Community Scholarships awarded at Morris State of the City

Mayor Chris Brown and local Edward Jones financial representative Grant Whybark announced three recipients of the Mayor Chris Brown Community Scholarship at the State of the City on Wednesday, June 18.

Scholarship recipients were Dakota Goff, who is attending State Technical College, Brandy Valencia-Farias, who is attending Bradly University, and Cameron Raymer, who is attending Olivet Nazarene University.

“We see the volunteer spirit all around us in Morris,” Brown said. “It’s one of the things that makes our city so special, to pull together as a community and achieve great things. My hope is that this scholarship opportunity will serve as a salute to all those who give so much to Morris, and that it will serve as inspiration for local students to give back as well.”

The scholarships are awarded to Morris Community High School students who are leaders in the classroom, exhibit a penchant for volunteerism in their school and community, and intend to further their education at a college, university, or trade school.

“This scholarship provides significant assistance for these deserving students to start building their futures,” Hock said. “Mayor Brown’s initiative on this illustrates his commitment to our community and to supporting local families. We enjoyed celebrating with the students and their families. We look forward to continuing with this opportunity in the future.”

The scholarship is funded by local Edward Jones representatives Jim Feeney, Mike Wright, J.R. Hock, Austin Feeney, Grant Whybark, Mike Pfaff, Mayor Chris Brown and the Grundy County Chamber of Commerce. The scholarship is privately funded, with no public money used.