“I believe the children are our future. Teach them well and let them lead the way.” Those are the words that begin the hit song Greatest Love of All. Those words also sum up nicely the passion SCCA®’s North Carolina Region (NCR) has for the Club, and steps being taken to ensure a bright future.
For a second consecutive year, NCR has put together an effort – supported by dollars – that executes its innovative Scholarship Program. In 2022, three teens received scholarship money, as well as membership into the SCCA. For 2023, five award winners have been announced.
Scholarship winners this year are: Sheaden Herbert, looking to attend North Carolina State University; Nathan Simmons, who is headed for Cape Fear Community College; Nathan Williams, seeking to continue his education at University of North Carolina at Pembroke; Owen McAllister, who will attend University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; and Christopher Cade Watts, who wants to attend Virginia Tech after high school.
A panel of NCR members selected the winners, who come from schools within the 65 counties in North Carolina and eight counties in southern Virginia that fall within NCR’s realm. Each student demonstrated plans for attending an accredited school after high school graduation, and each received a $1,000 certificate to be paid directly to the accredited school they’ll attend. And again, they’re all now SCCA members.
With NCR’s scholarships awarded for 2023, the Region now looks toward the next school year. Students interested in applying for scholarships should start the process by completing the 2024 NCR Scholarship Application Form.
Scholarship Development
It was 2019 when John Lindquist, a Club member for two decades, presented NCR’s Board of Directors with the pioneering concept of a Scholarship Program. His thought was to place sports car racing directly in front of teens, rather than waiting for the next generation to randomly come upon road racing on TV or the web. To achieve this, he devised a plan where a race car is trailered to a school so students can see, feel, and hear the real thing firsthand.
But Lindquist also knew calling schools at random and saying, “I want to show the kids my neat race car,” probably wasn’t going to be well received. Instead, his approach was to style a message that focused on the importance of staying in school, and benefits to continuing education beyond high school. Pair that with a scholarship distributing some backing for those with plans to further their education, and now you have a program that generates an opportunity to talk about SCCA while offering something of value to students in local communities.
COVID made it impossible in 2020 and 2021 to get in front of students at schools. But NCR used those two years to raise money for the scholarship fund. There have been raffles offering items graciously donated by a handful of companies, and plenty of individuals chipped in with generous donations. Thanks to all, NCR’s Scholarship Program is now funded for the next decade, with plans to award at least two $1,000 scholarships each year.
Building a Program for Your Region
Lindquist has some advice for other SCCA Regions interested in building a similar program. The entire process can be complicated as far as executing correctly, legally, and aboveboard. Learning how to effectively communicate with school administrators, or pulling off an exciting presentation to students, also takes work. However, Lindquist is happy to share what he has learned. Just drop him a note at Johndeelindquist@hotmail.com, and he’ll get back to you with some pointers.
