Foundation Awards Scholarships to Fifty-Four Top Students and Mourns Another Tremendous Loss

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The Cook Family Foundation continues to support the best and brightest students to attend the University of Michigan. From ten high schools in the greater Shiawassee area, 54 students have been awarded scholarships to the University of Michigan. This year the scholarships awarded by the Foundation, the University of Michigan, and others totaled over $1,259,000.

Emily Smith of Chesaning Union High School was awarded the Bruce and Jacqueline Cook Scholarship, one of the highest accolades in the greater Shiawassee County region. This scholarship, has been funded separately by Bruce and Jacqueline Cook, provides four years of tuition to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, with a value in excess of $65,000.

Emily Smith was the 19th recipient of the Bruce and Jacqueline Cook Scholarship.  She is the daughter of Brad and Melica Smith and Allen and Amy Maier. Emily is the co-valedictorian of her class at Chesaning Union High School.  She was also on the president’s list at delta college where she was dually enrolled.  She was the president of the national honor society, the drive coach of the robotics team, the founder of the Student Voice Team, and the Saginaw Youth Ambassador.  Emily was also asked to join the behavior support network in Saginaw County which is actively working towards better mental health support, resources and education for the community.  Emily is enrolled in the College of Literature, Sciences and the Arts with plans to major in chemistry, biology, or psychology–with plans to work in the criminal investigation field- primarily criminal psychology.

The 2023 Bruce and Jacqueline Cook four-year, full-tuition scholarship winner is Emily Smith of Chesaning High School, flanked by (from left) Tom Cook Executive Director of the Cook Family Foumdation, and the event’s featured speaker, Carol Hutchins, retired University of Michigan softball team coach. Photo Credit: DLP Photographic


In recognition of the Foundation’s benefactor, the Donald Cook Scholarship was awarded to seven students this year:  Tanner Cummings (Owosso), Zachary David (Durand), Abigail Dryer (Owosso), Cassidy Flick (Perry), Payton Gutting (Morrice), Mya LaMay (Owosso) and Marisa Rose (Owosso). The Donald Cook Scholarship, endowed by the Cook Family Foundation, is awarded by the University of Michigan to a student attending the College of LS&A and is worth $20,000.  Donald Cook was a 1924 graduate of the University of Michigan who established the Foundation with his wife Florence-etta in 1978.  

The 2023 Donald Cook Scholarship recipients are (from left): Marisa Rose (Owosso), Abigail Dryer, Cassidy Flick (Perry), Payton Gutting , Tanner Cummings (Owosso), Mya LaMay (Owosso), and Zacary David. Executive Director, Tom Cook (Center). Photo Credit: DLP Photographic

Tanner Cummings of Owosso High School is the son of April Cummings-Holley.  He is a Shiawassee Scholar, a three-year Academic Achievement Award winner, and has participated in Track and Field, Robotics, Drama, the Jazz Band and was a Marching Band Squad Leader.  Tanner plans to major in political science and minor in economics to eventually become a  labor/employment lawyer.

Zachary David of Durand High School is the son of Chad and Nickole David.  He was a member of the National Honor Society and was on the All-A Honor Roll, a recipient of the school’s Honor Pin and lettered in academics.  Zach is the recipient of a University of Michigan HAIL Scholarship and has a future goal of becoming an Actuarial Scientist or work in the field of General Mathematics.

Abigail Dryer of Owosso High School is the daughter of Jessica McClung and Bryan and Mackenzie Dryer.  She is a Shiawassee Scholar, the Student Government Treasurer, and the class president and Salutatorian.  Abigail has participated in the National Honors Society in both the Symphony and Marching Band, Madrigals Choir, Drama Club, Competitive Dance, and is an assistant dance teacher at Spirit Expressions Studio of Dance.  She is a Lebowsky Center for Performing Arts volunteer and is very active in her church, Gracepointe Wesleyan Church. Abigail is the recipient of a University of Michigan Regents Merit award, and is planning to major in Psychology. 

Cassidy Flick of Perry High School is the daughter of Barbara Flick.  She is a Shiawassee Scholar and recipient of Honor Roll, Academic, Attendance and Teacher’s Choice Awards.  Cassidy was also a participant in the Shiawassee Regional Service District’s Teacher Cadet Program, National Honor Society, Varsity Volleyball and coached youth volleyball.  Cassidy is a recipient of U of M’s HAIL Scholarship and has plans for a future in upper elementary or secondary education, specializing in math and computer science.

Payton Gutting of Morrice High School.  Payton is here with her parents, Glen and Brandy and her brother, Austin.  Payton is a Shiawassee Scholar, and the Salutatorian of her class.  She has logged nearly 70 hours of community service, was the Team Captain of Varsity Volleyball, participated in Track and Field and held the positions of National Honor Society Vice President and Student Council Senior Class Treasurer.  Payton is enrolled in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts to study Pre-Law as a Psychology major.

Mya LaMay of Owosso High School is the daughter of Rusty and Jennifer LaMay. Mya has received scholastic writing awards, and has volunteered with the Steam Railroading Institute– working on the North Pole Express for several years. Mya was also  a competitive swimmer for 11 years–holding the position of Team Captain the last year, and is currently the lead instructor for the Shiawassee Family YMCA daycare. Mya plans to become a doctor in Pathology. 

Marisa Rose of Owosso High School is the daughter of Scott and Becky Rose.  She is a Shiawassee Scholar and the Valedictorian of her class. Marisa is also the recipient of a University of Michigan Regents Merit Scholarship. She has been the  two-year President and one-year Treasurer of the Youth Advisory Council, the club founder and President of the Genes in Diseases and Symptoms Club, the four-year Treasurer of the Class Council, and participant in the National Honor Society, Madrigals and A Capella Choir(s), the Drama Club, the Softball teams (travel and Varsity), and a MiRcore volunteer and more!  Marisa is planning to major in biology with a minor in statistics with plans to become a genetic researcher to help people battling life-altering diseases.

Another special event was the awarding of the second Kuhlman Family Scholarship, funded by UM alumni, Dr. Paul and Kit Kuhlman.  The second recipient is Jonah Smith, the son of Paul and Stacy Smith. Jonah attends Perry High School where he is the National Honor Society President and marching band drum major. He is enrolled at the College of Engineering to study Biomedical Engineering. The Kuhlman Scholarship is administered by the Cook Family Foundation, but funded by the Kuhlman Family.

The second Kuhlman Family Scholarship winner is Jonah Smith, from Perry High School (center), is shown with (from left) his father, Paul Smith, Paul Kuhlman, Kit Kuhlman, and his mother, Stacy Smith. Photo Credit: DLP Photograpphic


Of the 54 scholarship recipients from the ten area high schools honored, seven are valedictorians,  three are salutatorians of their class, and twenty-one of them are Shiawassee Scholars. Scholarship winners include, from Byron Area High School: Ruby Rittman and Madeline Stark; from Chesaning Union High School, Hannah Cooper, Joshua Sicard, Emily Smith, and Eric Waswick; from Corunna High School: Sydnie Gillett, Laurie Platner, and Isaiah Shook; from Durand Area High School: Mackenzi Aslin, Zachary David, Ethan Garner, Brandon HoptonCiera Justice, Nikitas Kalafatis, David Martin, K’Shawn Phillips, Jillian Reddy, Alaina Rouse, Simon Salaev (2019 Graduate), Hannah Sharkey, Keenan Shephard, Jaxon Smith, Mason Wells, and Molly Winson; from Laingsburg High School:  Haley Cronk, Josephine Keenan, Kathryn Magyar, Sydney Morrill, Casmir Palazzolo, Olivia Rodriguez, and Ian Smith; from Morrice High School:  Savannah Dansby and Payton Gutting Adrianna; from New Lothrop High School:  Tyler Kohlman: from Ovid-Elsie Area High School:  Ryan Gavenda; from Owosso High School:  Claire Agnew, Tanner Cummings, Abigail Dryer, James Elford, Samantha Harris, Fletcher Johnson, Mya LaMay, Liam McGraw, Elizabeth Rood, Marisa Rose, Barbara Shepard, Sydney Somers, John (Jay) Tuttle IV, and Rylie Yeiter; from Perry High School:  Cassidy Flick, Victoria Kilgore, Jonah Smith, and David Zheng.

With these awards, the Foundation has now helped more than 900 students attend the University of Michigan.

Owosso Fellows

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The Cook Family Foundation supports Shiawassee County organizations and University of Michigan students, bringing them together by supporting summer internships with our Owosso Fellows program. Our goal is to bring these talented young people back to our community for a summer’s employment. This helps nonprofits by providing them with the best and the brightest to work on a definable project and helps students by giving them an opportunity to put their skills to work, learn more about their community from a new perspective, and gain additional financial support for their continued education.  We will bring students serving in internships together during the summer to share their experiences and learn from one another.  We will meet in Owosso and investigate this community; hence the name Owosso Fellows (though we will support internships anywhere in the County.)

We are currently seeking University of Michigan students to fill these summer positions, we currently have 6 on our website to choose from, with more continuing to come in!   These internships will be for a minimum of 35 hours a week for at least 10 weeks; with the potential to extend this engagement.  Students will receive at least $15 per hour for their work.  If interested, simply contact the organization to discuss details.

Take a look at our Fellows page to see the opportunities available.

Here are testimonials from a few past Fellows talking about their experiences:

Cook Family Foundation was the summer home of Michigan State University Freshman and recent Owosso High School graduate, Jena Samson. Jena was responsible for re-organizing and scanning files from 2015-2022. As well as taking scholarship applications from 1980-2022 and making sure the correct information was in our student database system, as well as updating the student database system getting ready for the upcoming 2023 seniors. She has also been shadowing Kerry Dutcher (office manager) on learning how to do  payroll, write up grant agreements, and organize the Shiawassee Internship Fellow process. “Having this opportunity to see business from a different perspective was very important for me to see. In the past  I have seen how corporate businesses are run and seeing how a non-profit is run has been an amazing experience for me! I am so happy I got to experience this amazing non-profit and what they do in action. I am glad I got to make so many wonderful connections with the people here. I am looking forward to taking what I have learned this summer and applying it to my future work experiences!”

Memorial Healthcare Center provided an opportunity to Shayne Loynes, a junior at the University of Michigan and graduate of Ovid-Elsie High School, a unique experience this summer. He spent his summer doing clinical research, shadowing doctors and pharmacists, and the Nfl studies. During the Nfl study he received training on how to consent patients so he was able to also consent and enroll a number of patients into the study. Shayne is majoring in Biochemistry. Having an internship at Memorial Healthcare has given Shayne a different outlook on his career goals. “All in all, my research experience was absolutely incredible. I loved every part of my journey here at Memorial Healthcare and couldn’t be more thankful for all the relationships I made. I am looking forward to taking what I’ve learned and applying it to my future studies!”

Shiawassee Economic Development Partnership gave Callum Holley a University of Michigan-Flint sophomore and Ovid-Elsie Alum a chance to learn ins and outs of an Economic Development Partnership. Callum is studying Political Science. Callum’s main objective was research, some examples are: The Federal and state governments, The Michigan economic Development Corporation, The International Economic Development Corporation, The United States Economic Development Agency, etc. Shiawassee Economic Development Partnership has given Callum a more in depth look of how these Nonprofits are run. “I have felt really valued in my position, and I would say the best part has been having the privilege to sit in on both our regular Monday morning staff meetings, and childcare meetings with the SEDP board. We at the SEDP are people who accomplish great things, and it has been an honor to see many of our programs come to fruition, with an impact that has really helped our county. I cannot thank everyone at SEDP enough for the opportunities they have given me, and I cannot wait to bring the skills I learned this summer to both U of M, and my future career.

 

 

 

We Mourn the Passing of Bruce Cook

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It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of the Foundation’s President, Bruce Cook.  A formal  obituary and announcement of services is available here

Bruce Cook was born December 30, 1928 at Memorial Healthcare in Owosso, the son of Donald and Florence-Etta “Cookie” Cook, the benefactors of the Cook Family Foundation. He graduated in 1946 from Owosso High School and attended the University of Michigan where he earned bachelor’s (1950) and master’s (1951) degrees in Business Administration. He was married to Jacqueline in La Jolla, California on April 25, 1953, while serving as a US Navy officer during the Korean War.

After a career as a homebuilder in Port Huron and Niles, he returned to Owosso in 1971 to join his father at Wolverine Sign Works.  Bruce was instrumental in the creation of the Cook Family Foundation in 1978, and assisted his parents with the Foundation’s first grants, and helped the Foundation in 1997-98 absorb the estate gift of Donald Cook and appoint Tom Cook as the first Executive Director of the Foundation. Upon his retirement from Wolverine Sign in 2009, he volunteered as the full-time President of the Cook Family Foundation.

Throughout the 44-year history of the Foundation, Bruce actively recruited students to the University of Michigan, and helped award more than 885 scholarships to students from the greater Shiawassee County region. Separately from the Foundation, Bruce and Jackie Cook award an annual four-year, full tuition scholarship to the University of Michigan.  There have been 18 recipients of this scholarship and through the cooperation of the Foundation, Jackie Cook, and the University of Michigan, this scholarship will continue.

Bruce was a founding board member of the Shiawassee Economic Development Partnership, and an emeritus board member of the Shiawassee Family YMCA.  He believed strongly in the work of local nonprofit organizations, and volunteered–and personally donated to–a large number of community and civic causes.

A celebration of Bruce’s life and his charitable work was held on  Sunday, October 30 at the Performing Arts Center at Owosso High School. See the Celebration of Life Slideshow – Bruce Cook (credit DLP David-Lorne Photographic) and/or Photos taken during Celebration of Life event (credit Harley J Seeley Photography).

Memorial contributions in Bruce’s name may be made to Christ Episcopal Church or the Shiawassee Family YMCA.