golf Tournament that will be held on Monday, February 22, 2010 at Sugarmill Woods country club. Joan Reece has provided more details in the luncheon section of our newsletter.
The golf tournament needs your help – and there are so many ways in which you can help make this event successful. You may choose to participate and play in the event. An entry form is elsewhere in this newsletter. You may choose to be a patron, a financial donor who knows that her monetary gift will go into our WSW Scholarship Fund. For each $100 a patron donates, she (or he) will receive a gift certificate good for a round of golf for four people at SMW country club (excluding cart fee). You may also donate an item that is new and unused that we can “regift” for door prizes or our Chinese auction. Last year we had re-gifted items of designer outfits, wine rack/glasses, various pieces of jewelry, a Murano glass figurine, a canister set, and more. Another way in which you can donate is to offset a tournament expense by donating cases of water (16.9 oz. size bottles), a box or two of Crystal Lite To Go flavor sticks (any flavor), small boxes of raisins, Planter’s Trail Mix snack packs (usually comes 6 to a box) or Planter’s Daybreak Blend Trail Mix, candy bars, yogurt bars, power bars, packs of crackers, or any other pre-wrapped snack item that a golfer can carry with her during the round of golf. Every dollar we don’t have to spend is a dollar that goes into our Scholarship Fund. And you may also choose to volunteer your time during the months of January and February to solicit businesses for donations, help wrap gift items, print out programs and other items needed for the tournament, serve as course ranger on the day of the tournament, etc. The more hands we have to do the work, the lighter the load is for everyone and the more great ideas we get on how to do things better.
We will have a table set up at the January luncheon where you can bring any items mentioned above – we will be happy to “take them off your hands!” Entry forms for the tournament will also be available.
As chairwoman of this year’s event, I hope that you will reach out and find a way to assist your Education & Scholarship Committee by making our charity golf tournament fund-raiser a great success! Please call me at 382-2999 or e-mail me at Drayne@tampabay.rr.com for any and all questions. If you have a specific question about registration or reservations for the tournament please call Vicki Budd at 382-5216 or e-mail her at Vbudd@tampabay.rr.com. If you would like to volunteer please call Debbie Calleri at 503-7238 or e-mail her at Adcalleri@tampabay.rr.com and let her know how you’d like to help.
Donna Rayne, Education & Scholarship Committee
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LETTERS AND NOTES:
We recently received a letter from Kelly (Harrod) Hayes, who was the recipient of our 1998 Scholarship to CFCC. The letter will speak for itself. Click HERE to view.
Back Row, left to right: Mary Curry, Assistant Superintendent, Citrus County Schools, Jontrell Hutcherson, Evan Marshall, and Donna Rayne, WSW Education and Scholarship Committee.Front Row, left to right: Larra Townsend, Alyssa McKibbin and Michelle Nowak
Unable to attend the luncheon (picture held by Larra) was Katie Camp.
2009 SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS
This year we had $17,000 to award. We had over 30 applications which the Education & Scholarship Committee scrutinized, poured over, and agonized over! Our two most significant criteria for initial consideration were financial need and meeting the minimum grade point average. We had a few candidates who did not meet the financial need guidelines, and we had a few candidates whose parent or guardian chose to not reveal the requested financial detail. These applicants were pulled aside, only to be considered if we had no other students who qualified for our awards -- which was not the case. Grade point averages, class selection, personal essays, community service hours, and personal references were then gone over in much detail by the committee. We proudly present WSW 2008-2009 Scholarship recipients.
Larra Townsend, recipient of our WSW CFCC Foundation Endowment Scholarship, plans to study math, computers, or education at CFCC. She will graduate from Crystal River High School with a 3.8 GPA and over 150 community service hours. Larra was accompanied to our luncheon by her grandmother, Glenda Townsend.
Alyssa McKibbin was awarded our Withlacoochee Technical Institute Technical Scholarship to complete her studies toward becoming an LPN. By January, 2009, Alyssa had already accumulated the required credits to graduate from Lecanto High School; she is already enrolled in the Patient Care Assistant Program at WTI. Alyssa has performed over 200 hours of community service. Once she completes her LPN studies at WTI she plans to enroll in the RN program at CFCC. She was accompanied to our luncheon by her father, Randy McKibbin.
The following students were awarded WSW General Academic Scholarships ($4,000 comprised of $500 per semester up to 8 semesters):
Evan Marshall will graduate from Lecanto High School with a 4.37 weighted GPA. Evan is also doing dual enrollment classes at CFCC. He has racked up over 200 hours of community service. Evan will be attending the University of Central Florida where he will pursue a degree in business. Evan was accompanied to our luncheon by his mother, Kristie Marshall.
Michelle Nowak will study to become a RN at Santa Fe Community College in Gainesville; upon completion of their program she will transfer to a 4-year college to finish her program. Michelle has maintained a 3.66 GPA at Crystal River High School. Michelle has already taken her state certification exam to become a CNA, which will help her supplement her income while attending college. Michelle was accompanied to our luncheon by her mother, Barbara Nowak.
Katie Camp could not attend the presentation luncheon due to the state vocal competition in Daytona Beach. Her mother, Cindy Camp, attended our luncheon and accepted her daughter's scholarship award. Katie will graduate from Crystal River High School with a 3.7 GPA. Katie has performed over 300 hours of community service. Katie will be attending the University of Central Florida where she aspires to a degree in teaching.
Jontrell Hutcherson is a graduating senior at Crystal River High School with a 3.92 weighted GPA. He has also given almost 400 hours of community service. Jontrell will be attending the University of Florida to pursue a career in the medical field as a physician. Jontrell was accompanied to our luncheon by his mother, Edna Hutcherson. Jontrell also received the Bill Gates Scholarship, which will cover all his expenses for his college education. Because of this, Jontrell's WSW scholarship money will be applied to another deserving applicant in 2009-2010.
