The Richard P. Coon Memorial STEM Scholarship was established in 2016 by Mr. Coon’s three children in loving memory of their father and in honor of his dedication to education and his love for Highland County, VA.
Dr. Richard Bolstein and Sharon Adams established their scholarship in 2019 to support Staunton High School graduates in their pursuit of higher education.
Richard “Dick” Alvin Hobbs was born June 19, 1925 in Portsmouth, NH. He served in the United States Navy for two years during World War II and enjoyed a long career as a warehousing manager at Pease Air Force Base in southeastern New Hampshire. He married late in life to Estelle St. Laurent on June 14, 1975 in Barrington, NH. One of eleven children, Estelle was born January 23, 1921 in Epping, NH. Dick and Estelle had no children. After their respective retirements they moved to Waynesboro, Virginia, in 1987. While living in Waynesboro, Dick was a volunteer and active on Afton Mountain with the Tourist Information Center. Dick and Estelle loved their cats and enjoyed reading and travel. Dick Hobbs died June 17, 2008 at the age of 83. He was laid to rest in North Hampton, N.H. Estelle St. Laurent Hobbs died October 12, 2012, at the age of 91 and was also laid to rest in North Hampton.
The R.S. Yeago, Jr. Scholarship was established by CFW Communications Company in honor of the late Robert S. Yeago, Jr. for his many years of leadership with the company and contribution to the local community. Mr. Yeago was born and raised in Middlebrook and attended the Staunton Dunsmore Business College.
The Peter Veglahn Memorial Scholarship serves as a memorial to Peter “Pete” Veglahn who was a long time member of the Shenandoah Valley Society for Human Resource Management (SVSHRM) and a member of the Virginia SHRM State Council. Through Pete’s work on behalf of SHRM and his career as a professor at James Madison University, he made many positive contributions to the advancement of the human resource profession.
Donate
If you would like to make a contribution in loving memory of Peter Veglahn, you may do so online or by mailing a check payable to the Community Foundation to P.O. Box 815, Staunton, VA 24402. Please contact Menieka Garber with any questions at in**@***br.org or 540-213-2150.
Please contact the Community Foundation at 540-213-2150 or mb******@***br.org for additional information and/or clarification.
Norman St. Laurent was born in 1918 in Epping, New Hampshire. He was the 3rd of 11 children of Edmond and Exerina St. Laurent. At the age of 21, and unmarried, Norman enlisted in the Army Air Force in 1940. After his first year of service he was sent to Manila, Philippines, in late 1941, one week prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and was stationed at Clark Army Air Force Base on Luzon Island. Having grown up on the family farm, Norman was quite handy with machinery, which served him well as an aircraft mechanic. Norman’s unit was transferred to the Bataan Peninsula after the beginning of World War II. During the three-month Battle of Bataan, Norman was captured by the Japanese and became one of approximately 70,000 Filipino and American prisoners of war forcibly transferred by the Japanese from Mariveles in the southern end of the Bataan Peninsula to Camp O’Donnell in the north. Along this infamous journey, known as the Bataan Death March, prisoners were forced to first march 55 miles from Mariveles to San Fernando, then travel by train to Capas, where they were again made to march the last eight miles to Camp O’Donnell. Twenty to thirty POWs lost their lives each day along the Bataan Death March. Although Norman survived this horrific ordeal, he subsequently died in a Japanese Prisoner of War camp in Mukden, Manchuria, on December 28, 1942. The St. Laurent family learned of this date as a result of two of Norman’s fellow POWs who engraved Norman’s mess kit with his date of death, location, and other important details to acknowledge the loss of their friend. Incredibly, this mess kit made it to America and to Norman’s family. After the end of the war, Norman’s remains were returned home in 1947. He was the first son of Epping, NH, to die in combat in World War II. The town of Epping named St. Laurent Street in honor of this fallen soldier and his family presented a large framed American flag, dedicated to Norman, which is now prominently displayed in the Epping Town Hall meeting room. On August 8, 2009, Norman’s family received a Purple Heart on his behalf, 67 years after his death, at a memorable ceremony held at the New Hampshire State Veterans Cemetery in Boscawen. The Norman St. Laurent Scholarship was established by his sister, Estelle St. Laurent Hobbs (d. 10/12/12) and her husband, Richard “Dick” A. Hobbs (d. 6/17/08).
The Mustoe-Seybert Family Scholarship was established in 2021 by the family of Robert M. Mustoe to honor the Mustoe and Seybert families’ dedication to education and their Highland County roots.
The Morgan R. Funk Memorial Scholarship was established in 2006 by family and friends, in loving memory of Morgan and in honor of her life. A rising sophomore at Riverheads High School, Morgan loved the outdoors and enjoyed camping and hiking.
The Michael E. Ruckman, Jr. Memorial Scholarship has been established at the Community Foundation of the Central Blue Ridge by family and friends, in loving memory of Mike and in honor of his life. Mike graduated from Fort Defiance High School (Class of 1986) and James Madison University (Class of 1991) and taught Physical Education at Waterman Elementary School until his retirement earlier this year. He coached the Harrisonburg High School golf team for 25 years.
Mike loved his family and friends, teaching children, coaching, and JMU (especially JMU football). He was particularly fond of the students he taught over the years and enjoyed seeing them succeed at whatever they set out to accomplish.
Donate
If you would like to make a contribution in loving memory of Mike, you may do so online or by mailing a check payable to the Community Foundation to P.O. Box 815, Staunton, VA 24402. Please contact Menieka Garber with any questions at in**@***br.org or 540-213-2150.
