More than $600,000 in scholarships will be awarded to 135 student veterans
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (Feb. 6, 2017)
The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. is proud to announce the selection of 135 student veterans as VFW’s “Sport Clips Help A Hero Scholarship” recipients for the 2017 spring semester. The program, currently in its fourth year, will distribute more than $600,000 in scholarships to help student veterans in college or trade school.
View the entire list of recipients.
Enacted in 2014, the Help A Hero scholarship program was created in conjunction with Sport Clips to help ease the burden of student loans for America’s service members and veterans. Each semester, service members and veterans can apply for scholarships of up to $5,000. These scholarships help student veterans achieve their educational goals and take the next steps to starting their careers in the civilian workforce.
University of Wisconsin recipient, Matthew Carbonelli, said he was worried about having to compete for outside funding after he exhausted his veterans benefits and his state cutting higher education funding, but “With the help of the VFW and Sport Clips, I am sure that I will have another successful semester and be closer to achieving my goal of becoming a licensed psychologist with the goal of assisting veterans with achieving mental health wellness,” he said.
To date, more than $3 million in Help A Hero scholarships have been awarded to 718 service members and veterans.
“The VFW Help A Hero scholarship program was created to help our military and veterans to successfully transition back into society,” said VFW National Commander Brian Duffy. “Education and training lasts a lifetime, and we are grateful to Sport Clips’ owners, stylists and professional partners nationwide for sharing in our goal to help more veterans to accomplish their education and career dreams.”
Applications for the 2017 fall semester will be accepted until April 30, 2017. Learn more about the Help A Hero Scholarship program, and apply today online.
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ABOUT THE VFW: The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. is the nation's largest and oldest major war veterans organization. Founded in 1899 and chartered by Congress in 1936, the VFW is comprised entirely of eligible veterans and military service members from the active, Guard and Reserve forces. With nearly 1.7 million VFW and Auxiliary members located in more than 6,500 Posts worldwide, the nonprofit veterans service organization is proud to proclaim “NO ONE DOES MORE FOR VETERANS” than the VFW, which is dedicated to veterans’ service, legislative advocacy, and military and community service programs. For more information or to join, visit our website at www.vfw.org.
ABOUT SPORT CLIPS HAIRCUTS: Sport Clips Haircuts is headquartered in Georgetown, Texas. It was established in 1993 and began franchising in 1995. The sports-themed haircutting franchise, which specializes in haircuts for men and boys, is ranked by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the “Fastest-Growing Franchises” and in the top 10 in its “Franchise 500.” There are more than 1,600 Sport Clips stores open in the U.S. and Canada. Sport Clips is the “Official Haircutter” of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), offers veterans preferential pricing on haircuts and franchises, and was named a “2016 Best for Vets: Franchises” by Military Times. Sport Clips provides “haircuts with heart” through its annual Help A Hero fundraiser that has given $5 million to the VFW; national partnership with St. Baldrick’s Foundation, the largest private funder of childhood cancer research grants; and other national and local philanthropic outreach. Sport Clips is a proud sponsor of Joe Gibbs Racing’s NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin and Furniture Row Racing’s Erik Jones, and partners with numerous NCAA and professional sports teams. To learn more about Sport Clips, visit sportclips.com.