STE. GENEVIEVE – The mission of the GFWC Woman’s Club of Ste. Genevieve is to strengthen their community and enhance the lives of others through volunteer service. They help to create change by supporting the arts, preserving historical and natural resources and advancing education through scholarships. It was the “advancing education” part that made the clubwomen attending the May 8th meeting at VFW Post 2210 particularly proud. They were there to endow deserving young high school students with thousands of dollars in scholarships and purposeful programs that advance their educational opportunities.
Club President, Rosemary Douglas, welcomed everyone and began: “Before we present the awards, I would like to talk about the opportunities Woman’s Club of Ste. Genevieve provides to students in our community to help them achieve their educational and ultimately their career goals.”
Two scholarships are made available to graduating seniors at both local high schools each year.
The Helen Smith Scholarship and the Young Woman’s Scholarship each provide $500 towards the cost of higher education for the successful applicants at each high school.
President Douglas introduced the 2018 Helen Smith Scholarship recipient, Kaitlyn Crump, who spoke to the group about the positive impact these funds had on her education, and thanked the Woman’s Club: “What you do helps make dreams come true”, she said.
In addition to scholarships, GFWC Missouri established the Phoebe Jane Ess Loan Fund as an interest-free loan that the recipient repays upon completion of her education in nursing.
President Douglas introduced Briley Vessell, the current recipient, who said the loan was “amazing news” and aided in paying for her nursing degree from Mizzou, which has lead to a very rewarding career. “I’m so grateful to the Phoebe Jane Ess Loan Fund and to the Woman’s Club for helping me along the way”.
A statewide scholarships, the Hugh O’Brien Youth Leadership (HOBY) was held at the Webster University campus in June. The Seminar seeks to give student government leaders, academic achievers, athletes, and others the opportunity to learn about topics that impact their lives today and in the future.
The statewide Sophomore Pilgrimage promotes good citizenship and enables students to see our state government in action. Students see elected officials in session and are presented with a Certificate of Merit in Citizenship. Additional scholarships for the Mineral Area Fine Arts Academy Band Camp are made available at the Elementary and Middle School levels.
The annual Youth Writing Contest sponsored by the GFWC Woman’s Club of Ste. Genevieve narrowed down the many entries via local independent judges to 1st, 2nd and 3rd in two categories – Short Story and Poetry.
Those local winning entries were sent on to the GFWC of Missouri State Conference competition. The first place winners in each category are also entered into the GFWC International contest with results to be announced at the Annual Convention in Louisville on June 9-12.
The State level first place winner in Poetry is August Palmer of Valle High School (VHS) and in the Short Story category is Kole Kramer of Ste. Genevieve High School (SGHS).
The GFWC Woman’s Club of Ste. Genevieve is proud to provide these significant opportunities to local students each year.
2023 Scholarship Winners:
Back Row L to R: Lily Boyd (SGHS) Helen Smith Scholarship, Lindsey Crump (SGHS) Young Woman’s Scholarship, Jayden Rickman (SGHS) Sophomore Pilgrimage , Patrick Schilly (VHS) Sophomore Pilgrimage. Front Row L to R: Aly Bauman (VHS) Young Woman’s Scholarship, Natalie Kist (VHS) Helen Smith Scholarship, Penny Yang (SGHS) 2022 recipient of HOBY Leadership Scholarship, Aaliyah Rosenzweig 2022 recipient of Mineral Area Fine Arts Academy Band Camp Scholarship
2023 Writing Contest Winners, State Level:
Back Row L to R: Camryn Skaggs (VHS) 3rd Place Poetry, August Palmer (VHS) 1st Place Poetry, Kole Kramer (SGHS) 1st Place Short Story, Lane Okenfuss (VHS) 2nd Place Poetry Front Row L to R: Adyson Rayoum (VHS) 3rd Place Poetry (local), Lauren Wolk (VHS) 3rd Place Short Story, Lydia Brown (VHS) 2nd Place Short Story