The Desert Hot Springs Women’s Club awards $26,000 in student scholarships
The Desert Hot Springs Women’s Club (DHSWC) takes great pride in announcing its 17 2023 college-bound scholarship recipients from Desert Hot Springs High School. DHSWC awarded $26,000 – the most money ever raised for scholarships in the club’s 70 years of existence.
According to Kathy Nollen, Desert Hot Springs High School career counselor, a record number of students applied for college due to a new requirement that all students must learn how to fill out an application. This idea was spearheaded by Principal Omar Tinoco to help all students plan their future after high school whether for a job or college.
The scholarships were awarded on May 11.
This initiative inspired the DHSWC to promote more scholarships in the community. Club member Shirley Bales gave a $2,000 scholarship, in honor of her late husband, who was a teacher, to Valerie Perez who will major in education at the University of California, Irvine. Gizel Lopez received a $2,000 scholarship donated by Desert Valley Disposal (DVD) to attend the University of California, Los Angeles. DVD also gave a $500 scholarship to Nari Rodriguez, who will attend College of the Desert (COD). TKE Engineering, Inc. gave a $500 scholarship to Andrea Gomez, who will also attend COD.
Other $500 scholarship winners who will attend COD are: Alfredo Mercado, Lucas Stiede, Yaire Murrieta, Yovana Anaya and Adreona Wallen.
Those attending four-year colleges or universities were awarded $2,000 by the club and include Vanessa Gutiérrez, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Rosa Barroso, CSU San Bernadino, Ariana Flores, UCLA, Bethzaida Rocha, UC Irvine, Joselyn Serrano, UC Irvine, Rebecca Murillo, UC Santa Barbara and Samantha González, UC Monterrey. Janvi Kaushal, a 2022 recipient returning to UC Riverside for her second year, was given a scholarship sponsored by Sally Hedberg.
Nancy Wright chaired the committee which included: Lucy Chapman, Sally Hedberg, Sylvia Rountree, Jan Pye and Shary McDonald.
The committee would like to express their appreciation to DHSHS career counselor Kathy Nollen, who sent out applications, encouraged the students to apply and set up all the in-person interviews at the high school. After COVID, it was a joy for the DHSWC scholarship committee to be able to interview the students in person.
The DHSWC was founded in 1953 and is celebrating its 70th year. Since then, the organization has awarded more than $500,000 in scholarships and funds to nine local schools as well as many community organizations.
For more information on becoming a member of the Desert Hot Springs Women’s Club please contact Josie Rizzio at josierizzio@gmail.com.
Sally Hedberg is DHSWC scholarship committee member. Her email is sallyhedberg@gmail.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: The Desert Hot Springs Women’s Club awards $26,000 in scholarships
