Soroptimist International of Idyllwild awarded nearly $9,000 in scholarships and grants to local women and girls in the last 12 months.
Club members and awardees celebrated their success at a dinner hosted by Ferro on Thursday, April 25.
The club received four applications for the annual Live Your Dream Award and all four were awarded scholarships. LYDA recipients must be women who are the heads of households and who are enrolled in college.
Local LYDA scholarship recipients were Delaney Pincumbe, Kasaan Hammon, Camille Spencer and Alison Johnson. Hammon and Spencer attended the awards dinner where they got up and thanked the club for the support.
Spencer is completing her associate’s degree with the goal of teaching cosmetology, a profession she’s been working in for decades.
Hammon is working toward a bachelor’s degree to teach English at Idyllwild Arts, where she currently teaches songwriting.
The club gave a Soroptimist International of Idyllwild scholarship to Denise Jones, who is studying nursing at Mt. San Jacinto Community College.
Mary Austin Grants were also given to three local women. The Mary Austin Scholarships and Grants program was created to honor the late Mary Austin, who was a Soroptimist member. Her husband, Doug Austin, who set up the fund in perpetuity, attended the awards dinner to thank the club for their work. Additional funds for Mary Austin Grant recipients were made available this year thanks to a donation from Linda and Manny Rider.
In addition to scholarships and grants, Soroptimist gave a monetary award to Spirit Mountain Retreat for their quarterly Veteran Women’s PTSD Retreat.
For more information about Soroptimist International of Idyllwild, visit siidyllwild.org.
