Soroptimists honor award recipients

POLSON — Soroptimist International of Polson recently celebrated its 31st anniversary by hosting a banquet for the recipients of its major scholarship awards. Since 1979, the Soroptimist International of Polson has aided women and youth who must enter the workforce or upgrade their employment status with various awards and scholarships. At the awards banquet six individuals received awards totaling $6,500.00. This is the same amount the club was able to give last year. Consequently, thank you to the Mission Valley community for supporting the Soroptimist fundraising events like the Wine Festival in August and Ladies on the Green in May. Your dollars are making a difference in women and youth’s lives in our local area.

Some amazing individuals in our Mission Valley community received awards for their accomplishments. Emily Colomeda was the recipient of the Fellowship Award. This award is granted to a woman seeking higher education such as a Masters or P.H.D. Emily is currently working on her masters in public health to improve her management skills at Lake County Health Department. Teri LaMere of Salish Kootenai College received the Vo-Tech Award. This award is given to a young man or woman entering a vocational or certificate program. Teri plans to use his award to complete a heavy equipment certificate. Jordan Hinshaw was awarded the Violet Richardson Award. This award is for a young woman between the ages of 14 and 17 who volunteers in her community and/or school; plus an award is given to the organization she volunteers with. Jordan enthusiastically volunteers with Polson Youth Soccer. There were several winners for the Women’s Opportunity Award. This award is for a woman who is the financial head of their household and wish to further their educational or vocational training but do no have the financial resources to do so. The award may be used for tuition, books or other costs associated with her education like childcare or car care. The first place winner for this award is Shana Brown. The first runner up was Shelley Schenderline. Lastly, Ruth Sheesley, a Polson native and music student at MSU, received the Ina Davis award for a women seeking education in the arts.

Soroptimist would also like to congratulate all the award recipients. Good luck in your future endeavors.

Soroptimist International is a women’s volunteer service organization who works to improve the lives of women, girls and children in local communities and throughout the world.