Meet our deserving winners and read their bios
= multi-year scholarships awarded
2018 Winners
Irvin is our first most worthy student-athlete AAO Scholarship Winner who has not only overcome many major family adversities but is indeed a most gifted student. He has help lead his family and 3 siblings through unending financial struggles, biological father abandonment, mother workplace physical injuries and job losses by mother and stepfather. In addition to being caregiver to mother’s rehabilitation and filling out job applications for stepfather, Irvin set personal records in Varsity XC and track, was named Percussion Captain of HCHS Marching Band and graduated with honors and a degree from the HCHS International Baccalaureate School. Irvin will be attending Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA this Fall 2018 and studying Aeronautical Engineering and minoring in Music.
Shelby was the first gifted out-of-state student-athlete AAO Scholarship Winner. She was Salutatorian of her senior class at Gilbert High School and Captain of the Volleyball team her junior and senior year.
Of the 3 years she played on varsity, the team went deep into Region playoffs. She won individual all-tournament and all-regional 1st team honors numerous times. After qualifying, Shelby commuted each morning her senior year to River Bluff Visual Arts Center to attend their advanced select program. She will be attending Clemson University this fall and continuing her studies in video production and direction. In addition to the Robin Nable Wagman “Against All Odds” Scholarship, she became a Palmetto Fellows Scholar and received the Clemson Palmetto Pact Scholarship and the Center for Media Arts, Design and Production ”Student of the Year” Scholarship.
Natasha grew up in a single parent home from age 7. She helped her mother at home with cooking, laundry, childcare of 2 younger siblings and became the all-around “second mother” throughout her public school days. Natasha was dual-enrolled at Polk State College while attending Haines City High School and while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. She was Leader and Captain of the XC and Track teams, respectively. Leading both teams, while supporting “One Team, One Dream” motto, HCHS team finished extremely high in both Districts and Regional events her Junior and Senior years.
Anna graduated third in her class with a 4.537 GPA and was an officer of the National Honor Society. She has already earned 39 hours of college credit and 125 total community service hours. Anna has placed high in State DECA competition for 3 straight years. She also was very successful at IDCD competition which is an international marketing and business organization. While competing in athletics, Anna has experienced life threatening anaphylactic allergic reaction to peanuts and peanut based products. Therefore, it was necessary for immediate medical treatment and/or remedies be always available while competing. She was Defense Captain on the Woman’s Volleyball team and placed at regional competition in Weightlifting. Her fears of shock and possible death have made her life extremely difficult and very worrisome. She will be attending Florida Gulf Coast University in Fall 2018.
Juan and his family have traveled between Florida and Michigan as migrant workers for many years. In order to help reduce the toll of working 12 hour days in extreme weather, Juan has pitched in to help meet picking quotas. His life-long dream has been realized with acceptance to MSU and his plan to attend Fall 2018. Juan has maintained a 4.2 GPA while attending Mulbeery High School and was elected to The National Honor Society his Junior year. He exceeded his own personal records in XC and Track while helping both teams to strong finishes in both District and Regional.
