Blue Ridge HealthCare Foundation Awards $11,000 in Scholarships

MORGANTON, N.C. (June 28, 2023) – The Blue Ridge HealthCare Foundation awarded $11,000 in scholarships recently during a luncheon to honor the recipients at Mimosa Hill Golf Club.

The Patricia Early Puett Scholarship recipient is Riley Berry, a graduate of Patton High School who will be attending Lenoir Rhyne University to pursue a nursing degree. Riley says she’s pursuing a career in nursing because she wants to make a difference by working in healthcare. She recently completed her clinicals at a nursing home where she felt satisfaction in helping others and learned that nursing is her calling.

About the scholarship: Patricia Early Puett was a 1958 graduate of Grace Hospital School of Nursing and specialized in pediatric nursing for most of her career. The scholarship is intended for individuals entering or advancing in the various fields of nursing.

The G. T. Cornwell Scholarship recipients are Lauren Crump, Jada Houser, Jacey Smith, and Trinitee Stevens.

Lauren graduated from Western Piedmont Community College in May with her associate degree in nursing. She is attending Appalachian State University in the online RN-to-BSN program. Lauren says she chose nursing because as she grew older, she began to deeply ponder what she wanted to do with her life and how she wanted to leave her mark on the world. She finally concluded that there is no greater satisfaction than knowing her actions directly impacted another individual and helped save a life.

Jada is attending UNC Wilmington, pursuing a nursing degree, and works in the Emergency Department at UNC Health Blue Ridge. When asked why she was pursuing a nursing career, Jada said, “I am pursuing my BSN to help me grow within my passion, open new doors of opportunity at UNC Health Blue Ridge, and to help me better care for my patients.”

Jacey is a graduate of Freedom High School and will be attending Western Piedmont Community College this fall to pursue a nursing degree. Jacey said, “I chose nursing because I wanted to do a career that nurtured and helped people, especially children. I hope to be a nurse in Labor and Delivery or a Pediatric department.”

Trinitee graduated from Caldwell Early College High School and is pursuing a nursing degree at Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute. When asked why she is pursuing a nursing degree, Trinitee stated, “I have a passion for helping others and being an asset to the community I live in.”

About the scholarship: G.T. Cornwell’s commitment to nursing began in the early 1940s when he served as a nursing administrator at the Grace Hospital School of Nursing. Grace Hospital operated this residential nurse training program for more than 70 years. Mr. Cornwell continued this commitment by establishing this scholarship endowment in July 1997. In addition to instructing nurses, Mr. Cornwell launched and managed the Cornwell Drug Store chain that served a broad market in WNC. This scholarship is intended for individuals entering or advancing in the various fields of nursing.

The Van Noppen Scholarship recipients are Kristen Cline, Alexis Crump, Mallory Evitt, and April James.

Kristen is a student at UNC Greensboro pursuing her Ph.D. in Communication Sciences and Disorders and works at UNC Health Blue Ridge as a speech-language pathologist in the rehabilitation department. Kristen says she is passionate about helping people with dysphagia improve their quality of life and wants to continue her education.

Alexis is a student at Appalachian State University pursuing a Communication Sciences and Disorders/Speech Pathology degree. Alexis said in her application that she “always knew that she wanted a career in the healthcare field. This is because I have a great passion for helping others, and I have many amazing role models in my life who work in the field. Her great aunt was a Speech Language Pathologist and seeing her touch many lives grew my desire to do the same.”

Mallory is a student at Lenoir Rhyne College of Natural Science and Math pursuing a degree in Biology. She works at UNC Health Blue Ridge on the Medical Surgical Floor. When asked why she is pursuing a degree in healthcare, Mallory said, “I am fascinated with medicine but also want to give back to the community that shaped me.”

April is pursuing her Ph.D. in Education in Health Professions from A.T. Still University. She works at UNC Health Blue Ridge as a Medical Technologist in the lab and as a professor at Western Piedmont Community College. She is pursuing a higher-level degree in healthcare because she hopes to better pass along the information she has gained to future students.

About the scholarship: Elisabeth Fulton VanNoppen and her family established the VanNoppen Scholarship in 1982 following the passing of her husband, Donnell VanNoppen. Mr. VanNoppen served on the Board of Directors at Grace Hospital (now UNC Health Blue Ridge) for 37 years. Mr. and Mrs. VanNoppen believed in the importance of education and developing people. This scholarship helps individuals seeking a healthcare-related degree.

The J. Grayson Brothers Scholarship recipients are Taylor Dale and Taylor Parsons.

Taylor Dale is a graduate of UNC Wilmington and is actively pursuing her Master of Social Work from North Carolina State University. Taylor said she is continuing her healthcare education “to have the ability to give to others what UNC Health has given me - a haven and a miracle. I want to impact people positively.”

Taylor Parsons is pursuing his Master of Business Administration in Health Care Management from East Carolina University. He works at UNC Health Blue Ridge as an office manager for Hospitalists and Behavioral Health. When asked why he wants to continue his education, Taylor said, “As I’ve grown professionally within Blue Ridge, I’ve identified the need for additional healthcare-focused education to continue to grow my skill set. This will not only aid me in my professional development but benefit the organization in my role as a manager.”

About the scholarship: J. Grayson Brothers was a hospital administrator at Grace Hospital (now UNC Health Blue Ridge) for 24 years. The scholarship fund was established in 1978 as a memorial to Mr. Brothers by the Grace Hospital Board of Trustees. This scholarship assists individuals seeking a healthcare-related degree.

“I would like to congratulate all of the scholarship recipients,” said Traci Riebel, the foundation’s Executive Director. “We wish you the best of luck in the upcoming academic year. Thank you for choosing a career path in healthcare and the difference you are making in the lives of others. This is truly a blessing.”

For more information on next year’s scholarship period, go to brhcfoundation.org/scholarships.

Scholarship recipients shown here (from left) are Jada Houser, Riley Berry, Jacey Smith, Mallory Evitt, Taylor Dale, Alexis Crump and April James. Recipients not able to attend are Lauren Crump, Trinitee Stevens, Kristen Cline and Taylor Parsons. 

UNC Health Blue Ridge (www.unchealthblueridge.org) is a not-for-profit community healthcare system, providing advanced healthcare and wellness services from more than 40 locations across a three-county region of Western North Carolina. The system includes one hospital with two locations, a wellness center, and a continuing care retirement community. Nearly 120 primary care physicians, physician specialists and extenders in the Blue Ridge Medical Group combine with other physicians on the Medical Staff to serve patients in the region. UNC Health Blue Ridge provides graduate medical education programs for medical school graduates and students in allopathic and osteopathic medicine. UNCBR is affiliated with UNC Health System (www.unchealthcare.org), a not-for-profit integrated health care system owned by the state of North Carolina and based in Chapel Hill.