The Boothbay Region Student Aid Fund takes pleasure in announcing the recent addition of 12 new funds. The 12 “new” scholarships bring the total of “Named Scholarships” to 64, a new high since “Named Scholarship Funds” were first established in the year 2000. The BRSAF was established in 1964. A historical timeline of the Named Scholarships is available with this article online at www.boothbayregister.com.

Individuals honored by a Named Scholarship posthumously were: Grace Rowe, Pat Ryan, Helen and Burton Edwards, Margaret Hamilton, Linda Clark, Chester and Muriel Dawes, Nancy and Robert Barton and Steve Dutton. Setting up family funds were: John and Nancy Abbott, Jon and Bev Holt (two funds) and Nick and Joan Hurd.

“We have had more interest in named funds in recent years,” said incoming BRSAF President Susan Norton this week, “with the number rising from 26 to 64 in the past five years. They’re a simple way to leave the Boothbay area a valued legacy.”

These funds annually generate grants ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 to Boothbay Region High School graduates going on to post secondary education who also have financial need. The grants currently average $3,900 covering 36 percent of unmet need.

Secondary education includes two and four year colleges, trade schools and graduate schools. BRSAF supports Boothbay graduates for up to six years, including those returning to school after being in the work place.

Named Fund donors are recognized as members of BRSAF’s Legacy Society which include all planned giving donors naming BRSAF as a beneficiary in wills, trusts, pensions, annuities. The 12 new funds established the past year were:

Abbott family: This fund was established by Nancy and John Abbott, residents of both Connecticut and Boothbay. Nancy and John both work for GE Capital, part of the General Electric Corporation, and their award preference is for a student pursuing veterinary and/or biological studies.

Margaret Hamilton: Established by Helen and Hamilton Meserve, their three children and eight grandchildren, the scholarship honors Ham’s mother, a beloved character actress who in 1960 teamed with Ham to buy Cape Island in Newagen Harbor. Margaret summered there until 1975. Miss Hamilton graduated from Wheelock Kindergarten School in 1923 and was keenly interested in early childhood education. She interrupted her movie and stage career to found two nursery schools still in existence. Margaret Hamilton was concerned with the impact of make-believe on children, an impact she experienced personally from reassuring the many frightened children who had witnessed her as the Wicked Witch of the West in “The Wizard of Oz.” Ham is the retiring BRSAF President. Award preference is to a graduate pursuing the performing arts or early childhood education.

Holt Family (two): Jon and Beverly Holt, residents of Ohio and Boothbay, established two BRSAF Funds this past year, the “Holt Family Fund” and the “John and Bev Holt Fund.” Both funds have a preference for awardees that are pursuing an engineering or sociology degree.

Grace B. Rowe Memorial: Henry Rowe, Grace’s husband, established the scholarship to honor his late wife. Henry Rowe is a lifetime Boothbay resident who heads the Woodchucks, a group that harvests and processes wind-fallen and surplus logs to supply families using wood stoves in need of fuel support. Award preference is to a graduate in religious studies or social services “exemplifying the generosity and caring for others of Grace Rowe.”

Helen Clement & Burton W. Edwards Memorial: This scholarship was established by the bequest of Mrs. Edwards. The Edwards both worked for The Mobile Oil Corporation before retiring to Southport in the 1980s. Awards are made at the discretion of the BRSAF.

Patricia Ryan Memorial: The Ryan Memorial Scholarship was established by an anonymous donor who prefers an awardee pursing a field related to journalism. Ms. Ryan, a resident of Boothbay, started her career as a typist in the secretarial pool of Time Inc. and rose to become managing editor of People magazine, “a rare ascent for a woman in what was at the time a male-dominated company.”

Linda Sibley Clark Memorial: This scholarship was established by Linda Silbey Clark’s family and friends with a preference for a student pursuing a career in the music, drama, performing arts, theater management or other related fields. Ms. Clark was a resident of Boothbay Harbor and known for her wonderful singing voice, musical talent and warm personality.

Steve Dutton Memorial Scholarship for the Culinary Arts: Established by his widow, by Debra Wyman Dutton’s friends, the scholarship has a preference for a Boothbay Region High School graduate studying the culinary arts or a related field. . Dutton, a long time resident of East Boothbay was a “guy who loved to cook,” loved gadgets and loved life.

Muriel & Chester Dawes Memorial: Chester and Muriel Dawes were long-time residents of both Winchester, Massachusetts, and the Isle of Springs. Locally, they were active in the Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club, and supported the Boothbay Region Land Trust, the Maine Seacoast Mission, the Isle of Springs, the Botanical Gardens, and the NeKrangan II Museum. Family members established the scholarship with grant discretion left to the BRSAF.

Nancy & Robert Barton Memorial: This scholarship was established by the Barton sons, Bill, Brad and Rick, with awardee discretion left to the BRSAF. It honors Robert A. Barton, a long time Foreign Service Officer having an interest in education, and Boothbay Harbor-born Nancy Hemenway Barton, a renowned textile artist, who lived on both Juniper Point and Southport Island, as well as in Washington, D.C. Locally Bob and Nancy Barton supported many organizations including the Boothbay Harbor Memorial Library, the YMCA and the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens.

J. Nicholas and Joan Hinton Hurd Family: The Hurd family established this scholarship with awardee discretion left to the BRSAF. Nicholas and Joan are residents of Vero Beach, Florida, and Southport. Mr. Hurd is a Member of the Boards of the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Emerson Investment Management, a wealth management firm in Boston; and the US Board of Enlighten Op-Ex, an Australian consulting firm. He retired from Russell Reynolds Associates in 2007 and is past president of the Southport Island Association.