Students receive scholarships from National MS Society

One hundred Washington state students who have multiple sclerosis or whose parents have the disease, including a 2008 Wahkiakum High School graduate, have been awarded scholarships from the National MS Society, the Greater Washington Chapter has announced.

The scholarships, totaling $300,000, were made possible by contributions from a number of sources, including The O'Donnell Family Foundation, Schoenfeld Gardner Foundation, Lockwood Foundation, The Norcliffe Foundation and Alfred and Tillie Shemanski Testamentary Trust.

The annual program was established in 2005 specifically for students in Washington state. Recipients were selected based on academic performance, financial need, volunteer and extracurricular activities, and essays they wrote about the impact MS has had on their lives.

Those awarded scholarships this year include 39 new recipients, 20 who received second-year renewal grants, 25 who received third-year renewal grants and 16 fourth-year recipients.

The scholarships, for $3,000 each, were available to high school seniors and former recipients who are attending or entering an accredited post secondary school.

Brandi Seaberg, graduating this year from WHS was among the first year recipients.

For more information about MS, including programs available locally for people with MS and their families, contact the Greater Washington Chapter at 1-800-344-4867 (press option 1) or visit the Web site at http://www.MSwashington.org.