A Brief History of SSSF, the Senior Scribes and the Teens they helped Darke County Ohio

Senior Scribes Scholarship Fund (SSSF) Scholarships Awarded
Plus Awards from Readers and CNO

More than $17,000 in Tuition Scholarships have been awarded to deserving Darke County Teens working toward college degrees in Communications-related fields. Many of these young people have been active in the Darke County Teen Advocates, Darke County Teen Scribes and County News Online. All have been helped by SSSF Fundraisers, County News Online and its Sponsors, and the "Friends" who have followed their accomplishments over the years.

On their behalf, County News Online is proud to say "THANK YOU" to each and every one of you.

To download a Scholarship Application, click here.
To download a County News Online Fact Sheet, click here.

Return to the CNO Sponsors page by clicking here.

Jordan Pridemore, Franklin Monroe High School

Jordan was Teen Advocate Editor from 2005 to 2008. Jordan’s weekly columns attracted a huge audience of Advocate readers as she prepared for a career in journalism with a degree from Ball State University. During her college career she interned at the Dayton Daily News. Since that time Jordan’s plans have evolved into a more personal level of service as she will be graduating in 2012 with a double degree: English and English as a Second Language. She received Scholarship money from a grateful community in 2008, and SSSF Scholarships in 2009 and 2010.

Margaret Prakel, Versailles High School

Margaret Prakel was the 2011 recipient of the Debbie & Darrel Biddlestone Fred Wright Memorial Scholarship. Margaret is seeking a Communications degree at Notre Dame.

Elizabeth Horner, Greenville High School

Elizabeth is a talented young writer whose dream is to be a novelist. Although she mentioned recently that she was first "published" with a poem when she was six, she actually began her publishing career at the age of nine with a front page Greenvlle Advocate story about Memorial Day. She was the Advocate's FunDay Bunch editor, a Teen Advocate, founder of a Read to Succeed program, a Coach for the Greenville 7th and 8th grade Power of the Pen teams and writes on a regular basis for County News Online's Teen Scribes pages. Elizabeth received a full scholarship at American University, New York, in Creative Writing and will spendi her first year of college in England. She received a special award from County News Online for her writing and service to the Greenville Community.

Jessica Transue, Greenville High School

Jessica is a talented young photographer who covered a variety of events for County News Online in 2011. She also created the rotating banners that readers see at the top of CNO Topic pages. In her senior year at GHS, she built and maintained Digital Waves, IMTV’s sub-domain on County News Online. The site was updated daily with news and events at Greenville High School. She plans to attend Edison Community College while preparing for a Communications degree at an as yet undecided four-year institution. Jessica received Debbie & Darrel Biddlestone's Fred Wright Memorial Scholarship in 2012.

Kayla Lemar, Home School

Kayla led the Teen Advocates after Jordan left for Ball State. Her dream was to be a novelist. She attended Edison Community College and Bowling Green before deciding that writing would be an avocation as she answered a call to serve through her faith. Kayla was a scholarship recipient in 2011.

Sam Armstrong, Mississinawa Valley High School

Sam, a 2010 graduate, is an English Communications major at Cedarville University and has been a regular contributor to County News Online’s Teen Scribes pages. He has received SSSF scholarships in 2010, 2011 and 2012.

Kent Holmes, Greenville High School

Kent was third in his graduating class in 2011. In addition he was President of the GHS Key Club and involved in a variety of other student organizations and activities, including the high school’s drama group. He and fellow senior Simon Hoying produced and directed a series of videos and stage performances, many of which were presented to the public. He is a sophomore in Communications at Ball State University. He has received scholarships in 2011 and 2012.

Simon Hoying, Greenville High School

Simon and Kent are working together at Ball State on their Communications degrees. In addition to their work while at GHS, they have a weekly radio show that they produce for the Ball State student population. Simon received scholarships in 2011 and 2012.

Jessica Barga, Versailles High School

Jessica will be beginning her sophomore year at Miami University in Communications this year. She received a scholarship in 2011.

Tiffany Beimer, Greenville High School

Tiffany was a Teen Advocate during her junior and senior years and attended Edison Community College in preparation for Communications degree. She received a scholarship in 2011.

John Liette, Ansonia High School

John Liette is the recipient of the inaugural Delbert & Louise Blickenstaff Scholarship. John was chosen for the 2012 award because, according to Blickenstaff, he has overcome hearing challenges to achieve academic excellence.

Ashley Studebaker, Franklin Monroe High School

Ashley is planning to pursue a career in sports writing. She approached County News Online about writing for the News & Information site in January. Since then, she has published a number of articles for both sports and community news. She is a 2012 scholarship recipient.