Shining the spotlight on 41 outstanding area high school students and offering a total of $2,400 in scholarships to eight graduating seniors were part of the Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville’s Youth Services Committee’s actions during the 2019-2020 club year. Dan Smith is the Westfield-Mayville Rotary Club Youth Services Chair.

Smith stated, “The Westfield-Mayville Rotary Club continues its tradition of honoring local teens for their many achievements and supporting them through various programs and scholarships. These outstanding young adults make positive contributions to their schools and communities. As they become tomorrow’s leaders, the future will be brighter because of their positive efforts.”

Each month, from September to June, the Westfield-Mayville Rotary Club works with school administrators and counselors from the four high schools of the Brocton, Chautauqua Lake, Sherman and Westfield Academy Central School Districts to designate outstanding high school students to be named as a “Scholars of the Month.”

A total of 41 students were given this recognition. For the first half of the school year, the honorees and their parents were invited to attend a dinner and special recognition program. Due to COVID-19, the program was unfortunately suspended for the second half of the school year. All of the students received a framed certificate and a pen from the Westfield-Mayville Rotary Club.

The 2019-2020 Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville “Scholars of the Month” and their respective high schools were as follow: Brocton Central School District: Megan Gloss, Greg Lapp, Seth McFadden, Jenelle Grigelevich, Blaise Miller II, Jadniel Varela, Laura Johnston, Mary Conklin, Isaac Weaver and Courtney Tobias; Chautauqua Lake Central School: Naomi Fisher, Phillip Maas, Karli Gifford, McKenna Dorman, Peyton D’Anthony, Liam Thompson, Logan Walczak, Sophia Woodis, Alanna Burlee and Madison Kramer; Sherman Central School District: Margaret Myers, Carrie Sands, Cheyanne Tapp, Rachel Applebee, Paige Phelps, Kate Wagner, Madeline Luden, Erin Denning, Parker Gratto and Bryce Fisher; Westfield Academy and Central School District: Isaac Caballero, Hayden Backus, Chloe Smith, Abigail Warner, Eliora Brown, McKayla Wolfe, Allyson Schaaf, Bradley Belmondo, Dylan Scriven, Katie Bodenmiller and Dhananjay Patel.

Also, the Westfield-Mayville Rotary Club provided a total of $2,400 in scholarships, $600 for each of the four high schools. School officials selected award recipients who would be continuing with post-secondary education, and who exemplified leadership, honesty and Rotary’s motto of ‘Service Above Self.’ Two outstanding Class of 2020 members from each of the four schools were each honored with a $300 award. Recipients of the 2020 Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville Scholarships and their respective high schools were as follow: Brocton CSD: Greg Lapp and Laura Johnston; Chautauqua Lake CSD: Peyton D’Anthony and Naomi Fisher; Sherman CSD: Cheyanne Tapp and Carrie Sands; and Westfield Academy and CSD: Bradley Belmondo and Katie Bodenmiller.

The Westfield-Mayville Rotary Club also supports Interact Clubs in the Brocton CSD and Chautauqua Lake CSD. Interact Clubs are the high school service organizations which are affiliated with Rotary International. This Rotary club bids a fond farewell to those Interactors who graduated this year.

This year the Rotary District 7090 SLAPSHOT (Student Leadership Award Program for Students High On Training), a weekend leadership experience for high school students held in Ancaster, Ontario, was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Also canceled was the RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards), a Rotary District 7090 week-long personal development seminar for adults, ages 19 to 27, held at SUNY Fredonia.

The Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville proudly congratulates all of its Scholars of the Month, scholarship recipients and graduating Interactors, and it wishes great success in the future for these outstanding young adults.