September 1, 2015
Napa Valley Community Foundation has awarded scholarships totaling $61,700 to 26 local students, an increase of more than $20,000 from 2014.
Among this year’s scholarship recipients: seven military veterans who are receiving financial support thanks to The George and Gwendolyn Goodin Scholarship Fund, a permanent endowment that was established at NVCF with a gift from the estate of George and Gwendolyn Goodin, who were longtime residents of Yountville.
Scholarships also went to eight recent graduates from local public high schools, each the first in their family to pursue a college education, courtesy of a new fund, called The Fruit of the Vine Scholarship Fund, which was established by an anonymous Napa Valley winegrower.
Eleven other students received scholarship awards from one of the following Funds: The Edward W. Solomon Scholarship Fund; The Ted Kohler Music Scholarship Fund; The Lenore Hirsch-Jay Falk Scholarship Fund; and The Waller Crafford Scholarship Fund.
Scholarship awards ranged from $500 to $5,000 per student, and the average amount awarded was $2,373.
Forty-four percent of scholarship recipients have enrolled at University of California campuses or private universities; 39 percent have enrolled in community colleges (most often Napa Valley College); and 17 percent have enrolled in the California State University system.
NVCF has served as a bridge between philanthropic families and nonprofit agencies since 1994, bringing people, ideas and resources together to enhance the quality of life in our community. From American Canyon to Calistoga, NVCF has distributed more than $40 million in grants since it was founded, and currently serves as the philanthropic partner to 100 individuals, families, nonprofit agencies and corporations in Napa Valley. To learn more visit napavalleycf.org.