Cardinals: SPHS scholars big winners with $20K in Rotary Scholarships
June 12, 2013
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula High School
Some are going to be the first in their families to attend a university while others come from a single-parent home, but the one thing all the Rotary Scholarship recipients have in common is hard work and ambitious plans for their own futures.
Santa Paula Rotary helped to ensure the future of outstanding Santa Paula High School graduates when they awarded a record $20,000 in scholarships at the recent banquet, where a mighty red Cardinal - the school’s mascot - proudly stood atop each table. Held at the historic Glen Tavern Inn, the Scholarship Awards Dinner drew a full house of Rotarians, recipients, guests, school officials and proud family members who enjoyed dinner by Enzo’s and entertainment by Xavier “Big X” Montes.
President Guy Cole offered the welcome, noting the continuing efforts of Dr. Mike Tushla and Dr. Chris Bartelson, the longtime co-chairs of the Rotary Scholarship Committee. Cole noted the contributions of Rotary Scholarship donors that this year allowed the club to increase the total amount of monetary awards to a record $20,000.
All of the recipients are active in more than their studies, with numerous school activities ranging from sports and student government to the Rotary Interact Club and an off campus array of volunteer efforts for numerous community benefiting programs and events.
Vocational scholarships of $500 each were awarded to Arturo Servin and Anna Wells, both active in the Agricultural Academy. Servin and Wells will both attend Marinello Beauty School in Bakersfield, where the former will major in cosmetology and the latter as a hair stylist.
Five $2,000 scholarships were awarded, going to: Sarah Bustillos (4.27 GPA who will attend San Diego State University to study nursing); Yesenia Nunez (Cal State University Channel Islands, where the 4.15 GPA student will enter pre-nursing or pre-med); Jessica Cisneros (GPA of 4.48 and entering U.C. Davis to study civil engineering); Sarah Jordan (4.21 GPA planning to study speech pathology at California State University Channel Islands); and Daniella Aguilar (California Lutheran University bound with a GPA of 4.43 and plans to study psychology).
Emilio Diego received a $3,000 Rotary Scholarship. A 4.43 GPA student, he will be attending UC Santa Barbara and studying engineering.
Evelyn Alamaraz also was awarded a $3,000 Rotary Scholarship. She will be attending California State University Channel Islands, where the 4.43 GPA student will be studying business management.
Veronica Lemus received a $2,000 Jeannette Cole Memorial Scholarship and a $1,000 Rotary Scholarship. The 3.96 GPA student will attend California Polytechnic University San Luis Obispo and major in elementary education.
Ending the evening was the singing of the Santa Paula High School Alma Mater. And whether they had attended SPHS or not, everyone in the room was a proud Cardinal.
