Letter: Meeker grads say thanks for help in winning scholarship

“A scholarship from Kendall College in Chicago, Ill., will be presented to the team with the highest score in the competition. Please welcome Sage Chapin and Elissa McLaughlin on stage to accept this honor.”
We stood there wide-eyed and shocked when our names were spoken into the microphone. Someone had to nudge us toward the stage before we realized we had won the National Entrepreneurship FCCLA competition in Nashville, Tenn. It wasn’t until later that we understood why we won.
We poured our hearts and souls into the project and we had gained so much support and help from the community. There are so many people we would like to thank.
First of all, we would like to thank the staff at Meeker High School. Mrs. Carly Thompson and Mrs. Etchart, thank you for providing us with all the necessary steps needed to go to the national competition. Mrs. Kelley, we never would have made it if you hadn’t checked our entire project for grammatical and spelling errors. Mrs. DeVore-Wedding and Mrs. Washburn, your continual support and thoughtfulness was carried with us through this entire experience.
Our next big thank you goes out to Megan and Becky Ridings. You both are so special to us and you were in our hearts as we went on stage to receive our award.
Also, we would like to show gratitude towards The Bistro on Park Avenue. Your time and effort helped us earn a lot of the money that sent us to Nashville. Furthermore, we are so grateful for the money that the Meeker School Board, the Meeker Chamber of Commerce, the Cooley Zagar-Brown law firm and Bellco Credit Union donated to help us pay for our trip.
Of course, this experience would not be possible without the understanding and love from our parents. We want to let you know that we love you and are thankful for you.
Overall, we would like to say thank you to everyone who donated money and spent time helping us improve our project. Without the support of our community we would have never made it as far as we did. Thank you.
Elissa McLaughlin and Sage Chapin
Meeker