Fredericksburg’s Cothern one of ‘cream of crop,’ As commissary helps students earn scholarships

FORT LEE, Va. – Money is tight, most people would agree; hence the news that 600 children of military families have been selected to receive a $1,500 scholarship each to put toward the college or university of their choice is sure to elicit cheers and applause from their families.

The scholarships are part of the Scholarships for Military Children Program, which is funded by manufacturers and suppliers that provide products and services for the Defense Commissary Agency’s 259 commissaries around the globe.

The local winner announced by Roberto Cruz, store director at Dahlgren commissary, is Lance Cothern from Fredericksburg VA.

‘‘We’re excited to report that the scholarship program continues to be a success in helping military families defray the costs of education,” said Defense Commissary Agency acting director and chief executive officer Richard S. Page. ‘‘We’re proud to be associated with a program that has awarded 4,132 scholarships totaling more than $6.4 million since its inception in 2001.”

Scholarship Managers, a professional scholarship firm, selects the winners based on academic merit, participation in extracurricular and volunteer activities, and the quality of their essays. Recipients are notified by letter. The full list of scholarship recipients and sponsoring business partners is posted online at http:⁄⁄www.militaryscholar.org.

Nearly every one of the Defense Commissary Agency’s stores will announce a local winner; many commissaries will announce multiple winners.

The Scholarships for Military Children program is administered by Fisher House Foundation, a nonprofit organization responsible for building comfort homes near military medical centers. The foundation bears all costs of the program so that every dollar donated goes for scholarships. The general public has the opportunity to donate to the program through the military scholar Web site.

Editor’s Note: Recipients announced at http:⁄⁄www.militaryscholar.org are preliminary and are contingent upon determination of military dependency status by the scholarship evaluation firm. Students to whom this may apply have already been contacted. If it is determined that a student is ineligible to receive a scholarship, or there is a change in a recipient’s educational status (for example: the student decides not to attend college), a new recipient will be named.