For the second consecutive year, the San Antonio Area Foundation took its show on the road to spread good news in Webb County.
The Area Foundation’s Legacy Scholarship already stood as one of the largest in the country when it launched last year, awarding 50 high school students in Webb and Bexar counties $40,000 each for their college studies.
This year, thanks to the continued generosity of an anonymous donor, the Area Foundation is able to double the size of the scholarship to 100 students – making it a total of $4 million.
Of those students, 20 were selected from Webb County schools. The donor’s wishes are to select students from both Webb and Bexar counties. The Area Foundation held a reception on April 12 at Texas A&M International University in Laredo to recognize the 2023 Webb County Legacy Scholars. Theroom was packed with proud parents and school counselors.
Bernice Uresti, Executive Director for Legacy Scholarship and Scholars at the Area Foundation, opened the program as the guests sat for dinner and refreshments. “We are in the second year of providing this great scholarship opportunity to the Laredo students, and I’m so proud to be a part of this,” Urestistated. This statement reflects the Area Foundation’s continued commitment to Youth Success, one of the four principal impact areas
Mary Prevost, retired teacher, and Febra Gaitan, Scholarship Assistant for the Legacy Scholarship and Scholars, also gave welcoming remarks.
Marianna Resendez, one of the 2023 Legacy Scholars, was the selected student speaker for the event program. “Thank you to the donor who made this scholarship possible, as we would not be here without you and your generosity,”she shared from the podium.
Federal District Judge Diana Saldaña was the night’s keynote speaker, regaling the captive audience with her own personal story overcoming poverty and hard times as a migrant farmworker in her youth.
“It was really important for me to be able to tell the kids that we all have our story, we all have our journey, we all have our challenges,” she said. “Despite that, you have to have a dream and stay committeed and you have to work hard and if you do that, you’re going to be successful.”
Cristiana Salinas is the Multi-Media Specialist for the San Antonio Area Foundation.