Nebzydoski-White Memorial scholarships awarded

HONESDALE, PA — Thirteen 2021 graduates have been awarded scholarships from the Nebzydoski-White Memorial scholarship program.

Winners are announced each year at the junior livestock auction, during the Wayne County Fair; this year, the auction takes place on Saturday, August 14 at 10 a.m.

The 13 recipients from 2020 will also be publicly announced, since the auction and presentation were canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Scholarship recipients must be graduating from high school, have participated in a market animal program for three out of five years and either be accepted to an institution of higher learning or be embarking on an agricultural career.

The program is named in honor of Dr. David Nebzydoski, a 4-H supporter, and James D. White, a livestock committee member. By the end of this year, the committee will have awarded 374 scholarships, amounting to a total of $490,633.

The 2021 scholarship winners are: Shawn Bronson, Emma Diliberti, Calvin Hedgelon, Brady Hentschel, Emily Johannes, Wade Maines, Matthew McNichols, Isabelle Richner, Abigail Robson, Joseph Seeley, Adam Sheard, Celia Sheard, and Matthew Stone.

The 2020 scholarship recipients are: Nicholas Andrews, Dalen Banicki, John Bateman, Kyle Bonham, Kassandra Diehl, Kathleen Diehl, Dustin Edsall, Tyler Gries, Lydia Grossman, Kara Kelly, Grace Mead, Rachel Olver and Macey Rutledge. 

Six scholarships give kids pre-K tuition in Pike County

MILFORD, PA — Because of a local community foundation, six children will be able to attend pre-K programs.

Five children at the Center for Developmental Disabilities received scholarships, including Lucia Shrag’s son Robert. Shrag, an employee at Milford’s Key Food Supermarket, has worked throughout the pandemic.

She said, “I’m very thankful for the scholarship granted to my son,” and added, “Greater Pike Foundation does so much for our community, helping hundreds of families in need.”

A sixth scholarship was awarded to a pre-K student for the fall term at Green Trees Early Learning Center.

The total value of the scholarships was over $9,000. Contributions to the Greater Pike Community Foundation came from The Dime Bank and Highmark Life Insurance Company through the Educational Improvement Tax Credit program of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development.

For more information about the Greater Pike Community Foundation, see their website at greaterpike.org.

$1.1 billion in grants for childcare in New York State

ALBANY, NY — The state has received over $1 billion in federal funds intended for childcare providers, to help stabilize the industry and enable more parents to return to the workplace full time. It comes from the American Rescue Plan Act, the Coronavirus Response and the Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act.

The New York State Office of Children and Family Services will manage the grant funding. Funding applications opened Wednesday, August 4.

Lieutenant governor and child care availability task force co-chair Kathy Hochul said, “We can’t have a full economic recovery without boosting affordable and quality child care services for New York families, particularly working women who have been disproportionately set back by the pandemic. This funding provides critical support for child care providers who have suffered during the pandemic. Child care workers have courageously showed up to allow frontline workers to go to work, and we need to have their back now more than ever.”

To be eligible, the programs must have been open and serving children in person as of March 11, 2021 and open and available to provide in-person services on the date they apply for the grant.

For more information, visit the Sullivan County Child Care Council online at https://scchildcare.com/ or call 877/292-1790