Jun 23, 2009
Educating top scholars with MS connections
Carla Koss
Educational scholarships are one important way that the Delaware Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society supports families affected by MS. This week, the chapter announced the names of the five winners of the 2009 National MS Society Scholarship Program:
• Michelle A. Barineau, 18, The Charter School of Wilmington
• Madeline L. Beck, 18, Padua Academy
• Megan E. Smutz, 18, Mount Pleasant High School
• Lindsay A. DiMuzio, 18, Padua Academy
• Shannen E. Jones, 17, Brandywine High School
Each scholarship winner demonstrated high academic standards, including a written essay on her personal connection to MS. To be eligible for consideration, each had to be high school senior or graduate or GED-earner of any age either with MS or a parent with MS. Each is also an American citizen or legal resident who plans to enroll—for the first time—in at least six credit hours per semester in course work leading to a degree, license, or certificate from an accredited two- or four-year college, university, or vocational-technical school in the U.S.
“As the children of people with MS,” notes the chapter’s president, Kate Cowperthwait, “these kids know firsthand about the havoc that MS can wreak on a family, and they deserve our support as much as their family members with MS. We can definitely do something about their future academic endeavors, thanks to the generous support of the Eolyne K. Tunnel Scholarship and the Arthur J. Stapler Memorial Foundations.”
Combined, the donations from the Tunnell and Stapler families create a pool of money that specifically supports the higher education of Delaware students whose home life has been affected by MS. “This year,” adds Cowperthwait, “we are awarding five scholarships totaling $12,000. We are grateful for this financial support and for what it helps us do.”
For more information, call the chapter’s major gifts officer, Dick Riggs, at (302) 655-5610, ext. 24, or email your inquiry to dick.riggs@MSdelaware.org.
About multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis, an unpredictable, often-disabling disease of the central nervous system, interrupts the flow of information within the brain and between the brain and the body. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. The progress, severity, and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are moving us closer to a world free of MS.
Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50 with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease. MS affects more than 400,000 people in the U.S.; more than 1,500 Delawareans have been diagnosed.
About the National Multiple Sclerosis Society
MS stops people from moving; the National MS Society exists to make sure it doesn’t. We help each person address the challenges of living with MS. In 2007 alone, through our home office and 50-state network of chapters, we devoted more than $136 million to programs that enhanced more than one million lives. To move us closer to a world free of MS, the Society also invested more than $50 million to support 440 research projects around the world. We are people who want to do something about MS—NOW.
Join the movement at nationalMSsociety.org.
Early and ongoing treatment with an FDA-approved therapy can make a difference for people with multiple sclerosis. Learn about the options by talking to a health-care professional and then contacting the National MS Society at nationalMS society.org or at 800-FIGHT-MS (800-344-4867).
In Delaware, call (302) 655-5610. Or visit www.MSdelaware.org.