Rotary Announces Vocational Scholarship Winners
COOPERSTOWN—Earlier this month, the Rotary Club of Cooperstown announced that Madison Moore, Samantha Barrett, Kura Lynn Druse, Kara Mertz and Leah Brundege are the recipients of the John D. Ramsey Memorial Vocational Scholarship for the current academic year.
This scholarship provides a sum of $31,000.00 annually to students pursuing vocational education. Moore has been awarded the Special Recognition Scholarship due to her unwavering commitment to serving society through nursing, officials said. Barrett, Druse and Mertz are also pursuing vocational nursing training; Brundege will be entering culinary arts.
According to a press release, the John D. Ramsey Memorial Scholarship is named in honor of John Ramsey, a longstanding member of the Rotary Club of Cooperstown and an ardent advocate for vocational training. Trained as a nurse himself, Ramsey had dedicated many years to sponsoring vocational scholarships through the Rotary Club.
“This trust bequest perpetuates his legacy as a local driving force for students pursuing vocations,” officials said. “John embodied the Rotary motto of “Service Above Self,” and this scholarship program will continue to recognize and support graduates who embody this principle.”
Candidates are selected from Cooperstown High School and Otsego Northern Catskills BOCES. Superintendents and guidance counselors compile applications, which are reviewed and forwarded to the Rotary Committee. As stipulated by Ramsey in his trust gift, the Rotary Committee makes final selections and presents the awards at graduation.
These scholarships align with Rotary’s core principles, which emphasize the importance of basic education and literacy, economic development, and community empowerment, explained Rotary Club of Cooperstown President Bill Waller.
“Vocational training and the return of skilled workers to their communities serve as vital components of this mission,” Waller said.
In total, the Rotary Club of Cooperstown has awarded $35,500.00 to students this year. This sum included $4,500.00 awarded by the Cooperstown Rotary Foundation, the club’s 501c3 wing. CRF awarded a Special Vocational Scholarship to Kirsten De Silva, a 2025 graduate of Cooperstown who will be studying nursing; a $1,500.00 Catherine Davis Black Scholarship to Waylon Cassell, also a Cooperstown Central School 2025 graduate, for his dedicated community service; and two $1,000.00 Michael Mayne Scholarships to two 2025 Milford Central School graduates who will be entering the military—Jeremy Velasco Jr., entering the Marines for aircraft mechanics, and Margaret Kenyon, entering the armed forces specializing in air traffic control.
