Student scholarships fund education

VANCOUVER—A group of restaurant and hospitality students received a share of $22,000 in scholarship money handed out recently by the B.C. Hospitality Foundation.

Eleven students, currently enrolled in a number of post-secondary institutions in the province, each pocketed $2,000 to help pay for their industry education.

In a statement, one of the winners, April Erickson, a student at Okanagan College in Kelowna, said the scholarship money means “made the right decision when I chose to be a hospitality major and not a finance major.”

She called the scholarship “unforgettable and career changing.”

In addition to Erickson, the 2009 winners are: Yuri Perez Gonzales, University of Victoria; Laura Brown, North Island College; Chris Blois, Selkirk College; Niranjala Storm, Camosun College; Lillie Turner, Thompson Rivers University; Daniel Gibbs, Vancouver Community College; Kirsten Wolff, Douglas College; Robin Phelan, Royal Roads; Caitlin Mayo, Vancouver Community College; and Shannon Callanan, Vancouver Island University.

Michael Willingham became the inspiration behind the creation of the B.C. Hospitality Foundation in 2006, following the wine agent’s stroke in 2005.

Foundation funds are raised through an annual golf tournament, the Founder’s Dinner, the Chilean Wine Festival and a fishing derby.

Along with handing our bursaries and scholarships, the goal is to create a $1.5 million endowment to assist members of British Columbia’s hospitality and foodservice industry in times of need.