Amelia Island Book Festival
Press Release
Submitted by Mary Grace Herrington
[email protected]
October 11, 2018 11:00 a.m.
The Amelia Island Book Festival announced today the application process for the 2019 Christa Powell Walley Scholarship – a $2,000 award for a college-bound Nassau County high school senior. An important part of the annual Amelia Island Book Festival is awarding the Amelia Island Book Festival Scholarship in memory of the late Christa Powell Walley, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Powell of Fernandina Beach. The Powells support the Festival by sponsoring the scholarship which is dedicated to encouraging writers in their pursuit of a literary career and connecting students with authors and books for lifelong learning.
To be eligible, a student must be a college-bound Nassau County resident, a high school senior in good academic standing, planning to attend a college or university, seeking a degree in English, journalism, creative writing, communications, literature, or related fields, and a citizen of the United States. Applications are due December 31, 2018. Application details can be found at https://ameliaislandbookfestival.org/scholarship-award.
Fernandina Beach High School senior, Catherine Doss, was presented the 2018 Christa Powell Walley Scholarship at the annual book festival luncheon last February. She ranked # 1 in her graduating class of 230. Lauded by her teachers as possessing “impressive intellectual capacity and outstanding academic prowess,” she was a National Honor Society member, outstanding scholar, and a passionate author of short stories and poetry. “It was such an honor to win the book festival scholarship, especially after hearing about the inspiration behind it from Mrs. Powell,” said Doss. “When something you’ve worked hard on receives recognition, it means so much.” Doss is enrolled at Stetson University this fall where she is studying science and English and will pursue a degree in Biology with a minor in English.
About the Amelia Island Book Festival –
Connecting students, authors and books for lifelong learning: It was just 17 years ago that the late Don Parker and his wife Andrea and Joe and Joani Selement had a genius idea. Why not combine the lure of books with our spectacular location? As the idea caught on, they gathered supporters and founded a nonprofit organization to launch the first Amelia Book Island Festival in 2001. Leveraging partnerships and community support through fundraising events, the Festival continues to deliver on its promise to promote and celebrate literacy through books. The Amelia Island Book Festival is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization supported by the community through membership and donations. The 2018-19 Board of Directors includes Mary Grace Herrington, President; Betsy Odom, Vice President; Fran Shea, Treasurer; Marie Fenn, Secretary and John Ruis, Immediate Past President; and Directors Bill Amos, Joelle Crahay, Liz Dunn, Mary Elwell, Barb Heggenstaller, Terry Ramsay, Kim Sartor, Kristi Simpkins and Larry Williams.