Summary
VFS-HRC has selected three phenomenal high school seniors for the Chapter Scholarship awards. Taylor Mowery, Alice Fang, and Kyle Ray were each chosen for their exemplary leadership, scholarship, and community service experiences. They are excellent representatives of the next generation of STEM scholars, and the VFS-HRC Chapter looks forward to tracking their future successes.
The Robert Powell Scholarship
The Robert Powell Scholarship was established to honor the long-time treasurer of the Hampton Roads Chapter whose stewardship of the chapter’s financial assets originally enabled the chapter’s STEM outreach program, including its scholarship fund. The 2023 Robert Powell scholarship has been awarded to Taylor Mowery, the daughter of Melissa and Bryan Mowery. Taylor attends a Hampton Public School and is an exemplary scholar and leader. She has earned an excellent GPA while also continuing to volunteer and compete in multiple sports. Her documented perseverance has earned Taylor the Robert Powell Scholarship for 2023. Taylor plans to pursue a degree in Environmental Science.
The Edward ‘Ed’ Austin Scholarship
This Edward ‘Ed’ Austin Scholarship was established to honor Ed’s many years as a chapter board member in various positions from treasurer to education director. In his retirement, Ed continued to support the chapter through staffing multiple events, encouraged the public outreach of our chapter by maintaining our website, and was a huge and continued proponent of our STEM outreach program including the scholarship program. The 2023 Edward ‘Ed’ Austin scholarship has been awarded to Alice Fang, the daughter of Ming Fang and Le Zhang. Alice attends a York County Public School and is an exemplary scholar who’s achieved a truly impressive amount. Alice has multiple State and National awards for math, science, and music related fields. Alice intends to pursue a degree in aerospace engineering, where her impressive work ethic will pay off in spades.
The Christopher Gavora Scholarship
The Christopher Gavora Scholarship was established to honor the son of COL William Gavora, former Commander of the Aviation Applied Technology Directorate. Chris was killed in a tragic high school baseball practice accident shortly after his family relocated from Hampton Roads to Texas. The 2023 Christopher Gavora Scholarship has been awarded to Kyle Ray, a student in the York County Public School system. Kyle, the son of Renee and Brian Ray, is a proven scholar and school leader. Kyle has both state and national awards for science, has exemplary grades and scored well on the SAT. Kyle plans to pursue a degree in Aerospace Engineering.