May 5th was a day of celebration and recognition for the club as we welcomed our 2026 cohort of scholarship recipients and invited our Franklin Elementary mentoring program students to join us for lunch.
The scholarship lunch on May 5 at the Alta Club welcomed our incoming scholarship recipients, celebrated the reading achievements of Franklin Elementary School students, and recognized our University of Utah Rotaract members, who attended to meet and connect with the incoming scholarship recipients.
The event was the culmination of the dedicated work of both the School Partnerships Committee and the Scholarship Committee and the reestablished Rotaract Club of the University of Utah. Throughout the past year, members of our club have mentored Franklin Elementary students who needed additional support in improving their reading skills. The club also provided valuable resources to Franklin, including donated books signed by guest speakers at our weekly lunches with inspirational messages, as well as a summer reading book for every student to take home.
On July 1, Linda Kruse officially hands over leadership of the Franklin School Partnership and mentoring program to incoming chair Mike Young. Linda has been instrumental in rebuilding the club’s relationship with Franklin Elementary and in helping Mike re-establish Career Day, coordinate the Sub for Santa program, and return the speaker-signed books with inspirational messages to the school library. We are deeply grateful to the many members who dedicate their time and energy each week to support the students at Franklin. Members are encouraged to consider joining the Franklin mentoring program — it is a rewarding and meaningful way to serve the youth in our community.
The Scholarship Committee, led by Mark Minson, met with student applicants from AAMES, East, West, Highland, and Horizonte High Schools. Special thanks go to committee members Roger Thompson, Brent Larsen, David Waldman, John Ashton, Henry Wurts, John Eberhardt, Greg Letey, Glen Lambert, and Mo Sbia for their time, care, and dedication throughout the scholarship selection process.
The Scholarship Committee is now in the second year of its new scholarship process, which invites students from Salt Lake City Public Schools to apply for the Rotary Club of Salt Lake City Scholarships and the Collett Scholarships. The Collett Scholarship is designated specifically for students from Highland High School and is a one time $8,000 scholarship.
We were pleased to welcome Collett Scholarship Trustee Steven Riley as our guest and to introduce him to the two Collett Scholarship recipients, Quinton Block and Fabiana Principe, both of whom will attend the University of Utah this fall.
The Rotary Club of Salt Lake City Scholarship recipients — Nur Nisha Anwar, Asha Hamid, Jonathon Aguilar, Sol Diaz and Elna Collaku — will each receive a four-year, $3,000 scholarship. As scholarship recipients, they are required to participate as Rotaractors and engage in service projects both with Rotaract and alongside the Rotary Club.
Charlie McLeskey and the Rotaract Committee will begin meeting with the incoming Rotaract students, as well as last year’s scholarship recipients, to plan service projects and identify professional development opportunities. Sabrina Morales, Sydney Battersby, Samuel Watson, new member David Blais, and Jacqui Voland are all members of the Rotaract Committee.
There has never been a better time to get involved in one of these impactful projects. To learn more about mentoring opportunities, the Scholarship or Rotaract Committees, please reach out to Mike Young for School Partnerships, Mark Minson for Scholarships or Charlie McLeskey to join the Rotaract Committee.
