Scholarship and Teacher Award Recipients
CF Release - June 24, 2010

The Community Foundation of the Quincy Area has awarded six student scholarships and one teacher recognition award. The awards are funded from permanently endowed funds held with the Community Foundation. The funds provide the annual scholarships at an accredited post-secondary institution for a graduate of each respective high school. One fund also provides a teacher award. A portion of the earnings is reinvested in the funds for continued growth to provide future scholarships and awards.  
 
 
 
?These scholarship funds provide permanent recognition for those who loved their community while providing the recipients with opportunities to pursue higher education,? said Community Foundation Executive Director Jill Arnold Blickhan.  
 
 
 
Recipients include:  
 
-Jeremiah Jording, a graduate of Quincy Senior High School, is awarded the Becky Swisher Crowe Memorial Scholarship.  
-Ami Davis, a graduate of Pleasant Hill High School, is awarded the Virginia Kaye Leinweber Leeds Scholarship.  
-Austin Menz, a graduate of Western High School, is awarded the Dorothy J. Motley Memorial Scholarship.  
-Jeff Duffy, a graduate of Quincy Senior High School, is awarded the Quincy High School Class of 1957 Scholarship.  
-Katie Dames, a graduate of Palmyra High School, is awarded the Teresa Lynn Thompson Memorial Scholarship.  
-Brett Davis, a graduate of Canton R-V High School, and Mrs. Bridgett Bass, science teacher at Canton R-V High school are awarded the Tom and Judy Zenge Scholarship and Teacher Award.  
 
Becky Swisher Crowe Memorial Scholarship Fund-Quincy (IL) Senior High School  
 
Jeremiah Jording is a 2010 graduate of Quincy Senior High School. He is the son of Lonn and Teresa Jording of Quincy. He volunteers at the St. James Lutheran Church Afterschool Program and was active in the Art Club at Quincy Senior High School. Jeremiah plans to pursue a degree in secondary education at Concordia University to become a teacher.  
 
Becky Swisher Crowe taught at Quincy Junior High School and Quincy Senior High School beginning in 1970. She was killed March 9, 1979 in an automobile accident on her way to work. Her colleagues immediately set up a scholarship in her name. ?Becky loved kids and teaching,? said her best friend Karen Bottorff. ?Whenever she was around, it was a happier place.? In 2006, the scholarship was transferred to the Community Foundation to ensure Becky?s name and legacy endured. The Becky Swisher Crowe Memorial Scholarship Fund provides a scholarship at an accredited two-year or four-year institution for a Quincy High School senior intending to pursue a degree in education.  
 
Virginia Kaye Leinweber Leeds Scholarship Fund ? Pleasant Hill (IL) High School  
 
Ami Davis is a 2010 graduate of Pleasant Hill (IL) High School, and the daughter of Markus and Marilyn Davis of Rockport, IL. While at Pleasant Hill High School she was active in volleyball, FFA, Student Council, choir and FACS (home economics club). Ami will be attending Western Illinois University in the fall to major in pre-nursing.  
 
The family of Virginia ?Ginger? Leeds established the fund as a tribute to the health care professionals who took care of Ginger when hospitalized. Although Ginger was confined to a wheelchair at age 33, she kept her enthusiasm for life and sense of humor. She returned to college at age 43 where she completed her bachelors degree and two masters degrees. After finishing school, Ginger returned home to Pleasant Hill. The Virginia Kaye Leinweber Leeds Scholarship Fund provides a scholarship to a Pleasant Hill High School graduate interested in pursing the field of nursing. ?Mom loved young people and wanted to see everyone have the opportunity to go to college,? says her daughter, Leah Erke. ?I chose the field of nursing as a way to honor all of the nurses who cared for her.?  
 
Dorothy J. Motley Memorial Scholarship Fund ? Western (IL) High School  
 
Austin Menz is a 2010 graduate of Western High School in Barry, Illinois. While attending Western, he participated in National Honor Society and was captain of the basketball team. He is the son of Peggy Menz of Kinderhook, IL. In the fall Austin plans to attend Quincy University and major in criminal justice.  
 
The Dorothy J. Motley Memorial Scholarship Fund was established as part of Mrs. Motley?s will to assist a Barry High School student attending college. ?Mrs. Motley was very quaint and lived quietly...loved to collect dolls of all kinds,? said Debbie Harshman, owner of The Paper in Barry. ?She always had something good to say to me and made (people) feel so special. That quality is priceless...making others feel special.? The scholarship for a graduate of the former Barry, now Western, High School helps with expenses for attending an accredited post-secondary institution.  
 
Quincy High School Class of 1957 Scholarship Fund-Quincy (IL) Senior High School  
 
Jeff Duffy, a 2010 graduate of Quincy (IL) Senior High School, is the son of Mike and Kathy Duffy. His school activities included football, track, wrestling, band and choir. He is also active in many community, church and volunteer organizations. Jeff plans to attend Truman State University in the fall.  
 
The scholarship was initiated with a gift from Dr. John E. Sallstrom to commemorate the 50th Reunion of the QHS Class of 1957. ?The scholarship fund should help the recipients continue their chosen career paths and motivate them to strive for excellence in their lives,? says Dr. Sallstrom. ?If it encourages other individuals and classes to do something similar in the future, the whole community will be enriched.? The Quincy High School Class of 1957 Scholarship Fund will provide one or more scholarships to a Quincy High School graduate who will be attending an accredited, four-year post-secondary institution for tuition, room and board, fees and/or books, and related expenses.  
 
Teresa Lynn Thompson Memorial Scholarship Fund ? Palmyra (MO) High School  
 
Katie Dames is a 2010 graduate of Palmyra R-I High School. She is the daughter of Howard and Karen Dames. While a student at Palmyra, Katie was involved in tennis, band, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Relay for Life, and 4-H. She will be attending Truman State University to pursue a degree in exercise science/pre-physical therapy.  
 
The Teresa Lynn Thompson Memorial Scholarship Fund was established with memorials and donations made following Teresa?s death in May 2004. The scholarship assists a Palmyra High School student attend a post-secondary school. Teresa?s roots were in Palmyra. She has many family and friends there. She spent her life?s work in radio. Her ability to work and deal with people earned her great respect, according to her employer and friend, Bud Janes former owner of Bick Broadcasting.  
 
Tom and Judy Zenge Fund - Canton (MO) R-V High School  
 
Brett Davis is the son of Brad and Anne Davis, and a 2010 graduate of Canton R-V High School. While there, he was involved in Key Club, FBLA, National Honor Society, band, basketball, soccer, baseball and golf. He also served as class president for two years. He plans to attend University of Missouri-Columbia and major in chemical engineering.  
 
Bridgette Bass is a high school science teacher at Canton R-V High School. With the award she plans to strengthen and expand the science curriculum with the purchase of lab-aid kits that will benefit current and future students.  
 
The Zenges established their fund in 2006 with the Community Foundation of the Quincy Area to provide annual scholarship and teacher recognition awards at Canton R-V High School. The scholarship provided by the Tom and Judy Zenge Fund aims to encourage the best and brightest young men and women to enter technical careers, whether engineering, research, teaching, manufacturing or other related fields. The teacher award recognizes a teacher that continues to make learning a lifelong passion.  
 
The Scholarship Funds are held with the Community Foundation, a nonprofit resource that connects people who care with causes that matter in the tri-states. Serving 13 area counties, it serves as a savings account, building permanent funds to address significant needs and opportunities now and in the future.  
 
The Community Foundation helps build permanent funds to address significant needs and opportunities now and in the future in 13 tri-state counties. Since 1999, the Community Foundation has awarded more than 730 grants totaling more than $1.2 million through its various funds providing local support for various programs and projects in the tri-states.  
 
For more information, call 217-222-1237, email qacf@adams.net, go to www.mycommunityfoundation.org or find us on facebook at www.facebook.com/mycommunityfoundation.