News From The Foundation
Scholarship | August 2024
Thank You Letter: Martha Jo Leonard Scholarship
Dear Foundation and Scholarship Donor:
First, I want to thank you for awarding me the Martha Jo Leonard Scholarship. The money was very helpful to me in pursuit of my college education. It was and always will be very much appreciated.
My first year of college was spent at Mississippi State University. I enrolled in the Bagley School of Engineering, majoring in Bio-Medical Engineering. I was fortunate enough to be accepted into the honors program at MSU and was able to live in Griffis Hall, an honors dormitory. Like most students, I spent the first year taking a lot of basic courses; however, most of the courses did not seem very basic. I had to quickly learn the heightened level of study that would be required. I completed courses such as: Calculus, Chemistry, Architecture, Engineering Design, Graphics and Computing Methods in Biological Engineering. Even though this was a challenging academic workload, I was able to achieve a 4.0 GPA for my freshman year and was named to the President’s List for both the Fall and Spring Semesters. Mississippi State encourages its students to participate in community and club activities. I was able to work as a volunteer through the freshman REACH program. As part of this program, I was able to work with other students completing Habitat for Humanity projects. We were also able to work in an after school program for local kids. I attended the Starkville Church of Christ and was able to participate in several events through the University Christian Student Center.
While I did learn to appreciate the academics and the community activities were great experiences, my favorite part of my first year of college is the friendships that I have developed. Leaving Athens Bible School with a graduating class of a little over 20 students and moving to a campus with over 20,000 students was initially overwhelming. But I have enjoyed making friends with people from Mississippi, Tennessee, Louisiana and even someone from Athens that I never met until I moved to Starkville. The friendships and memories are my most prized possession of my first year and I hope to keep them forever.
As I begin my second year at MSU, I am loving the school even more. The classes aren’t getting any easier, but my friends and this community make this experience something I wouldn’t trade for anything.
Once again, thank you so much for selecting me as the recipient of this scholarship. It has helped to make my first year of college a great one.
Scholarship | July 2023
Thank You Letter: Martha Jo Leonard Scholarship
Dear Limestone Area Community Foundation,
I am writing to thank you for choosing me as a recipient of the Martha Jo Leonard Scholarship. This scholarship will be very helpful to me in achieving my educational goals. I am excited to begin my pursuit of a Biomedical Engineering degree at Mississippi State in the fall. These funds have helped make this dream possible. Thank you again for this opportunity. I hope to prove myself a worthy investment!
Scholarship | July 2023
Thank You Letter: Martha Jo Leonard Scholarship
Dear Leonard Family,
My first year at Auburn was so fun! That’s really the only way I know how to describe it. The first 24 hours in my new apartment began with a blackened bagel (yes, it was burned that bad). Later the same day, the first fire alarm was set off, so day one was when we found the stairs. That was also when my new roommates and I hung out together for the first time, not that we were given much of a choice. Since then, this has turned out to be one of my favorite memories from the past year.
About a week later, the fall semester began. After a few weeks, I could navigate most of the campus. Nobody was lying when they said you’ll figure it out quickly. The only place that still confuses me more than anything is the Haley building, if you know you know. I have more classes there next semester, so that should be interesting. The beginning of fall semester also meant football season would begin soon. I hope I never forget the first football game of my freshman year. Not only was it just my friends and I’s first football game as Auburn students, but it was the game everybody left because it rained so much. At first it was just a few lightning delays, but they didn’t stop, so we decided we’d head back to our apartment and watch if they got to play again. Man, did we pick a bad time to leave. Our whole walk back consisted of navigating in the pouring rain around all the tailgating tents, which distorted our new sense of direction on campus. All in all, it was fun, and a good memory to look back upon remembering how we were dripping wet when we finally made it back to our rooms.
As many fun memories as I made throughout the year, it came with many learning experiences. Since it was my first year of all college courses, I had to learn a better method for studying for my classes. Although that was tough, it helped that my friends were trying to learn too. This was one of the biggest challenges of freshman year, which I hope to figure out a little better soon. My next biggest challenge was being homesick. Don’t get me wrong, I love Auburn, but it was hard when it was a day that I missed my family a little extra. When it comes to these days, I found it best to call or facetime. Talking to them for just a few minutes gave me hours of relief.
My first year came with these great memories as well as new things I had to learn, but I’m glad I did it at Auburn. Since I have finished year one, I feel as though it’s appropriate for me to say that I believe I made the right choice in where to attend college. Thank you for your contribution to my first year at Auburn. War Eagle!
Scholarship | July 2023
Thank You Letter: Martin Endowed Scholarship
Dear Martin Family,
Thank you so much for the scholarship that I was awarded last year. My freshman year presented me with so many opportunities, and I appreciated being able to not worry about working and instead focus on my studies. Although the beginning of my freshman year proved to be a challenge, I was able to adapt to the new environment and overcome obstacles. I ended up earning A’s in Chemistry 111 and 112, English 322, History 111 and 112, Math 113, Chemistry 465, and Occupational Health 301. I was on the Dean’s List for both semesters. I have declared my major as Occupational Health Science (formerly Industrial Hygiene). This summer I have had the opportunity to go and work at Indorama Xylene & PTA Chemical Plant and have found that I absolutely love the major I have chosen. Thank you again for awarding me the scholarship.