Rotary Awards Scholarships To Five High School Seniors

Five graduating seniors have been awarded college scholarships by the Rotary Club of Lakewood and Rocky River. They are (from left) Kim Banak, Johana Guci, Nayfeh Mahmoud, and Nathanial White from Lakewood High School, and Youssef Salama from Rocky River High School.

Five students have been awarded college scholarships by the Rotary Club of Lakewood and Rocky River.

They are graduating seniors Kim Banak, Johana Guci, Nayfeh Mahmoud, and Nathanial White from Lakewood High School, and Youssef Salama from Rocky River High School. Each will receive a $3,000 award from the Lakewood-Rocky River Rotary Foundation. The $15,000 scholarship program is part of over $60,000 that the Rotary club donates to the community each year.

In addition to demonstrating academic achievement and potential, these five Rotary scholarship winners were chosen for their character, as well as extracurricular and community involvement.

Kim Banak was a four-year member of the Ranger Marching Band. She was recognized as the Outstanding Student in Health Careers at Lakewood High School’s West Shore Career Technical Center. She was a leader in the school’s Home Alone program in which high school students help younger students learn how to be safe at home while parents are still at work. Kim will pursue premedical and biology studies at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, PA.

Johana Guci has expressed her appreciation for opportunities as a recent immigrant by being deeply involved in her high school’s “Help to Others” (H2O) service club. Her scholastic achievement at Lakewood and at Tri-C has earned her membership in the National Honor Society. Johana will study biochemistry at Case Western Reserve University.

Nayfeh Mahmoud has taken advantage of Ohio’s College Credit Plus program to satisfy her high school requirements and earn nearly two years of college course credit. At the same time, she volunteers at numerous charity and cultural events. Nayfeh will study nursing at Cleveland State University.

Youssef Salama sought to become a well-rounded student at Rocky River High School with extracurricular involvement in band and varsity tennis. He also held down part-time jobs while volunteering at his church and Fairview Hospital. “Life is too short for negativity,” he states as his motto for living. Youssef will study business at Loyola University in Chicago.

Nathanial White balanced academics, part-time employment, and extracurricular activities in his successful high school career. That included serving as captain of Lakewood’s varsity bowling team for which he set new school records. Nathanial will study cybersecurity at Baldwin Wallace University.

The Rotary Club of Lakewood and Rocky River is part of Rotary International, a worldwide organization of more than 1.2 million business, professional, and community leaders. Members of Rotary clubs (known as Rotarians) provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world.

There are 33,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas. Clubs are nonpolitical, nonreligious, and open to all cultures, races, and creeds. As signified by the motto "Service Above Self," Rotary’s main objective is service — in the community, in the workplace, and throughout the world. To learn more, visit www.rotary.org.