The Medical, Educational and Development (MED) Foundation of Mercer Health recently awarded a total of $16,500 to local high school students furthering their education in the medical field after graduation. Scholarships were awarded to students from each of the six high schools in Mercer County and were selected as recipients based on their academic performance, extracurricular activities, volunteerism and plans for higher education.

“This year our scholarship committee, made up of members of the MED Foundation board, interviewed scholarship candidates via conference call,” Deb Hemmelgarn, MED Foundation Director, said. “We are so pleased that we were able to complete the process virtually to be able to award scholarships to these deserving individuals.”

For the health and safety of the recipients, their families and the MED Foundation board, this year’s honorees received their scholarships at a “drive through ceremony” on July 23.

MED Foundation scholarship recipients for 2020 include:

Celina

• Kennedy Newell,  Translational Health/Pre-Med, Ohio University or The Ohio State University
• Grace Gabes, Nutrition and Dietetics, Bowling Green State University
• Graeme Steward, Nursing, Ohio University or Wright State University

Coldwater

• Rachel E. Miller, Nursing, Ball State University
• Clair Stammen, Pediatric Nursing (plans to become a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner), Wright State University Lake Campus
• Courtney Bye, Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Kettering College

Ft. Recovery

• Olivia Homan, Nursing, The Ohio State University or University of Cincinnati

Marion Local

• Jacob Knapke, Speech Language Pathology, Bowling Green State University
• Maria Heckman, Nursing (with plans to become a Nurse Midwife), The Ohio State University

Parkway

• Ashlyn White, Biology (with plans to become a dentist), The Ohio State University
• Macy Henkle, Biology Pre-Med (with plans to become a Physician’s Assistant), Lake Erie College
• Sophia Miller, Exercise Science (with plans to become a Doctor of Physical Therapy), The Ohio State University

St. Henry

• Brooke Speck, Nursing, The University of Toledo
• Calli Hemmelgarn, Biology (with plans to become an OB/GYN), Bowling Green State University
• Alyssa Buschur, Nursing (with plans to become a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist), Bowling Green State University

The MED Foundation Scholarship Program is funded by the annual Esmonde/Homan Golf Outing and Golf Ball Drop. Due to the success of the golf outing in recent years, the MED Foundation has been able to provide additional scholarships to even more local students. Since 1992, 270 scholarships have been awarded totaling $292,450. This year’s golf outing, originally scheduled for Friday, June 12, will now take place on September 25 at the Mercer County Elks.

For more information about the MED Foundation of Mercer Health, contact Deb Hemmelgarn at 419-678-5679 or dhemmelgarn@mercer-health.com.