24 Scholarship Recipients – 2019
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Female Athlete – Georgia Southern University Scholarship
BAILEE WILSON
FROM: Clyo, Georgia
HIGH SCHOOL: Effingham County High School
ON RECIEVING THIS AWARD:
Abbie Deloach was a standout athlete and an outstanding student who showed love and kindness to everyone. This honor reminds me that dedication and hard work pay off.
Recipient of the Tidewater Landscape
Management Male Athletic Scholarship –
Georgia Southern University Scholarship
DAVID SPAULDING
FROM: Riceboro, Georgia
HIGH SCHOOL: Bradwell Institution
INTERESTS: helping others
FAVORITE QUOTE: “You don’t have to do nothing special to be special.” — Cam Newton
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Female Athlete – Savannah State
University Scholarship
VALERIA ALDARONDO
FROM: Puerto Rico
HIGH SCHOOL: Carib Christian School
FAVORITE VERSE: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” — Philippians 4:13
Recipient of the Tidewater Landscape
Management Male Athletic Scholarship –
Savannah State University Scholarship
ANDREW OKORODUDU
FROM: Lagos, Nigeria
HIGH SCHOOL: Urban Christian Academy
FAVORITE QUOTE: “Everything is possible if you put your mind to it.”
AWARD: Abbie DeLoach Memorial Scholarship – University of Georgia
MISSION: To provide scholarship support for an undergraduate student/s in the college who is in good academic standing. First preference shall be given to residents of Bryan, Bulloch, Chatham, Effingham and Liberty counties in Georgia. Second preference shall be given to students majoring in health and physical education, athletic training, exercise and sport science, or sport management within the Department of Kinesiology. Recipients will be selected by a committee appointed by the Dean of the College.
Recipient of the Abbie DeLoach Memorial Scholarship – University of Georgia
PARKER POUNDS
FROM: Charlotte, N.C.
MAJOR: Athletic training with a minor in sport management
ACADEMICS: A third-year student at UGA, Parker has been on the Dean’s List or President’s List every semester. She is extremely passionate about sports medicine and has been given the opportunity to work with the UGA women’s basketball team and football team. She plans to graduate in May 2020.
GIVING BACK: Parker is in involved in the UGA Student Pantry and Thomas Lay After School Mentoring Program.
ORGANIZATIONS: Kappa Kappa Gamma
Recipient of the Abbie DeLoach Memorial Scholarship – University of Georgia
BRIAN MATTHEW TROMP
FROM: Sugar Hill, Georgia
MAJOR: Exercise and sport science
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Female Student–Savannah Christian Preparatory School Scholarship
BEVERLY SPINKS
FROM: Savannah, Georgia
HIGH SCHOOL: Savannah Christian
Preparatory School
ON ATTENDING SCPS: Being able to
attend SCPS is a privilege. In my time here, I have grown as a person and as a Christian. SCPS stresses social skills, the importance of treating others as you would yourself, and it provides students with a loving and faith-filled environment. SCPS is the type of place where you can see that the love for the Lord is present.
COLLEGE GOALS: I want to study engineering so that I can have a career where I can help the community and those around me.
INTERESTS AND HOBBIES: I enjoy playing volleyball and basketball and spending time with my friends and family. I help with the children’s church on Sundays to help the children learn about and grow closer to God.
FAVORITE VERSE: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11
Recipient of the Tidewater Landscape
Management Male Student–Savannah Christian Preparatory School Scholarship
WILL
HANCOCK
FROM: Savannah, Georgia
HIGH SCHOOL: Savannah Christian
Preparatory School
ON ATTENDING SCPS: I love that SCPS is a school that cares about my academic advancement, allowing me to excel at my own fast pace, as well as caring for my spiritual development. SCPS has created an environment where I can grow in every aspect of my life.
COLLEGE GOALS: I want to pursue an undergraduate degree in biomedical engineering or biology and continue to medical school for a career in pediatrics.
INTERESTS AND HOBBIES: I’m a passionate and active member of the Boy Scouts of America. I am an Eagle Scout and Lodge Chief of the I-Tsu-La Lodge, Order of the Arrow. I also participate in Native-American dancing and singing and run cross-country and track.
FAVORITE QUOTE: “If I have seen further, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants.” – Isaac Newton
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Nursing/Kappa Delta Scholarship–Georgia Southern University Scholarship
EMMALINE ADAMS
FROM: Athens, Georgia
HIGH SCHOOL: Oconee County High School.
ON BECOMING A NURSE: I knew I wanted to be a nurse in high school. I liked how limitless the options were, and I wanted to make a difference in people’s lives. My favorite part about nursing is all the different people I get to meet. The patients I have taken care of have greatly impacted my life.
INTERESTS AND HOBBIES: I studied Spanish before starting the nursing program, and I finished my Spanish minor in Argentina. I love traveling!
FAVORITE VERSE: “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” — Jeremiah 17:7-8
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Nursing/Kappa Delta Scholarship–Georgia Southern University Scholarship
MORGAN BOWEN
FROM: Statesboro, Georgia
HIGH SCHOOL: Statesboro High School
ON BECOMING A NURSE: I became interested in nursing when my little brother, Wyatt, was born almost 2 months premature. I watched the nurses help him to build up his strength to come home with us — that’s when I knew I wanted to be a nurse.
ON GSU NURSING: I love the people I’ve met through the nursing program. I have found “my people” and know they always have my back. We are always there to pick each other up when someone is down.
INTERESTS AND HOBBIES: I am a Universal fanatic — I have six brothers; I’m the only girl.
FAVORITE QUOTE: “If you want a rainbow, you have to put up with the rain.” – Dolly Parton
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Nursing/Kappa Delta Scholarship–Georgia Southern University Scholarship
CASEY PEOPLES DILBERT
FROM: Savannah, Georgia
HIGH SCHOOL: Windsor Forest High School
ON NURSING: I knew I wanted to be a nurse when I had my son four years ago. It was just me and my husband in Oklahoma by ourselves, and my nurse, Cam, was amazing. Honestly, I don’t think I could have done it without her. I love nursing because I’m able to make an impact in someone’s life. I know I will be there during bad times, but I will also get to experience some of the wonderful times that people will go through.
INTERESTS AND HOBBIES: Running and baking
FAVORITE VERSE: “Let all that you do be done in love.” — 1 Corinthians 16:14, and “If you have to ask, you’ll never know. If you know, you need only ask.” — J. K. Rowling
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Nursing/Kappa Delta Scholarship–Georgia Southern University Scholarship
MORIAH HARRIS
FROM: I was born in Taiwan and moved back to the States when I was 2. I have lived in Georgia, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and I currently live in Savannah.
HIGH SCHOOL: Freshman year at Loomis Chaffee School, a boarding school in Connecticut; graduated from Calvary Day School
ON NURSING: I love the relationship I develop with patients and all the opportunities to serve them. I love that I can bring a smile to a rough hospital stay and that God has given me a gift I can take anywhere in the world and use for the rest of my life.
INTERESTS AND HOBBIES: Skiing, surfing, ice skating, rollerblading, reading, running, traveling, going to the beach, hiking, spending time with my family, boating and working out
FAVORITE VERSE: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” — 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Recipient of the 2018 Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Nursing/Kappa Delta Scholarship – Georgia Southern University Scholarship
TAYLOR WALLACE
FROM: Buford, Georgia
HIGH SCHOOL: Buford High School
ON NURSING: My mom was born with hydrocephalus, which led to numerous hospital visits throughout my childhood. When I was 8, I spent countless days at the hospital with her and was able to see the impact the nurses had on her and our family during that hard time. I fell in love with the passion the nurses had for helping others and knew at that time that nursing was a dream I wanted to pursue. As much as I love the pathological and pharmacological side of aiming to cure patients, I thoroughly enjoy the emotional aspect of it far more. Being able to talk with patients and their families and comfort them in their hard times is priceless to me.
INTERESTS AND HOBBIES: Working out, being active outdoors and spending time with my family and friends
FAVORITE VERSE: “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. And the greatest of these is love.” — 1 Corinthians 13:13
Recipient of the 2019 Abbie DeLoach Memorial Scholarship — Connection Church Scholarship
KONNER SMITH
FROM: Gray, Georgia
HIGH SCHOOL: Jones County High School
COLLEGE: English and religious studies double-major at Georgia Southern University. I plan to apply to Duke Divinity School, where I hope to get my doctorate in theology.
GOALS: I want to be a professor and do writing and research. My greatest desire is to bring the Gospel to the unreached and empower people to cultivate their own gifts that God has given them by providing scripture, education and opportunity.
INTERESTS AND HOBBIES: I run a ministry at a local low-income neighborhood called Butler Homes. We have Tuesday and Thursday tutoring, mentorship times, vacation bible school and monthly events.
INFLUENCES: I have been blessed by a lot of incredible people in my life, but my Grandma has influenced me the most. She joyfully supported me in everything I did. She always encouraged me in my faith, and she consistently showed me a loyal love that never gives up on anyone. I hope to love everyone I come across as she has loved me.
CLASS OF 2019
ABBIE LORENE DELOACH SERVICE AWARD
SAVANNAH-CHATHAM COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
THE SAVANNAH-CHATHAM COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM HAD THREE PROGRAMS
RECEIVE THE INAUGURAL ABBIE LORENE
DELOACH SERVICE AWARD.
Each of the three programs mirror characteristics of Abbie: academic, nurse and athlete. Abbie is quoted saying she: “Yearned to be a role model at church, home, [among her] friends and my family.”
We are confident these student have and are becoming local role models.
RECIPIENTS:
- Groves High School Chapter of the National Beta Club
- Alfred Ely Beach Medical and Allied Health Program
- Rice Creek K-8 Baseball Team
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach Service Award
GROVES HIGH SCHOOL CHAPTER OF THE
NATIONAL BETA CLUB
ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION: Thirty-four Groves High School students give their time and effort to improve their school and community. The students determine the activities and service projects to improve the school and community. They strive to uphold and demonstrate the four pillars of the National Beta Society: achievement, leadership, character and service. All members have a minimum grade average of 85 percent or higher to be invited.
MOTTO: “Let Us Lead by
Serving Others”
MISSION: To promote the ideals of academic achievement, character, leadership and service among elementary and secondary students. To reward meritorious achievement and to encourage and assist students in continuing their education after high school.
ACCOLADES:
- Awarded National School of Merit for the second year in a row by the National Beta Club
- Recipient of the Jefferson Award by Fox News (March 2018)
- Mayor of Garden City issued a Proclamation adopting March 5-9, 2018, as GHS Beta Week.
- Honorees at the District’s Achievement Showcase
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach Service Award
ALFRED ELY BEACH MEDICAL AND ALLIED HEALTH PROGRAM
MOTTO: “Your Future in
Medicine Begins Here”
MISSION: To develop outstanding future medical personnel who are lifelong learners, who will provide the highest quality compassionate care and who will serve the needs of their community to improve the health and well-being of all.
ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION: The Medical and Allied Health Choice Program is a school within a school at Alfred Ely Beach High School, offering a comprehensive healthcare preparation program through rigorous coursework, hands-on experience and networking opportunities in the healthcare field. Students participate in a medical job shadowing with organizations such as the Black Nurses Association of Savannah, Memorial Medical Explorer Post and Memorial Volunteen Programs. In addition, rising seniors have the opportunity to participate in a Student Summer Enrichment Program sponsored by Augusta University — Medical College of Georgia in partnership with Savannah State University. An emphasis on medical-related issues occurs in each academic and elective course through competitive, creative and state of the art technology based classrooms. Health science pathways are offered in sports medicine and allied health.
Students in the medical program participate in competitions through the Health Occupations Students of America Club. BHS Medical students are required to complete a minimum of 60 hours of community service above the 20 hours that are required to graduate from high school.
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach Service Award
RICE CREEK K-8
BASEBALL TEAM
ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION: Rice Creek School is a K-8 school with an eclectic mix of students that pull from the Effingham County line into Port Wentworth and Garden City.
SOMETHING IN COMMON: With such a diverse student population, principal Dr. John Sutlive found that the one thing that pulled all the students together was athletics. It may not be the same sport, or the same field, but he found overall camaraderie, leadership skills and trust could all be built in the various athletic foundations.
LEADERSHIP: Athletics at the school have been difficult to organize at times. In addition to spearheading a mentoring program for the school’s young men, 4th-/5th-grade teacher Tony Foy took over responsibility of many of the athletic programs to ensure student access. Foy has even driven students to Pooler so they could play, as transportation can be an issue for many families. Under his tutelage and with the support and help of Principal Sutlive, the disciplinary issues at the school have decreased by a third.
NURSES FOR THE NATION
IN 2019, THE ABBIE LORENE
DELOACH FOUNDATION
EXPANDED INTO ECUADOR.
Six nursing students from across
Georgia were selected to receive
scholarships to travel to Ecuador with Nurses for the Nations. Invitations to
apply were sent to 23 LPN programs
and 58 RN programs in Georgia.
Nurses for the Nations coordinates trips abroad each year to “promote healing and invites anyone who has a heart to serve and make a difference in the world.” The services are grounded in life-giving principles of love, peace, goodness, patience, kindness, compassion, faith in God and the inherent dignity and worth of every human being.
Nurses for the Nations recipients as well as new academic scholars from the University of Georgia have expanded the foundation’s impact to seven universities across the state. The foundation welcomes new students from Valdosta State, Reinhardt, Truett McConnell and Dalton State, joining Savannah State University and Georgia Southern University, Abbie’s alma mater.
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Service Award — Nurses for the Nations
MARIA KAYONDO
FROM: Uganda, Africa
SCHOOL: Truett McConnell University in Cleveland, Georgia
DEGREE: Bachelor of science in nursing. Will be graduating in May 2019 with a cumulative GPA of 3.0.
EXCERPT FROM SCHOLARSHIP
APPLICATION: Growing up in Uganda, Africa, I have seen the desperate need for medical care first-hand, and this has been my drive throughout my nursing school career — to be able to meet the physical and health needs of individuals across the nation, while sharing the love of Jesus with them. A wise woman once told me “You do not just heal wounds, you heal hearts,” and that statement has shaped me into who I am as a student nurse today.
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Service Award — Nurses for the Nations
REED
ELY
FROM: Macon, Georgia
SCHOOL: Georgia Southern University
DEGREE: Bachelor of science in nursing and kinesiology
EXCERPT FROM SCHOLARSHIP
APPLICATION: In the spring of 2017, I went on my first mission trip with campus ministry to Popoyo, Nicaragua. My view of this world was shattered right in front of me as I saw for the first time broken lives and individuals struggling to survive from day to day. Everyday, these people fought to live in a country filled with infection and lacking clean drinking water. Our group of 110 students showed love to the Nicaraguan people on this trip. The stats aren’t the reason we went, but they help us understand the impact: 1,100 people heard the Gospel, 429 homes now have clean drinking water and 119 Nicaraguans prayed to receive Christ including four translators! After these tremendous experiences in Popoyo, a new passion arose in me to be a force for good in similar areas of the world. I knew how I wanted to best utilize my nursing degree upon graduation.
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Nursing/Kappa Delta Scholarship–Georgia Southern University Scholarship
DUSTIN PICKREN
FROM: Buena Vista, Georgia
SCHOOL: Valdosta State University
DEGREE: Nursing
EXCERPT FROM SCHOLARSHIP
APPLICATION: When walking through discipleship and gaining wisdom from older believers in my life, it became more and more evident about what an obedient life leveraged for the Gospel can do. I have been extremely blessed to be in a place where people are genuinely striving to live their lives in that manner and watch as they use the gifts that they’ve been given. That mindset is one that I want to be able to honestly say I am partaking in. It seemed to fit perfectly with the decision to go to nursing school being set into place. I have every intention of letting that be my driving force behind the pursuit of this major.
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Nursing/Kappa Delta Scholarship–Georgia Southern University Scholarship
LOVE TURNER
FROM: Ludowici, Georgia
SCHOOL: Georgia Southern University
DEGREE: Nursing
EXCERPT FROM SCHOLARSHIP
APPLICATION: God has been my centerpiece, the One who gives me stability and guides my steps. I have a passion for Jesus, and I want to live my life in complete obedience and love for Him. … Jesus has been showing me the weight of this career and the way in which we can choose to offer up our entire beings to serve others. I would love to pray for and serve the people of Ecuador while honoring the life of Abbie DeLoach.
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Nursing/Kappa Delta Scholarship–Georgia Southern University Scholarship
WREN FOWLER
FROM: Marshfield, Wisconsin
SCHOOL: Dalton State University
DEGREE: Nursing
EXCERPT FROM SCHOLARSHIP
APPLICATION: All people share a common bond. We are all loved by God, and God wants us to love each other. This is what I would hope to bring to the Nurses for the Nations project. Nurses for the Nations would allow me to fulfill my love of God and all nations. The following verse from Matthew Chapter 25 is what I want to accomplish: “For I was hungry, and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me. … And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’”
Recipient of the Abbie Lorene DeLoach
Memorial Nursing/Kappa Delta Scholarship–Georgia Southern University Scholarship
GEORGE SEDDON
FROM: Calhoun, Georgia
SCHOOL: Reinhardt University
DEGREE: Nursing
EXCERPT FROM SCHOLARSHIP
APPLICATION: In the summer of 2017, I participated in a mission trip to Guatemala City, Guatemala, through an Atlanta-based organization called Identify the Mission. The purpose of this mission trip was to host a vacation Bible school for groups of children within Guatemala City and the surrounding countryside. While in Guatemala, we played games with the children, told Bible stories, distributed food and helped lead Bible-themed arts and crafts projects among other activities. Overall, the main purpose of this trip was to extend love and support to these children and to let them know that both we and God cared about them … My heart’s desire is for the God I was told about when I was growing up to be real [and] to continue helping people and to make their lives easier.
CLASS OF 2019
ABBIE LORENE DELOACH WORLDWIDE MISSION
COMPASSION CHRISTIAN CHURCH—THE INDIA PROJECT
LAST YEAR, THE FOUNDATION PARTNERED WITH THE VIKAS MISSION TO COMBAT POVERTY THROUGH EDUCATION AND OPPORTUNITY
FOR WOMEN IN INDIA.
Earlier this year, Abbie’s Home was dedicated. This training center, situated on a small parcel right in front of a brothel community and slum, is aimed at restoring dignity and self-respect to rehabilitated women from vulnerable situations.
“Over the past two years, I’ve been so blessed to build a relationship with Jimmy and the Abbie DeLoach Foundation,” said Greg Matney, co-director of the Vikas Mission. “The generosity of the foundation has enabled us to directly impact the lives of some of the most marginalized and abused women and children on the planet. Abbie’s Home has became a beacon of hope for many that have been kept in darkness.”
Partnering with an organization with big goals mirrors Abbie’s approach to life. Aatma Vikas is aiming to help 500 women and children out of poverty, exploitation and abuse by 2020 and train 3,000 community changemakers in a vocational program by 2020.