After hearing from several strong applicants across the region, Nationals Member for Euroa Annabelle Cleeland has announced the recipients of her Kokoda Trek Scholarship.
St Mary’s College student Chloe Butterworth has been named as the Kilmore Racing May Semple Kokoda Scholarship recipient, while Euroa Secondary College’s Amber McNally will receive the Jack Dawson Kokoda Memorial Scholarship.
The two Year Eleven students will both receive a scholarship of $6300 that will go towards a Kokoda Trek with ‘Adventure Kokoda’ in the July school holidays (July 3-13).
Ms Cleeland said she was proud to support an initiative that would provide local students with a once in a lifetime opportunity.
“Through this scholarship, two outstanding local students will now have the opportunity to trek the Kokoda Trail this year and walk in the footsteps of our local veterans,” Ms Cleeland said.
“During the trek, they will learn of the immense sacrifice made by our local war heroes, teaching them about the impact these people had towards protecting the lives and freedoms we relish today.
“I want to congratulate Chloe and Amber on receiving this scholarship, they are incredibly deserving recipients and I’m sure they will have the trip of a lifetime.”
Ms Cleeland said there were several worthy applicants for the scholarship, and thanked all the sponsors and everyone involved in the interview process for assisting with the difficult decision.
“Ensuring that our younger generations continue to learn and understand about our incredible history is so important and it was incredible to see so many young people eager to participate,” Ms Cleeland said.
“It was incredibly difficult limiting this opportunity to just two students as the quality of applicants were so high.
“Representatives from our local RSLs including Frank York (Euroa), Matt McLaughlin (Seymour), and Paul Hartland (Benalla) were all so generous with their time and ensured the recipients understood the importance of our military history.
“The Kokoda Scholarships are made possible thanks to the generosity of Kilmore Racing Club and the Seymour Club – I’d like to thank them for their generous contribution and commitment to our nation’s history.
Kilmore Racing Club CEO Ben Murphy said he was incredibly proud to support the scholarship.
“Being able to support an initiative like this scholarship is something our racing club and board is very proud of,” Mr Murphy said.
“These students will now have an opportunity to learn about our wartime history by embarking on a once in a lifetime journey on the Kokoda Trail.
“I can’t wait to hear about their incredible experience.”
