For 31 years, the Sandhills Cattle Association has awarded scholarships to the youth of the Association members. In that time, 528 applications have been reviewed and reduced to 128 scholarship recipients, who have been awarded $114,750 just from the Sandhills Cattle Association alone. Funds for this program are raised through the annual benefit auction held at every convention. In September of 2022, we brought nearly $8,700 just from the scholarship auction alone, thanks to many vendors' generous donations throughout the Sandhills region! (Let us know if you'd like to donate to the auction this year!)
This year, we had twenty-eight applications for the Sandhills Cattle Association scholarship program submitted for the committee's review. The committee narrowed the applicants to eight finalists and ultimately awarded five scholarship recipients. We are pleased to announce that after a very lengthy and rigorous application process, the following five applicants have been selected to receive this year's Sandhills Cattle Association scholarships!
Tylan 'Ty' Schlueter received one of the $2,000 Sandhills Cattle Association scholarships. Ty is the son of Brad & Lisa Schlueter and is currently a senior at Ainsworth High School. He will be attending the University of Nebraska – Lincoln this fall with a major in Agricultural Engineering.
Elizabeth 'Libby' Wilkins also received a $2,000 Sandhills Cattle Association scholarship. Libby is a senior at Ainsworth High School and is the daughter of Brad & Wendy Wilkins. She will also be attending the University of Nebraska in Lincoln with an Agriculture Education major.
Jency Starr received the only $1,500 scholarship offered by the Sandhills Cattle Association. Jency is the daughter of Kevin & RaLynn Starr of North Platte and is a senior at McPherson County High School. This fall, she will be attending Nebraska Wesleyan University majoring in Biology and minoring in Chemistry.
Megan Amos of Stapleton was selected for one of the $1,000 Sandhills Cattle Association scholarships. Megan is a senior at Stapleton High School and is the daughter of Jim & Kennetha Amos. Megan will be attending the University of Wyoming in the fall, majoring in Agriculture Communications.
Michaela Keller received the other $1,000 scholarship from the Sandhills Cattle Association. This is Michaela's second year receiving a scholarship from the SCA. Michaela is the daughter of Shane & Karen Keller. She is currently a freshman at Eastern Wyoming College, majoring in Agriculture Business with Animal Science and Ag Business options.
We also have been extremely fortunate to present other scholarships on behalf of longtime members throughout the years, such as Howard Wright, Buzz Kime, and Steve Moreland. Stay tuned for the following newsletter to find out who the lucky recipients of these scholarships are!
Reminder: We have Branding School on April 27 in Valentine, the 25th Annual Sandhills Golf Classic on May 26, and the 83rd Annual Convention & Trade Show on May 27 in Atkinson.