By By BEN RAYMOND LODE / Niles Daily Star
NILES -- Since 1962, local Rotarians have awarded nearly $150,000 to 134 local high school students.
The Niles-Buchanan Rotary Club will continue its tradition of giving when they hold their annual "Scholarship Raffle Dinner" on Monday, June 30, at the Orchard Hills Country Club.
The dinner and proceeds from the annual raffle help fund the local Rotary scholarships.
Ron Sather, Niles-Buchanan Rotary Club president, said the club will this year award $9,000 in scholarships to 13 high school students from Niles Community Schools, Brandywine Public Schools and Buchanan Community Schools.
Sather said some of the scholarships are split up and given out over a set period of time.
Raffle ticket purchases, in addition to knowing they have contributed their money to a worthy cause, have the opportunity to win some hefty prizes.
The first place winning raffle ticket holder will receive the substantial amount of $5,000.
Sather said the second price winner will receive $2,000 and two $500 and four $250 prizes will also be given out.
A maximum of 200 tickets are sold at $125 each to raise the necessary cash for the scholarships, he said.
Sather said each ticket allows two people to come to the dinner. However, holders of winning tickets need not be present to win, he said.
The students who have been chosen as recipients of the rotary scholarships have gone through a thorough evaluation by the club's scholarship committee, Sather said.
Although the scholarship recipients aren't obligated to perform any duties for the Rotary Club, Sather said some of them come back, especially for Rotary dinners after they have received their education.
Sather said the scholarships aren't just a benefit to the students, but in the long-term also beneficial to the community.
For more information about the Niles-Buchanan Rotary Club's "Annual Scholarship Raffle," call Ron Sather, at 683-3720, or Raffle Committee co-chairs Scott Piotrowicz, at 684-4320, or Jim Meyer, at 683-3000.