Fenton Area Chamber Awards Student Scholarships

The Fenton Area Chamber of Commerce has awarded 263 high school graduates with more than $212,000 in scholarships money since 1987.

This year there were 40 scholarship applications from Fenton area high school seniors.  Sixteen of the students were presented with a Fenton Area Chamber scholarship at an awards luncheon on Wednesday

"It was a very difficult task to choose who our recipients would be," said Sean King, who made the scholarship presentations. "We are here to recognize the 16 seniors who stood out in some way."

King announced each student's achievements as they were called to accept their Chamber scholarship. The recipients are:

Danielle Ader – Northwest High School

Danielle is a National Honor Society Member and is involved in numerous school clubs at her school. She has shown great leadership throughout high school in her roles as frontrunner of the Adopt-a-Highway program at her school as well as a dedicated member of her competitive cheer and dance teams. She also received the “Important Person Award” at school for her compassion in always helping others. Danielle plans to pursue a degree in Engineering and will be attending Fontbonne University this fall.

Katrina Burlison – Rockwood Summit High School

Katrina is a member of the National Honor Society and also a member of both the Varsity Dance Team and the Varsity Cheerleading team where she qualified for the All-American Cheer Squad. She also cheered competitively on the Studio C Competition Line where she was a National Title Winner. Danielle received the “Business Student of the Month” award for her leadership in the classroom, was a Silver Scholar Athlete twice, and made the Honor Roll all four years. She plans to attend the University of Missouri-Columbia where she wants to pursue a career in Nursing or Physical Therapy.

Sarah Crudden – Rockwood Summit High School

Sarah is also a member of the National Honor Society and has received many awards for her musical success and achievements. She was Rockwood Summit’s “2011 Student of the Year” and won a “National School Marching Award.” Sarah’s activities are extensive and include the Rockwood Summit High School Marching Band, Jazz Ensemble and Theatre Club. She has been a go-getter in that she has started pursuing education in her desired field as a member of the St. Luke’s Medical Explorers program as well as an 80-hour internship at Des Peres Hospital. Sarah plans to attend Rockhurst University and intends to major in Biochemistry, pursuing a career as a Physician.

Matthew Hindrichs – Rockwood Summit High School

Matthew is a member of the National Honor Society and participated on both school and club teams for Water Polo and Swim Team. He has volunteered regularly at Ronald McDonald House and participated in Scouting for Food efforts as a Scout. Additionally, Matthew has given back to the Rockwood community as a tutor at Rockwood South, giving 50+ hours of service. He plans to pursue a degree in either Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering and will be attending Missouri University of Science and Technology in the fall.

Audra Horn – Cor Jesu Academy

Audra is a member of the National Honor Society after completing necessary academic and service requirements. She showed great dedication as member of the Junior Varsity and Varsity Basketball teams where she gave endless hours of commitment to the team and to Cor Jesu. Audra was also involved in a few volunteer and leadership activities, including her role as Camp Counselor at Kids of Victory Summer Camp and Kraus Equestrian Center Summer Camp as well as a volunteer for Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Habitat for Humanity and Special Olympics. She will be attending Vanderbilt University in the fall where she plans to pursue a degree in Education, specializing in Mathematics so that she may go on to be a Mathematics Professor.

Emily Jones – Ursuline Academy

Emily was named to the Honor Roll at Ursuline all four years of high school. In addition to stand-out academics, she participates in school activities, including Junior Ambassadors, Art Club and Spirit Club. Emily volunteered her time at Whole Kids Outreach and Crisis Nursery during her years at Ursuline. She was honored with an ART Award for her excellence in drawing as a sophomore which has only fueled her passion for the subject. Emily will attend Avila University in Kansas City, Missouri in the fall to pursue a degree in Art Therapy and go on to a career as an Art Therapist.

Alexandra Krus – Nerinx Hall

Alexandra has an outstanding resume filled with academic and service-oriented achievements. She was a National Honor Society Honoree in 2011, received the Crosby-Crane Award for service in 2010, and was named MVP in Soccer and Cross Country in 2009 and 2011. Her school activities included Outreach Club, Soccer, Cross Country and Volunteering, among others. In addition to her in-school activities, Alexandra has pursued a passion for service by volunteering in such outreach programs as St. Cecilia’s Tutoring, Northern Cheyenne Immersion Trip and Habitat for Humanity. She plans to attend the University of Missouri – Columbia in order to obtain a degree in Business and International Studies.

Sean Mueller – Lutheran South High School

Sean is a member of both the National Honor Society and the Spanish Honor Society. While attending Lutheran South, he involved himself in many activities such as Rockwood Swim Club, Fenton Sharks Swim Team, and Track and Field. Sean enjoys serving others which can be seen in his roles as Kairos Devotion Leader and Freshmen Mentor. Aside from school activities, Sean submerges himself in a passion for music by taking lessons at Tower Music, participating in Tower Jam and playing guitar at Teens Encounter Christ. He has decided to attend Missouri University of Science & Technology in the fall where he will study Mechanical Engineering.

Joseph Pace – Rockwood Summit High School

Joseph is a very active and committed member of the Rockwood Summit community. He has been on the Varsity Swim Team and Varsity Water Polo Team during all four years, two of which he was Captain. In addition to sports, Joe was involved in the Teenage Health Consultants and Concert Band at Rockwood Summit. Outside of school, he is a committed member of Boy Scout Troop 708 in which he earned the Eagle Scout rank in September 2011. During his time as a Scout, Joseph has participated in countless community service opportunities and Scout High Adventures which require great determination and leadership. He hopes to earn a degree in Secondary Education with an emphasis in Mathematics from Missouri University of Science & Technology and go on to become a high school math teacher.

Michelle Quinn – John F. Kennedy Catholic High School

Michelle is a member of the National Honor Society and served as a member of Student Council, the Newspaper Editorial Team, Drama Club as President and Co-Founder, Musical Crew as Student Director, and Student Ambassador. She received the Marian Award for her participation in Girl Scouts, the Good Character Award three years in a row and the Glory Award for Virtue. Michelle will be attending Truman State University in the fall to pursue a degree in International Business.

Peter Rankin – Homeschooled

Peter possesses strong leadership qualities which can be seen in his time with Boy Scouts of America. In December of 2011, he obtained the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest rank one can achieve. He worked very hard over the course of seven years in order to accomplish this task. Peter led seven others over 75 miles of terrain as crew leader. Aside from Scouts, he has been an active member of his Church Youth Group and he involves himself in activities which strengthen his leadership skills such as National Youth Leadership Training and Worldview Leadership Training. Peter would like to become a Math teacher at the college level and will be attending Truman State University to pursue a degree in Mathematics this fall.

Adam Thrower – Rockwood Summit High School

Adam is a dedicated student and athlete who gives his best in everything that he does. He played on the Rockwood Hockey for three years, served as Captain his senior year and was named to the All-Star team in his most recent season, an honor that just three members of the team receive. Additionally, he was named a Scholar Athlete for two years, given to athletes who excel in sports and academics. As a junior, Adam was awarded the Falcon Flight award for being a model student and most improved. He will be attending Missouri University of Science & Technology in pursuit of a degree in Construction Management which will facilitate a career path to owning a Real Estate Development company.

Meagan Tucker – Rockwood Summit High School

Meagan has played an active role in being a well-rounded student at Rockwood Summit. She was a member of the Rockwood Summit Silver Falcon Marching Band all four years of high school, the last year in which she was a Junior Leader. Meagan has taken part in several clubs such as Japanese Club, International Club, Stream Team, and SMILE. She not only excels academically herself, but she tutors others as part of the A+ program so that they might succeed academically. She will attend Murray State University in the fall where she will work towards her degree in Education and Spanish.

Jacob Van Tuyl – Rockwood Summit High School

Jacob has had a busy four years at Rockwood Summit, being involved in Theater, Rockwood Drug Free Coalition, Junior Achievement and acting as President of a drug prevention program. He was awarded the Falcon Flight Award during his freshmen and junior years as well as the Presidential Volunteer Service Award all four years for community service. Jacob has participated in drug prevention groups since he was in middle school; achievements of note have been several internships with the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse as well as the youth leadership and prevention conference. He has worked hard to keep his focus on academics and service to the community, thus strengthening in him the qualities of a true leader. Jacob wants to major in Engineering, but also has a business knack with which he would like to pursue a career as a tour manager for a music group or record label. He will attend Lindenwood University in the fall.

Ryan Woodland – Lindbergh High School

Ryan has made the Honor Roll this past year and received the Renaissance Gold Award for four years in a row, both of which are due to his strength in academics. He has submerged himself in athletics at Lindbergh High School as well, taking leadership roles as captain in Football and Baseball. Ryan was also named All-State District Champion in Track & Field. When he is not tending to his academics, he is actively involved in giving back to his community. Ryan has volunteered for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund, raising $10,000 for his team, the Junior Falcon 7th Grade Football Team where he was named Coach of the Year and Sunday Night Lights where he helped coach kids with cancer, just to name a few. Much of his life has revolved around helping others which makes his desire to become a Police Officer very fitting. Ryan will be attending Lindenwood University in the fall to start in his pursuit of a career in Criminal Justice.

Brittany Keebler - Lindbergh Hgh School
Winner of the Ginny Goede Scholarship Award

Brittany’s dedication to helping others while pursuing her goal to become an Elementary School Teacher made her the perfect candidate for this Annual Award. Brittany has worked very hard to get where she is today, despite overcoming some obstacles and challenges in her life. She will be attending Missouri State University to continue her passion for servicing others and her community. In her essay, Brittany explained, “Nothing makes me happier than blissful people working together and making a difference.”