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Hopedale Medical Foundation Announces 2026 Scholarship Winners

May 6, 2026

Hopedale Medical Foundation proudly announces its 2026 scholarship winners. Candidate selections were made by an independent panel of judges who reviewed applications from local area students. Since 1980, the foundation has awarded over $638,000 to area students pursuing higher education in agriculture and healthcare.

  • The $2,000 Donna Bitner Springer Nursing Scholarship is given in honor of the first Director of Nurses at Hopedale Hospital, has been awarded to Gabe Demling of Olympia High School. Gabe is the son of Leigh & Travis Demling. He will be pursuing a nursing degree from Heartland Community College.
  • The $4,000 Thelma Alford Nursing Scholarship, is given in memory of Thelma Alford, RN, a fixture on the floors of HMC for over 40 years and a campus volunteer after her retirement. This award has been given to Hartsburg-Emden senior, Celia Cross. Celia will attend Illinois Central College in the fall to pursue a nursing degree. She is the daughter of Julie and Kent Cross.
  • The $1,000 Phyllis Martin Memorial Nursing Scholarship which honors this long-time HMC nurse, was awarded to Abigail Goodman of Olympia High School. She is the daughter of Jamie and Brett Goodman and a future attendee of Heartland Community College where she will pursue nursing.
  • The $3,000 Founder’s Scholarship in honor of HMC’s founder, Dr. Lawrence Rossi, Sr., was awarded to Tremont High School senior, Joseph Haas. Joseph will be entering the pre-dentistry program at Illinois Central College with plans to pursue Biomedical Science at Bradley University in the future. He is the son of Lisa and Thomas Haas.
  • The $1,000 Orville Augsburger/ Dorene Oehler Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Bryson Horning, son of Lori and Joshua Horning. Bryson is a Freshman at Olivet Nazarene University and former graduate of Delavan High School. Bryson is achieving a degree in Kinesiology on the Pre-Physical Therapy degree track.
  • The $1,000 David Eckhardt Memorial Scholarship, in honor of this dedicated HMC employee who passed away in 1974, was awarded to Elaina Montague, a senior from  Dee-Mack High School and daughter of Katherine & Richard Montague. Elaina will attend the University of Iowa with plans to become an occupational therapist.
  • The $5,000 Michelle Anne Rossi Memorial Nursing Scholarship is given in honor of Michelle Anne Rossi, who passed on July 10, 2017, has been awarded to Bryce Meyer, of Illinois Central College. Bryce is the son of Erin and Wyatt Meyer and is studying to complete his RN degree.
  • The $3,000 Allen-McCabe Healthcare Field Scholarship is given in memory of Brian and Pam Allen and in honor of the McCabe Family. Brian retired as a Vice President of Memorial Medical Center and Pam worked as a nurse and nurse administrator for over 30 years. The award was given to Tremont High School’s, Ava Miller. Ava will attend the University of Illinois to major in Molecular & Cellular Biology. She is the daughter of Bethany Gottlieb and the late Allen Miller.
  • The $1,000 Neil Alford, Jr. (Agricultural) Memorial Scholarship in honor of Hopedale’s past mayor and HMC board member, was awarded to Noah Walsh, son of Jami & Andrew Walsh. Noah is a senior at Olympia High School. He will attend the University of Illinois in the fall to major in agricultural and consumer economics.
  • The $2,000 John Rossi Memorial Nursing Scholarship has been awarded to Tremont High School’s, Olivia Wagenbach. She will attend Illinois Central College to pursue a nursing degree. Olivia is the daughter of Beth and Paul Wagenbach.
  • The $4,500 Candice Blackert Nursing Scholarships are given in honor of the lifetime career and passion that Candice had working as a nurse and nurse educator. These scholarships can be awarded in varying amounts and may be used in the nursing or healthcare fields.
    • A $2,000 scholarship has been awarded to Dee-Mack High School’s, Maryahna Schleich. Maryahna is the daughter of Carol & Jeffrey Schleich. She will attend the University of Illinois in the fall to major in biology.
    • A $1,500 scholarship was awarded to Megan Deterding, daughter of Jessica and Michael Deterding a senior at Olympia High School. Megan will attend the University of Illinois in the fall to major in biology.
    • A $1,000 scholarship was awarded to Ella Klokkenga of Hartsburg-Emden High School. She will attend Illinois Central College to major in health sciences. Ella is the daughter of Alissa and Elias Klokkenga.
  • The $1,000 Mary Sue Post, RN Nursing Scholarship is given in honor of the impact that Mary made in her nursing career at HMC. Mary worked in a variety of areas throughout the complex with her last position being the Director of Nursing of Long Term Care.  Mary’s scholarship was awarded to Olivia Wagenbach, daughter of Beth and Paul Wagenbach.  Olivia is a senior at Tremont High School.