Each year, the Metro Marietta Kiwanis Club presents one or more scholarships from their CCF Fund honoring the name of one of their founders, Morgan Thomas. This year, 3 outstanding Cobb County students were selected to receive these cash awards totaling $6,250. Club members came together at a June luncheon to present the awards to Dominic Lee, Gabrielle Jones and Julia Oubre.
When you meet Dominic Lee, you are struck at once by his poise and his easy conversation style. A McEachern High School graduate and a travel baseball player, he loves to talk about his time spent on the field which earned him a Top 100 Players ranking with Georgia Varsity Rivals. But it was his work in the classroom that clinched his spot on the scholarship leader board. He shared his thoughts on how the pandemic negatively affected students in his class as they entered high school. His unique approach was to take advantage of the time he was home during COVID to set some important goals. After struggling in 2 classes, he set a bold goal to graduate with a 4.0. His smile beamed as he stood in front of the group after graduating with a 4.0 and his acceptance letter to Clark Atlanta University.
Gabrielle Jones received a Morgan Thomas scholarship for the fourth time as a KSU student. She expressed gratitude for the support in a pre-taped video from her temporary residence in Hollywood, California where she is completing an internship with the Hot Wheels® division of Mattel, Inc. She highlighted activities in the last year featuring a trip to Uganda, a peer leadership group, a live performance group and more. A goal she shared early on with Kiwanis member Bill Via is to graduate debt-free. She is now on track to make that happen this year. She thanked the Kiwanis members and Bill for helping her achieve that goal and for the support all four years of her college career.
Julia Oubre is a recent graduate of Kennesaw Mountain High School with plans to attend Georgia Southern University for a degree in Mechanical Engineering. In her essay she recalled spending time with her dad in the garage working on car engines as the beginning of her interest in engineering concepts. In high school she joined an air rifle team and even competed in the Junior Olympics. In thinking about her future, she shared a possible interest in pursuing a career in the defense industry. Already working toward her goals, she took a job in Statesboro ahead of the fall semester making her unable to attend the luncheon in person. Through a pre-taped video, she expressed her gratitude for the scholarship as she is working to pay for her education independently.
Scholarship committee leader Bill Via closed out the meeting sharing that Kiwanis has given these scholarships for almost 30 years but had partnered with CCF for last 5 years. “We really couldn’t do it as well as we have without the support of Cobb Community Foundation,” he shared. Metro Marietta Kiwanis members look forward to helping support students for many more years.
Dominic Lee
Gabrielle Jones
Julia Oubre
Bill Via
Shari Martin
