Bemidji High School Students Honored With HOBY Scholarship

The Bemidji Lions Club held a ceremony today to honor a few kids from Bemidji High School. Two students were presented with the Hue O’Brian Youth (HOBY) Scholarship with each scholarship worth $650. The girls will also get to attend a leadership conference down in the cities in June. The students were selected because of their leadership qualities and dedication to education. It all starts with a nomination from a BHS staff member.

Steve Caron, a Bemidji Lions Club Board Member says, “Either a faculty member or other person that they’ve worked with at the high school nominates them to be able to apply for the scholarship, and then they’re required to write an essay talking about their goals and what they feel leadership is about.”

After the essay, finalists are invited to an interview where Lions Club board members and staff from BHS select the ultimate winners. Those winners were Ellie Ingals and Katrina Evenwool. At the ceremony, each girl gave a speech about their achievements and what they’re most looking forward to in the future. Last year’s winner Emma Muller also gave a speech. The girls were asked what advice they’d give to younger students.

Ingals says “I hope that they learn to get interested in service and leadership too because it’s honestly a great thing and especially being able to give back to our community.”

Evenwool says, “I just hope that I teach the younger kids just to care about other people and just to think of others before yourself.”

Muller adds, “I’m just hoping people can see that there are different aspects of being a leader. You don’t just have to be a vocal leader. There’s also quiet leaders that are needed also.”

The Bemidji Lions Club has been giving the scholarship out since 2010.