Recipients recognized

Those who earned scholarships for their commitment to education were honored during the 50th Annual Community Scholarship Awards Ceremony in the Knox Center Friday.

The free event, hosted by the Contra Costa College Foundation, celebrated a total of 71 students who received their grant certificates in front of an audience of faculty, staff, donors and family members.

"It's very moving," Martin Padilla Memorial Scholarship recipient Chinda Thach said. "It's my first scholarship."

Thach will be attending San Francisco State in the fall semester and said that receiving the $1,000 grant will help her purchase books and supplies during tough economic times.

"I'm living check-to-check," she said. "This scholarship will help me start off right at a four-year school."

Since nearly 400 students applied for the extra financial support, all grants made available by the Foundation were awarded to students in particular need this year, Scholarship Coordinator Jimmy Cox said.

The event opened with an introduction by college President McKinley Williams and Foundation President Eric Zell. The two soon began presenting the awards to the preselected recipients, of which 18 did not attend the event.

The Foundation gave out nearly $100,000 in grant money to the winners, Zell said.

"The whole purpose of our Foundation is to give out scholarships to students who need extra help, particularly students who have lots of other things going on," he said. "We want to give them every opportunity to succeed."

Recipients had the chance to prepare short speeches that were read aloud by either Williams or Zell onstage. The students then proceeded to collect their certificates and take a seat before another person was called up.

To break from the cycle, two speeches were presented to the audience and students during different parts of the night before all the winners were awarded.

First, Sikia Blue, a student who received the Granzella "Re-entry Mom" Scholarship, spoke of the challenges she faces as a student pursuing further education while being a single mother of three children. She also talked about the challenges many other students face during their time in college.

"We have all overcome different obstacles to get where we've come today," Blue said.

Blue also received the Martin Padilla Memorial Scholarship and the Kennedy-King Scholarship and said the grants will aid her once she graduates from CCC.

The second speech was made by automotive services department Chairman Peter Lock, who also presented the Benefactor of the Year award. This year, the award went to Mike Rose of Mike Rose's Autobody in Walnut Creek for aiding the college when it faced program budget cuts throughout the years.

The event came to an end with closing remarks from Williams and Zell before students were given the chance to meet their donors during a reception in the lobby where snacks and drinks were served by the culinary arts department.

"We don't want any student not able to succeed, because they can't afford it," Zell said. "We don't want money to be the reason."

Contact Sam Attal at sattal.advocate@gmail.com.