CaroMont Health Foundation Announces 2019 Wayne F. Shovelin Scholarship Winner
During the April meeting of the Gaston College Board of Trustees, the CaroMont Health Foundation named Kyra Monique Rhyne the 2019 winner of the Wayne F. Shovelin Scholarship. Members of the CaroMont Health Foundation Scholarship Committee were there to celebrate Rhyne, her many achievements and present her with the most significant educational contribution of any scholarship award in Gaston County: up to $20,000 each academic year toward her undergraduate studies in a healthcare-related field.
A senior at Gaston Early College High School, the eighteen-year-old maintains a 4.0 grade point average while taking mostly college-level courses. She is an active member of her church and a volunteer for local groups. For the last three years, she has dedicated time to her school’s Student Government Council, and this year, became the council’s first ever high school student elected to serve as President. Because of that position, Rhyne also holds a seat on Gaston College’s Board of Trustees and has been active with both the North Carolina Comprehensive Community College Student Government Association and attended the National Conference on Student Leadership. She has hosted a series of Lunch and Learn workshops for her fellow students, geared toward professional development. Rhyne also holds a part-time job to assist her family, all while coping with the recent loss of her mother, who passed away following a battle with colorectal cancer.
A person of great determination and courage, Rhyne faced her mother’s illness while continuing to study, work and care for her younger brothers. The loss was devastating, but Rhyne refused to give up on her future goals. She will graduate in May at the top of her class and heads Western Carolina University in the fall with a number of college courses already behind her.
“Kyra is an exemplary young woman who has so much potential,” said Janie Peak, CaroMont Health Foundation Board member and Chair of the Scholarship Committee. “She embodies the unique combination of leadership, community involvement and academic excellence that our committee seeks in a recipient. Despite huge personal challenges, she maintains the heart of a tireless and selfless servant, and always puts the needs of others before herself.”
The Wayne F. Shovelin Scholarship, made possible by a generous donation from the Duke Kimbrell family in honor of long-time CaroMont Health CEO, Wayne Shovelin, is highly competitive for local high school students. In addition to the up to $20,000 each year in support for tuition and fees that Rhyne will receive, the scholarship encourages three, paid summer internships at CaroMont Health. These internships offer scholarship recipients the opportunity to learn from healthcare professionals within their specific interest areas and gain early exposure to the wide range of careers available in healthcare.
“All of our applicants are talented and deserving, making our decision extremely difficult,” said Peak. “Our committee is composed of physicians, hospital professionals, college professors, educators and noted community leaders, and all are committed to spending hundreds of hours combing over each of the applications we receive. Finalists are identified and invited to a reception in their honor, and the following day, interviewed by the committee. Kyra’s strength and dedication to her future path really spoke to the members of the committee. She should be very proud of all she has accomplished and will accomplish in her life, and we are extremely proud of her journey to date.”
The Wayne F. Shovelin Scholarship is one of seven scholarship funds made possible by generous donors to the CaroMont Health Foundation. To learn more about the programs and services offered through the Foundation and how you can help, please call 704.834.4034.