Rochester Garden Club Awards Two College Scholarships

One of the missions of the Rochester Garden Club is to promote environmental education, and a primary method to fulfill that mission is the annual awarding of two $1500 college scholarships to high school seniors who are graduating from the Rochester Community Schools. The club members take great pride and joy in helping these students pursue their goals to learn how to improve our environment. This year the winners are Bryce Gamage from Stoney Creek High School, and Delaney Marino from Rochester High School.

Bryce grew up learning how to kayak and began appreciating the beauty and complexity of nature from the banks of Michigan rivers. This exposure showed him the importance of protecting natural resources for everyone. When Bryce signed up for an Advanced Placement Environmental Science class taught by Mr. Wilson at Stoney Creek High, he realized that the study of environmental science would be key to his goals. Mr. Wilson's passion for teaching this subject inspired Bryce to pursue these studies at the University of Michigan this fall. Bryce plans to combine a degree in business with his environmental studies to start an environmentally conscious business.

Rochester High School graduate, Delaney Marino also received a scholarship to help her reach her goals. Her passion for the environment started through a family road trip to the Badlands of South Dakota. This experience sparked an abiding love of America's National Parks and the multitude of ecosystems they contain. Delaney will be moving to the Upper Peninsula this fall to attend Northern Michigan University, where she will major in Biology with a concentration in Zoology. She hopes to work in a National Park and provide guidance for wildlife conservation and to work to shield the natural world from human exploitation and encourage others to share this passion.

Funds for these college scholarships and all the other charitable donations made by the Rochester Garden Club are from the annual Gifts and Greens Market, a Rochester holiday tradition for over 70 years. See RochesterGardenClub.org or our Facebook page for details on this friendly, fun and important local organization.

Valley Awards Night 2020