–submitted by Linda Baldwin; photos by Mike Engelberger
Rotary scholars start their journey by asking us to believe in their abilities and to invest in their future. The scholars who spoke with us today illustrated how that belief and investment has paid off …one hundred fold.
Seven scholars shared their dreams and hopes and their gratitude to the club and to their mentors for helping to make those dreams come true. Amazing stories of what they would do were told…all knowing that their educational dreams would not have been possible without a Rotary scholarship.
Brandon Alvarez Carrera (Levy Scholar), the first of his family to attend college, hopes to prove to his family and the community, that his background wasn’t correlated to his academic success. On a path to a degree in Engineering Physics, he’s grateful for the support group that helps him on his journey.
Shamell Homesly (Brandenburg Scholar) shared that the excitement she felt when notified of her Rotary scholarship was breath taking. Shamell is studying to be an elementary teacher at Madison College and will transfer to a four year university after completing her associates degree. Destined to be a teacher, Schamell thanks club members…”everyone of you has helped put me on a path toward success.”
Cristian Claudio Teutli (Levy Scholar) is proud to be a Badger and is grateful to Rotary for making it possible for him to attend UW. What motivates him to push through the challenges is his dream for the day when he can say, “Mama, Papa, I made it. And I don’t want to hear you say that money is an issue anymore.”
Azucena (Lilly) Gonzalez (McBeath Scholar) is proud to say she will be part of the 2016 graduation class at UW-Whitewater with a major in Social Work and a minor in Criminology. Lilly says that she was blessed with financial help from Rotary and an amazing mentor, Mary Rouse who boosted her confidence all the way. Also, she thanked the Kay family for their scholarship to help with summer school.
Karen Bauer (Synergy Scholar) will graduate in May with a degree in Anthropology and English and a minor in Spanish. She hopes to get her PHD. Karen is especially thankful for the support of the club and her mentor, Dick Lovell.
Patrick Roy (French Scholar) says he was one of those guys who you would never imagine working as a Chicago banker. He credits his mentor, Moses Altsech, for providing him with guidance to stay in school and he will graduate from UWM Summa Cum Laude this year and take the Chicago banking job.
Kay Powell (French Scholar) (via video) thanks Dr. John Bonsett-Veal for being a very important part of her live. She’s graduated from UW-Madison and is working on a graduate degree in Optometry. Kay encourages Rotarians to be mentors.
In May, a new group of students will need a mentor. Please consider jumping in to this satisfying role.
(CLICK to watch the video presentation by our Rotary Scholars)
We want to thank our donors who made these scholarships possible: Nate Brand, Heggie Brandenburg, Harry French, Dick Goldberg, Perry & Virginia Henderson, Louie Hirsig, Tom Leonard, Irving & Dorothy Levy Family, Andy McBeath, Regina Millner, Mike & Patty Wilson, Worzala Family. In addition, we have our Synergy Fund which is a fund available to all members who are interested in making a gift to our Scholarship Program. We also thank Lori and Arlan Kay for the new fund they established to provide one-time grants to our Rotary scholars.
Kay Family Scholar Introduced at January 6 Luncheon
Back row from left: Mary Rouse, Arlan Kay & Isaac Gonzalez (Lilly’s father); Front row from left: Lori Kay & Lilly Gonzalez
In 2015, Lori and Arlan Kay provided a $50,000 gift to our Madison Rotary Foundation to establish the Kay Family Scholarship Fund. Lori has been a member of our Rotary Club since 1987, and Arlan has been a member of the Oregon Rotary Club for over 40 years. This fund provides one-time grants to current Rotary scholars who need funding for educational expenses beyond the eight semesters of scholarship payments they are receiving through our scholarship program. This year’s recipient of the Kay Family Scholarship grant was Lilly Gonzalez, and she was introduced during our January 6th Rotary luncheon. Lilly attends the UW-Whitewater and was able to take summer courses towards her Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work with an emphasis in Criminology with this grant provide by the Kay Family Scholarship Fund. Thank you to Lori and Arlan Kay for making this grant possible for our Rotary scholar.
Rotary Club of Madison, Wisconsin 
Yesterday’s luncheon meeting was one of the nicest I have attended in my 10 years as a member. Not only was the content inspiring, but the entire event took place with military precision. Best wishes to the scholars and congratulations to the committee.