Scholarship comes full circle for student

When finding the money to go to college, every little bit helps. There’s tuition, room and board, books and supplies… It seems there’s always something else to purchase. Getting scholarships – no matter their value – helps to ease the load a little bit and is a way many students make the experience affordable. But for one local student, the life lesson that comes with “free” money came full circle, even before college starts.

Jake Buchler, who just finished his senior year at Indian River High School, has plans to go to Lock Haven University in Pennsylvania. He received a Russell White Memorial Scholarship for $500 from the Beta Sigma Phi Xi Upsilon sorority – a local service and social sorority. (Lance Cpl. Russell White, an IR grad, was killed in Afghanistan in June of 2004).

But, instead of using the scholarship award for college, Buchler asked the sorority if he could donate it to the family of Justin Lowe – another Indian River High school student who was recently injured in the surf at Ocean City, Md. The sorority voted, and it was approved “110 percent” that he could donate the money to Lowe’s family.

“Initially, it was to be used for college,” explained Buchler, “but we decided as a family that he might need it a little more than I do right now.”

Buchler noted that he played baseball and football with Lowe and had a couple of classes, including gym and weightlifting, with him – even though they are not in the same grade. He emphasized that the purpose of the scholarship was to support students who can then give back to their community, and it just seemed to make sense to do that now by supporting Lowe.

“Justin has more of a need in our community than I do,” said Buchler. “I can go out and make $500, and Justin is not really capable of doing that right now.”

Lauren Grise of Beta Sigma Phi Xi Upsilon explained that because one of their members was good friends with Russell White, and many attended the same school, they had started the scholarship in his name the year he died.

Grise said the scholarship stipulations are that the applicants must live in the IRHS attendance area and write a community service essay about how they will effectively serve their community after their schooling.

“It’s sort of like, ‘Russell gave the ultimate sacrifice. What can you do?’” said Grise. After the names are taken off the essays, the scholarship committee looks them over and picks the scholarship recipient based upon which essay is the best, regardless of the applicants’ academic standing.

“Whether they are top of the class or middle of the pack, it’s more that what they write is from the heart,” Grise explained.

Patricia White, Russell’s mother, said the fact that Buchler did what he did with this year’s scholarship in her son’s honor was “wonderful.”

“The generosity of heart that Jake showed by offering the scholarship he won to Justin is exactly an ideal Russell stood for – putting others first! Both Jake and Justin are young men of the finest kind. It makes us feel so good and proud Russell’s name is part of such a special act of kindness. Our hearts go out to Justin and his family.”

Patricia White noted that she works at the IR Wellness Center, so she has watched both of these young men grow up.

“This says so much about our community and families who live here,” she added. “We’re doing something right.”

Grise explained that, this year, the sorority had held a “cornhole” (beanbag toss) tournament in Murray’s Haven to raise funds for the scholarship, and to their surprise, Gregg White, Tricia White’s husband and Russell’s father, brought by a check for $250 to support the scholarship. They had already hit their financial target, so they decided to donate that additional $250 to Buchler, as a reward for his generosity, so he would still receive a small scholarship.

“It came full circle,” said Grise, a fourth-grade teacher at the Southern Delaware School of the Arts. “It’s what we hope to teach the kids in school, and you are happy when somebody gets to do it.”

Beta Sigma Phi Xi Upsilon will have another fundraising cornhole tournament in September. For more information, e-mail laurengrise@yahoo.com.