Chairperson:
1) In February you reach out to the Guidance Dept. at Holliston High School. Let them know you intend to give out the Dorothy B. Stevens scholarship of $1,000 to a worthy Holliston candidate and you will accept applications. The completed applications can be sent to your e-mail or to the club’s P.O. Box. (I prefer e-mail as you can then send them more easily to your committee.) For the past couple of years everything was done by e-mail because of Covid. Ask the club presidents to check for the applications and notify you when they collect mail from our P.O. Box. The deadline is 4/14 for applications.
2) Notify the publicity chair so she can publicize the $1,000 Scholarship and the $500 Grant (if applicable, and depending on available funds) to both HCAT TV and the Holliston Reporter. The application forms are on the HGC website. The Scholarship and Grant are for Holliston Residents only. (FYI : if there is no publicity chair, you can do the publicity or ask one of your committee members. Usually there are two others on the committee.)
3) Notify your committee and send them the applications for review. I ask them to rank the top three in order of preference. In April, notify the club at the Business Meeting that you have received whatever number of scholarship applications that are being considered, along with any grant applications.
4) After the committee has had time to review them, get together either by conference call, Zoom or in person to discuss until you have chosen your winner. Sometimes you may need to ask the club for more than one Scholarship because you have so many deserving applicants, as was the case in 2020. This is done by going to the board and club and presenting the applicants’ qualifications to the club. The club then votes on it in at the May meeting. If only one candidate, you present your choice to the club at the May meeting. The identity of the one chosen should remain a secret to the public so the recipient can be surprised and will find out in June at the High School awards night.
5) Notify the guidance dept at the High School. In the past they have made a certificate to be given at the awards ceremony. This year they have asked us to write a note to the recipient as to why they were chosen and give the note in person at the Awards night.
6) Notify the Treasurer in May so she can send you the check in enough time to put in the note. In the past I have mailed it to their house since we have not been in person. I also wrote up what will be read this year by The Commentator at the awards Ceremony.
7) You can attend the Awards ceremony or ask the president to do it or ask the High School to do it. At Awards night when they mention the Dorothy B. Stevens Scholarship, you go to the stage to give it with your committee (if attending), then congratulate the recipient and hand her the note & check. If you are not attending and the school is doing it, mail the check to the home address of the recipient to receive after the awards night so you don’t spoil the surprise.
Scholarship applications can be obtained on our website www.hollistongardenclub.org.
Grant:
- In February have publicity post “The Holliston Garden Club is accepting Grant applications for any adult doing an educational program on a garden related topic with Holliston youth. Applications must be received by 4/14. Grant applications can be obtained on our website hollistongardenclub.org
Sharon Thornton, Chair 2022
HOLLISTON GARDEN CLUB 