The Renton Community Foundation recently awarded $37,500 in scholarships to 15 students.

An awards ceremony was held in their honor, with about 50 people in attendance at the foundation’s offices, to hear the stories of the award recipients and the donors.

“Several people became teary-eyed,” said Lynn Bohart, Executive Director. “Especially when Brad Carlson talked about his step-mother, Sue Carlson, who worked for the City for many years in business development.”

A scholarship set up in Sue Carlson’s name was given to young women pursuing a career in business or marketing. The Sue Carlson Memorial Scholarship was given to Nicole Cowan for her entrepreneurial spirit, a press release stated.

Cowan is the current Lindbergh High School Associated Student Body president, a Distributive Education Careers of America (DECA) and Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) student.

Pam Gidlund, presented three awards in honor of her son, Jeremy, who was killed in an accident in 2007. Jeremy graduated from Lindbergh High School and had gone on to Renton Technical College to study welding. Because he struggled with a learning disability, the scholarship in his name is awarded to students with diagnosed learning disabilities who want to go on to college. This year’s winners were Kelvin Ruffer, Jada Rogers, and Nikolaus Bautista.

Other scholarships were awarded to: Hannah Gorlick, who won the Carl & Betty Rochet scholarship for communications students; Vincent Viloria, who won the Betty Jacobsen

Scholarship; Talisa Wibmer, for the Dr. Dolores Gibbons Scholarship; and Abigail Negado, who won the Dr. Gary Kohlwes Education Scholarship.

More than $22,000 was also awarded through the Helen Dyrdal Scholarship Fund to Julia Olszewski, Breeann Loya, Anna Patti, David Trinh, Anna Graklanoff, Anna Cannata, and Katie Hancock.