Western Kansas Community Foundation
GARDEN CITY – Western Kansas Community Foundation (WKCF) is awarding 71 scholarships from 18 different funds totaling $188,050 for the 2026/2027 school year, with more awards to be determined throughout the summer.
In addition, the foundation makes distributions from several designated funds for the purpose of providing scholarships. This year, a total of $78,169.43 will go directly to the Garden City Community College Endowment Association for the purpose of providing scholarships.
These distributions are made from the Mildred Henselman Fund ($39,998.43), the Erdene Corley Scholarship Fund ($12,190), the Henry & Nellie Hall Fund ($14,000), the K.O. & Ruth Powell Fund ($5,980), and the Otis & Mary Lee Molz Fund for Kearny County ($5,960).
“Scholarships are one of the most meaningful ways we connect generosity with opportunity,”said Stacie Hahn, WKCF Program & Marketing Director. “As we celebrate 30 years of serving Southwest Kansas, we're proud to honor the donors who have invested in students and helped create pathways to education, career success, and stronger communities. Every scholarship awarded reflects a belief in the future of our region and the people who will help shape it.”
Several scholarships held by the WKCF are reviewed by external review committees based on guidelines set by the donors; others are reviewed directly by the Community Foundation board, with awards generally made once per year in May. Of all the scholarship funds held by the WKCF, the following awards have been made so far this year:
1. Anna & May Rosel Scholarship (for students who will or have already graduated from Ulysess High School) – $5,300 each to Aaliyah Figgins, Addison Bergeron, Arabella Ashby, Baylor Deyoe, Becca Yafa, Cami Kenny, Chloe Curl, Dulce Ramirez, Elyzabeth Nunez, Emily Nunez, Hayden Gaddis, Lily Cowan, Natalie Franco, Nixon Keeler, Paloma Soto, Preston Hittle, Samantha Scott, Sara Watson, Stephanie Garcia, Yehosua Hernandez Diaz, Yoselyn Lerma, Yuliana Gonzalez
2. Bernadine Sitts Scholarship (for senior graduates who attended Bernadine Sitts Intermediate Center) – $1,500 each to Ava Luna, Shar Paw, and Trinh Dang
3. Bob Krug Memorial Scholarship (for students who will or have already graduated from a Finney County high school who have played on the high school tennis team) – $1,170 to Chloe Ptacek (Garden City)
4. Charles Helfrich Memorial Scholarship (for senior graduates of any Gray County high school) – $1,000 each to Jaylee Schilling (Cimarron) and Judith Casas-Galicia (Ensign)
5. Chase Mitchel Webber Memorial Scholarship (for senior graduates of Sublette High School) – $720 to Drake Webber
6. D&L Hewes Scholarship (for senior graduates of any Gray County high school) - $2,000 each to Lakin Gossen and Tigist Greene
7. Duane Nichols Memorial Scholarship (for senior graduates of Holcomb High School) – $500 to Layla Schreibvogel
8. Garden City Wrestling Alumni Scholarship (senior graduates of Garden City High School who participated in wrestling) – $1,000 each to Emjay Marez, Isaiah Ayala, and Kaira Acosta
9. Garret Doll Memorial Scholarship (for senior graduates of Garden City High School who participated in athletics) – $500 to Ava Luna
10. Jan McLeland Memorial Scholarship (for senior graduates of Satanta High School) – $1,450 each to Diamond Wood and Mia Herrada
11. Katherine C. Jones Scholarship (for senior graduates of Holcomb High School) – $1,660 to Isabella Galliart
12. Katherine C. Jones Continuing Ed Scholarship (for former graduates of Holcomb High School who have completed at least their freshman year of college) – $1,490 to Halle Jones.
13. Kline Scholarship (for graduates of Finney, Grant, Gray, Haskell, Kearny or Scott County high schools who will be a junior, senior or post-graduate student pursuing an agriculture, mathematics or science degree) – $1,740 each to Aleah Cervantes (Cimarron), Kami Whipple (Kalvesta), and Kiera Buchholz (Cimarron)
14. Mallory Worf Hernandez Memorial Scholarship (for students who will or have already graduated from Garden City High School) – $1,000 to Vanessa Vazquez, and $750 to Liliana Hernandez
15. Norbert Kevin Irsik Memorial Scholarship (for employees, children, or spouses of employees of Irsik & Doll companies in Kansas) – $1,000 each to Aleah Cervantes (Cimarron), Crystal Casas (Garden City), Emely Abreu Maytime (Cimarron), Estephania Anaya-Lopez (Cimarron), Kiera Buchholz (Cimarron), and Melody Carter (Cimarron)
16. O’Brate Family Scholarship (for senior graduates of Ingalls High School) – $2,000 each to Abigail Rundell, Brogan Sperry, Daniel Stinemetz, DayShawn Dunigan, Demi Wilkinson, Katelynn Sondergaard, Katherine Harper, Kaylee Miller, Max Reist, Moises De La Rosa, Olivia Stein, Peyton Smith, Shae Maxwell, Willow Gerstberger, Xander Christensen, and Yesenia Garfio
17. Ron Peek Memorial Scholarship (for students who are the children of a current or retired employee, or an employee themselves of either Finney County Police Department, Finney County Sheriff Department, Finney County Fire Department, Finney County EMS, or State Troopers residing in Finney County) – $1,000 each to Chloe Ptacek (Garden City), Dylan Luna (Leoti), and Tigist Greene (Cimarron)
18. Tanner Dean Born Memorial Scholarship (for senior graduates of Holcomb High School) – $1,040 to Brody Deniston
The staff of WKCF always welcome visits with donors or those interested in contributing to an existing scholarship fund. The next scholarship deadline is May 1, 2027.
To learn more about the application process visit the WKCF Web site at www.wkcf.org, call 620-271-9484 or stop by the office at 402 N. Main Street in downtown Garden City.
