Hendrick Scholarship Foundation changes up The Event for 2010

After 19 years, the Hendrick Scholarship Foundation is changing things up for its annual Event, set for March 22. The 2010 Taste of Elegance fundraiser, formerly banquet-style, will take on a taste of format similar to past Taste of Plano events but with the elegance of the original Event fundraiser. It will begin with a 6 p.m. reception followed by the dinner program at 7 p.m. at Southfork Ranch, 3700 Hogge Road in Parker.

Event planners expect to have 12-15 local restaurants participating, including III Forks, Buca Di Beppo, Roy's, Bavarian Grill and Urban Crust. Tickets are $75 per person and reservations are required by Feb. 15.

The foundation, named for former Plano Independent School District Superintendent Dr. H. Wayne Hendrick, provides college scholarships for disadvantaged students who have overcome adversity and who dream of going to college. This year, Hendrick supports 61 students who, along with financial need, have overcome significant adversities in their lives in order to graduate from high school and are motivated to go to college.

“Our students have stories of perseverance and while each has a unique life story, I’ve found that what they have in common is that they didn’t have the luxury of going through a typical adolescence,” said Marcy Wilson, Executive Director of the Hendrick Scholarship Foundation. “They typically started working when they were children and, as a result, as they moved through school and did not have the typical teenage experience. Their families depended on their income for survival.”

She said since they had to work to support themselves and their families, they were not able to focus on their studies or to participate in extracurricular activities. So they were not able to be competitive in applying for other scholarships since their GPAs may not have been the highest and they did not have a resume of extracurricular activities.

“They were working, and we recognize that and we want to give scholarships to kid who may not have been competitive with other kids but that's because they were in survival mode,” Wilson said. “Some were homeless. Others don't have parents. Others have parents that are not fulfilling that role in their lives.”

Wilson said right now their focus is on Plano students but the long term goal is to be able to offer scholarships to kids all over Collin County.

Because most of the scholarship recipients are the first in their families to attend college, the foundation also offers mentoring as well as referrals for material needs.

Wilson said as students movie into four-year schools, their tuitions increase.

“The good news is they're doing well and moving on up. The bad news is it's more of a burden for us,” Wilson said. “With the recent economy donors are stretched thin so their donation amounts have dropped.”

For information and tickets, call 972-423-2079 or visit www.hendrickscholarship.org

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