By Dave Parisot, NWFMOA Scholarship Fund
Eight JROTC cadets and one ROTC cadet from seven local schools were honored on May 1 with a total of $55,000 in prestigious scholarships from the Northwest Florida Military Officers Association (NWFMOA) via their Scholarship Fund.
The scholarships were presented at NWFMOA’s annual scholarship luncheon at the Fort Walton Yacht Club, recognizing JROTC cadets from Baker, Choctaw, Crestview, Fort Walton Beach, Navarre and Niceville High Schools, and one local ROTC cadet at the University of West Florida Air Force ROTC unit. Factors in selecting the scholarship awardees were academic excellence, leadership, community service, and service to their schools. Attendees at this recognition luncheon included JROTC instructors form each of the cadets’ high schools, business leaders of local businesses who have contributed financially to fund scholarships, the parents of awardees, and members of NWFMOA. The Color Guard for Presentation of the Colors was provided by the Baker School Army JROTC (Cadets Zachary Pena, Bella Gibson, Gunner Walters, and Alex Pena).
The JROTC scholarship recipients are:
Cadet Bella Gibson of Baker School – Florida Power & Light Scholarship of $6,000.
Cadet Heidi Edwards of Crestview High School – Mrs. Joan Gibson Griffin Bush Scholarship of $6.000.
Cadet Layth Atrakchi of Choctawhatchee High School – Dr. Fred and Mrs. Janet Westfall Scholarship of $6,000.
Cadet Chriscelle Pardillo of Fort Walton Beach High School – Mrs. Eileen Arpke Memorial Scholarship of $6,000.
Cadet Madelyn Burdick of Navarre High School – Dr. Howard and Mrs. Irene Fisher Scholarship of $6,000.
Cadet Hope Apfelbach of Navarre High School – Mrs. Chong (Kim) Parisot Memorial Scholarship of $6,000.
Cadet Caleb McDevitt of Navarre High School – Lt. Col. Jim and Mrs. Una Heavener Memorial Scholarship of $9,000.
Cadet Penelope Ashby of Niceville High School – Col. Karl and Mrs. Charlotte Eschmann Scholarship of $6,000.
Cadet Lincoln Dooley of Niceville High School – First Alternate
Cadet Owen Clift of Niceville High School – second Alternate
NWFMOA’s ROTC scholarship of $4,000, the Major General Richard Secord Memorial Scholarship, was awarded to Cadet Mark Almazan of the UWF Air Force ROTC. Mark is a 2023 graduate of the Fort Walton Beach JROTC.
In addition to these scholarships the NWFMOA also recognized four local graduating high school seniors who have received appointments to our nation’s military academies. Those recognized are: (See photo below)
Max Diehl of Niceville High School – United States Naval Academy.
Jackson Hamman of Niceville High School – United States Air Force Academy.
JROTC Cadet Jack Mashburn of Navarre High School – United States Merchant Marine Academy.
JROTC Cadet Lauren Mavity of Navarre High School – United States Merchant Marine Academy.
“These cadets are prime examples of leadership, service, academic excellence and community service that define our local JROTC and ROTC programs,” said Brig. Gen. Fran Hendricks, USAF Ret., and president of the NWFMOA chapter. “We are incredibly proud of these local students and thankful to be able to invest in their futures, hopefully leading to a commission in one of our armed forces branches. These young men and women represent the very best of Okaloosa and Santa Rosa Counties.” The JROTC scholarships will be paid to the respective colleges of attendance over a two-year period. Scholarship recipients are required to participate in their college’s ROTC program.
The NWFMOA Scholarship Fund provides scholarship funds annually to local JROTC and ROTC cadets who exhibit superior academic achievement, leadership, and community service performance. For more information and photos, go to https://nwfmoa.org/files/sf25/album/index.html or http://nwfmoa.org.
