(Effingham, Illinois – June 12, 2023) Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation is honored to announce the 2023 Elizabeth Ann Weidner Memorial Scholarship awardees.

Joleen Deters is a 2023 graduate of Teutopolis High School. Joleen has been awarded a $1,000 scholarship and plans to attend Lake Land College to study agriculture.

Ashley Seegmiller is a 2023 graduate of Arthur Lovington Atwood Hammond High School. Ashley has been awarded a $500 scholarship and will be attending Southern Illinois University – Carbondale to begin pursuing a physician assistant degree.

Applicants of the Elizabeth Ann Weidner Memorial Scholarship must be high school seniors pursuing a Secondary Education preferably in the areas of health, agriculture, or the arts but not limited to those areas. Special consideration given to families affected by cancer. The recipient of this scholarship must exhibit high qualities of character to be worthy of the award.

Elizabeth first and foremost was a faithful servant of God, she valued her family and friends, she worked tirelessly as a childhood cancer advocate at the local/state/national level despite her own battles with the disease from the age of 12 until her death at 17. Service to others was a core principle for Elizabeth in her daily life pursuits. Given the chance she intended to become a pediatric oncology nurse.

The Elizabeth Ann Weidner Memorial Scholarship is a fund of the Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation. Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation manages more than 200 funds for the immediate and long-term benefit of communities in southeastern Illinois. For more information, contact Alex Pleasant, President/CEO of Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation, at 217-342-4988 alex@southeasternillinois.org.

Photos L – R: Joleen Deters, Ashley Seegmiller

Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation was established in 2009 as a result of a merger between the Effingham County Community Foundation (est. 1999) and the Mattoon Area Community Foundation (est. 1980). Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization managing permanent and non-permanent assets for the long-term benefit of communities in southeastern Illinois.

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