The Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Foundation awarded two $5,000 scholarships to local high school graduates who are pursuing healthcare degrees.
Alexandra (Ally) Walsh of Mattoon, and Nathan Klie of Tuscola, are the recipients of the Lloyd and Selma Sweeney Scholarship.
Walsh recently graduated from Mattoon High School and is enrolled in the biology program at the University of Missouri. At MHS, she took biology, zoology and health occupations classes, and through the health occupations class, she shadowed at Sarah Bush Lincoln, eventually taking the certified nursing assistant (CNA) test. She plans to pursue a career as a pathologist.
Klie recently graduated from Tuscola Community High School and is enrolled in the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville nursing program. Klie has known for years that he wanted to be a nurse because his mother is a nurse. During his senior year, he participated in the Certified Nursing Assistant program at Parkland College to get experience before he begins college.
Selma Sweeney of Humboldt created the scholarship by establishing an endowment fund through the SBL Health Foundation prior to her death in June 2016. It was her wish to provide two graduating seniors from Coles or Douglas counties with scholarships of up to $5,000 each. “The scholarship honors the Sweeney’s rich history with Sarah Bush Lincoln, which spanned more than 40 years as a longtime board member, donor and WomenConnected member and devoted volunteer, and the rural area where she and her husband lived,” Amy Card, Director, SBL Health Foundation, said. “A committee of our Foundation Board of Directors selected the two recipients out of many outstanding applicants.”
For more information about the scholarships, contact Card in the SBL Health Foundation at 217-258-2511.