Ray scholarships awarded to area students

Inland Northwest Community Foundation (INWCF) recently awarded $3,000 from the David L. and Frances G. Ray Scholarship Fund to three area students.

This year’s recipients are: Jacob Saetre, a 2016 graduate of Lind-Ritzville High School, who will attend Washington State University; Connor O’Neill who will be a junior at Washington State University, and Jazlynn Webb, a 2016 graduate of LaCrosse High School, who will attend Montana State University.

Gerald Ray, who has deep family roots in Ralston and its surrounding communities, established this scholarship fund at INWCF in 2002. His parents, David L. and Frances G. Ray, owned a small farm in Washtucna.

They also owned a grocery store there, and another one in Ralston, next to the Ralston Grange Hall. Jerry Ray was born in the back of that grocery store in 1935, and attended school at the two-room schoolhouse in Ralston.

The strong sense of community that grew from Ray’s childhood is one reason why he established the David L. and Frances G. Ray Scholarship fund at INWCF to benefit high school seniors at Lind-Ritzville, Washtucna and LaCrosse high schools.

The fund has granted out more than $42,000 to deserving students since it was established. Founded in 1974, INWCF serves 10 Eastern Washington counties and 10 North Idaho counties to foster vibrant and sustainable communities in the Inland Northwest.

The community foundation currently manages more than 440 funds valued at nearly $94 million and has awarded over $58 million in grants and scholarships since its inception. The organization positively impacts thousands of people every year by connecting people who care with causes that matter.

For more information on INWCF and its work in the community, visit http://www.inwcf.org.