The Harold VanBerkum Memorial Scholarship will be awarded for the first time this April to a graduating high school student in Whatcom County who plans to pursue a career in agriculture
Lynden, WA – Whatcom Family Farmers has endowed a permanent scholarship with the Whatcom Dollars for Scholars, a program of Whatcom Community Foundation, to support Whatcom County students studying to pursue a career in agriculture.
The scholarship is named for Harold VanBerkum, a lifelong dairy farmer and founding board member of Whatcom Family Farmers who passed away in December of 2020 after a short battle with cancer.
“This scholarship is a great way for us to honor Harold’s legacy and the work he did for the farming community, and also help provide avenues for the next generation of leaders in agriculture to succeed” said Rich Appel, president of Whatcom Family Farmers.
The Harold VanBerkum Memorial Scholarship will award $1000 each year to a senior graduating from a Whatcom County high school who is planning a course of study at a technical college, community college or university to pursue a career in agriculture. Preference will be given to students who participated in 4-H or FFA, and financial need will be considered.
Gavin Willis, Outreach Director at Whatcom Family Farmers, said “Providing access to scholarships like this can help us preserve the future of family farms in our area by reducing barriers to access for potential farmers, and can encourage young people to look at a potential career in the field of agriculture that they might not have otherwise considered.”
Students interested in applying for the award should visit the Whatcom Community Foundation’s scholarship page at whatcom.dollarsforscholars.org. Scholarship applications close on February 24th, and the scholarship winner will be announced in late April.
