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Community Corner

Mission Viejo Kiwanis Club Awards $3,000 in Scholarships

Learn about some great students from Mission Viejo heading to college, made possible in part by the local Kiwanis Club.

The Kiwanis Club of Mission Viejo has presented $3,000 to six graduating students from Mission Viejo high schools as part of the club’s annual Dwight and Carol Williamson Memorial Scholarship Awards program.

Here are the honorees:

  • Michelle TanMission Viejo High School. Michelle serves as president of the Key Club and is the student representative to the governing board of the Saddleback Valley Unified School District. She is co-president of the Safe Rides Club; a member of Invisible Children, a support group that raises money for children living in poverty in Africa; and a member of Golden Hearts where she helps in a senior home care center. Michelle will attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo to major in political science, hoping to become a member of the U.S. Congress.
  • Julia Santos Tesoro High School. Julia has been president of the Key Club for three years after moving from Florida. At Tesoro she has guided the Key Club growth from 22 members to 76. Among her many off-campus activities, she is a volunteer for CHOC, the South County Food Bank and the Orange County Children’s Book Festival. She plans to attend Irvine Valley College and major in psychology. Her career goal is to become a family therapist.
  • Rosaline ChenCapistrano Valley High School. Rosaline is president of her school’s Key Club. She has excelled academically, earning all A’s in her five Advanced Placement classes, the equivalent of completing one year of college. Outside of school she has taken ballet lessons since she was three years old. This fall she will enter UCLA with an ultimate goal of earning a law degree.
  • Kaitlyn Stephenson – Capistrano Valley High School. Kaitlyn was chosen as a scholarship recipient through the Capistrano-Laguna Beach Regional Occupation Program. The Mission Viejo native has been a three-year member of the Cougar volleyball team. Through ROP, she has pursued courses leading to an eventual career in animation. Kaitlyn will begin classes this fall at the Academy of Arts University in San Francisco to earn a degree in 3D animation and visual effects.
  • Valentina Marzban – Mission Viejo High School. Tina has received the Distinguished Student Award from the Coastline Regional Occupational Program, maintained a 3.5 grade point average, been a member of the high school swim team and a member of the marching band. Outside of school she has worked as a volunteer at a thrift shop to help provide funds to buy equipment at Saddleback Hospital. She plans to enroll at Saddleback College with a goal of being accepted into the college’s nursing program.
  • Javier Hernandez Silverado High School. Javier was chosen to receive a Kiwanis scholarship for his perseverance in pursuing his dream to go to college. He was sent to Juvenile Hall when he was 13, but eventually straightened his life out through the Boys’ Town program. At Silverado he has improved his grades enough to be on the Honor Roll. In the fall he will attend Saddleback College in pursuit of a degree in adolescent psychology so he can help struggling youth to succeed.

Mission Viejo Mayor Dave Leckness presented a Certificate of Achievement to each student during the breakfast program also attended by parents and school administrators.

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The scholarship program was coordinated by the Kiwanis Club Youth Services Committee whose members are Dr. Dan Burch, Bob Gaebel, Dr. Pat Griggs and Keith Sims. 

For the past two decades, the Kiwanis Club of Mission Viejo has been awarding the Dwight and Carol Williamson Memorial Scholarships to graduating seniors from Mission Viejo high schools. The scholarships are based on scholastic achievement, advanced education plans, educational improvement, financial need, citizenship and community volunteering efforts. Dwight Williamson was a club member for 16 years.

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As a service club, the Kiwanis Club of Mission Viejo is committed to improving the lives of children in the community. Club members participate in volunteer activities such as food drives, yard clean-ups and student recognitions. The club meets at 7 a.m. Tuesdays at on Alicia Parkway near the I-5.

For more information about the Kiwanis Club of Mission Viejo, contact President George Karas at mgkaras@sbcglobal.net.

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