Hopedale Medical Foundation proudly announces its 2024 scholarship winners. Candidate selections were made by an independent panel of judges who reviewed applications from graduating seniors, college freshmen, and home school students from the school districts of Olympia, Hartsburg-Emden, Tremont, Dee-Mack, Midwest Central, Christian Life Academy and Delavan.

• The $3,000 Founder’s Scholarship in honor of HMC’s founder, Dr. Lawrence Rossi, Sr., was awarded to Olympia High School student Melissa Bieber, daughter of Jeffrey and Bethany Bieber. Melissa will be part of the Army ROTC Program at the University of Kentucky. She will be pursuing the career of a Registered Nurse.
• The $1,000 Orville Augsburger/ Dorene Oehler Scholarship was awarded to Rachel Andris, daughter of Jason and Emily Andris. Rachel, a student at Olympia High School, has chosen a career as a Physician Assistant. She will attend Augustana College in the fall.
• The $1,000 David Eckhardt Memorial Scholarship, in honor of a dedicated HMC employee who passed away in 1974, was awarded to Alaina Askins, daughter of John Askins. Alaina is a student at Midwest Central High School and will pursue a career as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist at Southern Illinois University.
• The $1,000 Neil Alford, Jr. (Agricultural) Memorial Scholarship in honor of Hopedale’s past mayor and HMC board member, was awarded to Logan Demling. Logan is the son of Leigh and Travis Demling of McLean. He is a student at Olympia High School and will study Agriculture Engineering at Iowa State University.
• The $1,000 Phyllis Martin Memorial Nursing Scholarship which honors a long-time HMC nurse, was awarded to Deer Creek - Mackinaw High School senior Katherine Templeton daughter of Rebecca and Michael Templeton. Katherine will be pursuing a career in nursing at Illinois Central College in the fall.
• The $2,000 John Rossi Memorial Nursing Scholarship was awarded to Delavan High School’s Addelyne Nehmelman, daughter of Rachel and Jesse Nehmelman of Delavan. Addelyne plans to pursue a career as a nurse anesthetist at the University of Illinois.
• The $2,000 Donna Bitner Springer Nursing Scholarship in honor of the first Director of Nurses at Hopedale Hospital, was awarded to Tremont High School’s Chloe Pierce, daughter of Heather and Dustin Pierce. Chloe plans to pursue a career in nursing at Carroll University.

The Hopedale Medical Foundation congratulates these outstanding students and thanks the many applicants who participated this year. Since its inception in 1980, The Foundation has awarded over $610,000 in healthcare and agricultural scholarships to local high school seniors and college freshmen. Donations from the public are appreciated and are tax deductible as a charitable donation. For more information, call Jill at (309) 449-4296