| Pam Cha introduceds award winners Gail Harding and Kaylee Norris during the Soroptimist April meeting. |
Soroptimist International of Price announced its annual scholarship awards to two deserving women from Price. The $500 awards were presented at the April meeting.
The first award is the Violet Richardson Award. This award is designed to honor young women from the ages of 14 to 17 for their volunteer action. This year’s winner was Kaylee Norris.
Norris is a junior from Carbon High School who will be graduating early. She also attends classes at the College of Eastern Utah. She has spent a great deal of time working with the United Way. In her acceptance speech she talked about how moved she had been when she worked on the Angel Tree. She acknowledged her appreciation of Kate Alleman, who as Norris stated, “Is the wonderful lady who has let me be a part of United Way.”
She is the daughter of Sharon and Ron Norris.
The second award is the Women’s Opportunity Award. This award is intended to help women who bear the primary financial responsibility for supporting their families and are attending a vocational/skills training program or an undergraduate program. This year’s winner is Gail Harding.
Harding has faced many difficulties in her life, but has continued to support not only herself but her two children. She currently works for Feature Films for Families, attends the College of Eastern Utah and volunteers at the Cancer Resource Center located at Castleview Hospital. After graduation from C.E.U. she will attend school at Arizona State University, where she has already been accepted. She plans to continue her studies and become a funeral director.
She is the mother of Chris and Mandy DeVaney.
The two scholarships were only one part of how the club gives back to the community to enrich the lives of women and girls. At Christmas time the club members contributed money to buy over 40 duffel bags and fill them with soap, shampoo, toothbrush and other toiletries as well as a stuffed animal and small toy. These bags were given to the Utah Foster Care Foundation to be distributed as needed to children when they had to enter the foster care system.
In February a member reported that the females she is working with who are incarcerated at the Carbon County jail were cold most of the time because of the jail temperature. The club donated money to buy thermals that can be used for the women to keep them warm.
As the end of the club year draws near the organization will be giving out funds to other organizations in the community that have programs that directly better the lives of women and children. The funds given out come directly from the annual wine tasting event held in November.