The 2024 recipients of the West Island Improvement Association scholarships pose for a photo after the scholarship breakfast on 7/28/24 at the WIIA community house, L-R: Bruce Moulding, who will be attending Rensselaer Polytechnical Institute majoring in Biomedical Engineering; Madeline Eldridge, who will be attending Skidmore College; Hugh Boucher, who will be attending UMassD as a pre-engineering student. Submitted photo.
Press Release
This past Sunday, July 28th, The West Island Scholarship Committee held their annual Scholarship Ceremony and Breakfast. Since 1985, the West Island Improvement Association (WIIA) has been awarding scholarships in support of young adults with furthering their education. Since 2014 alone, the association has awarded $30,000 to deserving students!
To be eligible for a scholarship, a student must be a child or grandchild of an active WIIA member. Eligible students must complete an application in which they are blindly assessed by the Scholarship Committee in areas that address to what extent they have been successful in academics; participated in extra-curricular activities; had employment and/or volunteer experiences; and are connected to the West Island community. Students are also asked to write an essay.
Once again this year, the Scholarship Committee had some very strong applicants and the WIIA was pleased to award three $1000.00 scholarships to the following deserving students.
The first scholarship winner, Hugh Boucher, is a graduate of Fairhaven High School with deep connections to West Island, which he so beautifully expressed in his essay of What West Island Means to Me. He wrote about living near the ocean and trying activities like boating and fishing, and how these activities made him love nature and being outside. He shared stories of neighbors helping one another with acts of kindness during difficult times, as well as stories of the special friendly and unique culture of West Island. This young man plans to attend UMass Dartmouth this fall as a pre-engineering student.
Madeline Eldridge, the second awardee, is a proud graduate of Ursuline Academy in Dedham having achieved success within a challenging curriculum. When writing about West Island, Maddie reflected on her tradition of spending every summer here with her family at the beach, playing games, racing hermit crabs, and more.
She wrote, “West Island has been my home and a place where I have made friends, memories and had time to really appreciate my family and the time with them. The summers here will always be a part of me and are unforgettable. Along with being a place I have spent a lot of time hanging out with my brothers and getting closer with them, two of my best friends were made here and I am so grateful West Island brought me to meeting them.”
She plans to attend Skidmore College in New York this fall.
The final awardee, Bryce Moulding, is an Eagle Scout. He attended Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical High School and served as valedictorian of his graduating class.
For Bryce, West Island has created countless memories for which he states, “The island has provided me with the luxury to pause time, and enjoy the smaller things that life can offer, and in doing so has created a place that is deeply nostalgic to me. For me, West Island is like a second home, one that may be in the past, but one that has been just as instrumental to my growth into the person I am today.”
This fall, Bryce will attend Rensselaer Polytechnical Institute in New York majoring in Biomedical Engineering.
The students were celebrated at the Annual Ceremony and Breakfast catered by Mac’s Soda Bar. These three young adults certainly have a bright future ahead of them and the West Island Improvement Association wishes them much success this fall as they continue their education.
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Click here for this week’s issue: 08-01-24 Diverseabilities
Click here for the TA’s letter choosing Dorgan for Chief: ALE Letter4Dorgan
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