At the May 20 Tug Valley Mining Institute (TVMI) dinner meeting, six 2019 scholarship recipients were awarded. The $8,000 David B. Akers Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Payton Fitchpatrick, Tug Valley High; the $8,000 Raymond J. Scites Honorary Scholarship Award was awarded to Ashley Harrison, Belfry High. Four $1,000 scholarships were awarded to Jarrett Branham, Pike Central; Seth Jude, Mingo Central; Jon T. Mills, Belfry High; and Logan Varney, Pike Central.
The guest speaker was Jeff Wilson, White Forest Resources CEO. Wilson encouraged the students to have no fear and embrace each path with enthusiasm. Rish Equipment sponsored the meeting and has been a longtime supporter of the scholarship program.
Over the last 23 years, TVMI has awarded 136 students $333,250 in scholarship money. The TVMI scholarship is open to students from Mingo, Logan, Wayne, Pike, and Martin counties. The applications are available in November and may be obtained from Marsha Williams at the First National Bank of Williamson or from a TVMI board member.
