Coastal Electric Cooperative members are helping six local students pursue their dreams by way of $30,000 in scholarships.
Recent graduates Emma Beasley (Liberty County High School), Madeline Ike (First Preparatory Christian Academy), Austin Rowe (McIntosh County Academy), Samuel Montone (home-schooled), and Jolie Claudio and Ella Snider (Richmond Hill High School) each earned $5,000 Coastal Electric Cooperative Foundation scholarships for their first semester of college. Each scholarship is renewable for up to four years for a total of $20,000.
Primary funding for Coastal Electric Cooperative Foundation scholarships comes from Operation Round Up, a voluntary program in which Coastal Electric members allow their electric bills to be rounded up to the next whole dollar each month. That spare change is invested back into the community through the foundation to help meet food, health, safety, education and shelter needs of citizens in Bryan, Liberty, Long and McIntosh counties.
In addition, Richmond Hill High graduate Hayes Valentine competed with students across Georgia to win a $1,000 Walter Harrison Scholarship, named for the late Walter Harrison of Millen, who was known for his pioneering efforts in the electric cooperative industry and lifelong dedication to improving life in rural areas.
