Scholarships
The SNA Scholarships are presented in honor of Tom Rische, who started the scholarship award many years ago. The Rische Family continues to support our youth through their generous donations. Scholarships are given to individual students based on a cumulative point system that includes; Academic Achievement, Letters of Recommendation, Community and School Involvement, Leadership, and Responsibilities and/or Family Need. Student’s parents must be members of the SNA to qualify for a scholarship, and students must have resided in Seaside for their Junior and Senior years, at a minimum.
We are currently accepting memberships and donations to add to the scholarship awards that will be presented in May, 2022. Many thanks to all of the SNA Resident Members, Business Partners and Scholarship Sponsors, who make these awards possible through membership dues and generous donations.
SNA 2021 Scholarship Winners!
Our 2021 Scholarship Winners, Seaside Residents Danny Ma and Patrick Melia, have excelled in many areas while attending high school, despite their senior year taking place during the covid pandemic.
Thank you to all our generous Members and Business Partners, because of you the Seaside Neighborhood Association will award each of them a $1,500 scholarship in May.
The following are brief summaries of their accomplishments complied by our Scholarship Chair, Kelly Wedel.
Danny Ma is ranked #7 in his South High School class of 450+ students. During his high school years he earned Honor Roll every semester, while also participating and /or holding leadership positions in Orchestra, Cross Country, Track and Field, Interact Club and California Scholarship Federation. His volunteer services included time helping at Torrance Memorial Medical Center and accompanying The Young Artists Orchestra of Los Angeles for community events. He is now working on the highest rank achievable in Boy Scouts of America, The Eagle Award. Among his many academic and participation awards, Danny earned Commended Scholar (PSAT), President's Volunteer Service Award, and was a National Advanced Placement Scholar. Danny’s future field of study will be Psychology and Neuroscience, which will help him decide on his career in the medical health field. He will be attending UC San Diego in the fall.
Patrick Melia presently has a 4.17 GPA and has taken predominately AP and Honor classes while attending Bishop Montgomery High School. His classes focused on the STEM subjects (Science,Technology, Engineering and Math) As a School Ambassador he represented the school at various events such as open houses and recruitments, as well as community services. He devoted many hours working with exchange students. He represented Torrance in Junior Lifeguard competitions. He also found time to work as a Lifeguard, an after school Child Care Aide and as a Camp Counselor. Patrick earned the Daily Breeze All Area Swim Team Award and the US Life Saving Life Guard of the Year Award The American Legion South Bay Post 184 chose Patrick for participation in its prestigious leadership and citizenship program, California Boys State. He hopes to to pursue an engineering related field with the US Navy and focus on ocean related careers. He received a nomination for the US Naval Academy and US Merchant Marine Academy by Congressman Ted Lieu and will be attending the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York.
On behalf of the Seaside Neighbor Association, we wish these young men success in their endeavors.
SNA 2020 Scholarship Winners!
SNA Scholarship Chair Kelly Wedel, is pleased to report that eighteen high achieving Seaside high school Seniors applied for the Seaside Neighborhood Association’s 2020 Scholarships. Every applicant was worthy, a tribute to their families and their neighborhood. Due to our generous sponsors and members, winners Megan Hulsy and Lauren Krause each were rewarded a $1500 check towards their college expenses. The 2020 SNA Scholarship Selection Committee was chaired by Kelly Wedel, and included Perry Shields, Lisa Nichols, and Tricia Blanco.
SNA 2020 Scholarship recipient Megan Hulsy, took 11 Advanced Placement (AP) classes at SHS, played in the band and volunteered weekly at Pugnation and Friendship Foundation. She states: “I plan to major in the study of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics at UCLA.. I discovered this field of study in my work as a clinical research intern at Harbor UCLA Medical Center under the direction of Dr. Miller. I hope to contribute to the study of antibiotic resistant organisms such as MRSA and to be part of a scientific team aimed at understanding these pathogens.I love the study of Biology and I am eager to begin life as a student at UCLA.”
SNA 2020 Scholarship recipient Lauren Krause, whose academic ranking was #17 in her RUHS class of 741 students, was a student athlete at BMHS and then at RUHS, as well as League of Women Voters Student Representative. “I am so thrilled to receive one of the SNA's scholarships this year,” she writes. “I have lived in the Seaside neighborhood my entire life and have grown to love the community and its festivities. Throughout my years in high school I played varsity basketball and was involved in ASB. I cannot wait to attend UCLA to study Cognitive Science, a combination of Psychology and Computer Programming. Go Bruins!”
SNA 2019 Scholarship Winners!
The academic accomplishments, talents, and volunteer spirits of the young people in the Seaside area were a huge source of pride for the Seaside Neighborhood Association (SNA) Scholarship Selection Committee as they perused student applications for our 2019 College Scholarships. Every one of the students who applied was impressive and worthy of recognition.
SNA is very pleased to announce that Samantha (Sammie) Kuo and Natalie Ibarra will be awarded $1500. each toward their college educations at our General Meeting on Wednesday, May 29th, 7 pm at Sea Aire Golf Clubhouse. The money was raised through membership dues, Business Partners and Scholarship Sponsors.
Sammie Kuo, a lifelong Seaside resident, is ranked 38th in the 2019 South High class of almost 500 students. Among many other activities, Sammie was team captain of SHS volleyball and active in Youth Leadership at her church, the Lighthouse Community Church. She is particularly proud of her role in reviving the South High service club Apollo/Athena (A/A), which under her tenure as President went from 9 to 99 members. As she wrote, “A/A is a demonstration of the positive impact that unity and dedication can bring {when} youth…come together and serve a bigger community.”
2019 Winner Natalie Ibarra lives out the credo of service that her co-recipient described. She is a founding member of Lets.Give, a grassroots volunteer organization created by high school students across Los Angeles in 2015. Natalie’s involvement in this outreach has been astonishing. According to the group’s Advisor, she and the collective led over 300 high schoolers to provide sneakers to middle schoolers in Watts, drove to Bakersfield to deliver 6000 items of clothing to migrant farmers, built gardens and murals in areas of need, and much more. Moreover, she is in student government and other clubs at South High, volunteers at Torrance Memorial, is taking four Advanced Placement courses this year and maintain a 4.1 grade point average!
The 2019 SNA Scholarship Selection Committee was chaired by Kelly Wedel, and included Perry Shields, Lisa Nichols, Julie Meenan and Tricia Blanco.
SNA 2018 Scholarship Winners!
The SNA was thrilled to award both Courtney and Cole with a $1500 scholarship at the May 30th SNA Meeting and Celebration. Courtney’s parents are Brad and Kim Heath who live on Avenue C. Cole Rossi is the son of Jeanne Rossi, who lives on Mindora Drive. Both students currently attend South High School.
SNA 2017 Scholarship Winners!
The Seaside Neighborhood Association is pleased to announce the two high school seniors who won the 2017 SNA Scholarship Awards.
They were selected from a field of fourteen students who live in the Seaside Neighborhood. The selection was made by three judges, using a point system based on academic achievement, community/school involvement, letters of recommendations, and financial circumstances. Although, all nominees were exceptional students, there were two that reached the highest level of points.
We are very proud to announce our two winners:
Jacob Downey, whose parents are Wade and Rosie Downey on Linda Drive, and Joseph Mills, son of Kevin Mills and Judith Kraft who live on Sunnyview.
Jacob and Joseph both attend South High School, and will graduate in June 2017. Jacob is an outstanding student with a 4.22 weighted grade point average, while Joseph has a 4.36 weighted grade point average. Both young men are very active in the school and our community, and were highly recommended by their teachers and mentors to go on to higher education.
http://www.seasideneighborhoodassociation.org/sponsor_form.…
Congratulations to Jacob and Joseph for their accomplishment, and to our SNA member parents!
Seaside Neighborhood Association © 2015