Courtesy photo Bark River seniors fill out the Elks Scholarship Application, pictured, left, Brianne Mlostek, Elk Art Rogers, Kaylin Johnson, Jace Briggs, Marissa Derouin and Elk Scholarship Chairman John Pickard.

ESCANABA — The Local Escanaba Elks Most Valuable Scholarship judging committee is happy to report the names of top applicants for the Elks Most Valuable Scholarship from the area schools. Three male winners and three female winners will be advancing to the U.P. District for round two of judging on Jan. 14. The male winners this year were Escanaba Senior Jon Perrault, Gladstone Senior Trevor Aird, and North Central Jet Seth Polfis. The female winners were Escanaba Senior Abigail Fritz, Gladstone Senior Leigha Woelffer, and Escanaba Senior Darby Beckon

All six local winners will receive $100 from the Escanaba Lodge if they fail to advance past the district judging thanks to the scholarship committee and the Escanaba Lodge. All 24 students who applied were winners in our minds. Many thanks again for a very successful year. The upcoming deadline for the Legacy Awards Scholarship is on Feb. 3, 2017 and must completed and submitted online by 1 p.m.

The Elks National Foundation and Escanaba Lodge is pleased to announce its 2016-17 Legacy Awards scholarship contest for children and grandchildren of Elks. The program, which kicked off September 1. Any child or grandchild (or step-child, step-grandchild, or legal ward) of a living Elk who joined the order on or before April 1, 2015, or a charter member of a Lodge that was instituted on or after April 1, 2015, is eligible to apply. The Elk must also be a paid-up member through March 31, 2016. Great-grandchildren are not eligible. Legacy Awards are $4,000 scholarships ($1,000 per year for four years). The Foundation will offer a total of up to 250 awards.

Each year, the Elks National Foundation and the Escanaba Elks Lodge provide millions of dollars in college scholarships to high school seniors like those in the community. To learn more about Elks National Foundation scholarship opportunities, Contact Lodge Elk Chairman John Pickard at 906-428-1920 or visit the Elks website at www.elks.org/enf/scholars