Albemarle Students Win James and Nellie Butler Scholarships

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Three area high school seniors received the James and Nellie Butler Scholarships on Awards Night at their respective schools. Sponsored by the Albemarle County Democratic Party, this award is given in memory of the Butlers and to honor their dedication to community service and public education. James Butler was the first African American elected to the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors. He was a strong advocate for quality education in our schools, and helped establish CATEC. Nellie Butler taught technical education, was a leader in 4-H and Girl Scouts, and like her husband, worked diligently to promote voter registration and civic engagement. This $1,000 scholarship is awarded to students based on academic excellence, financial need, and a commitment to service to community.

At Albemarle High School, the Butler Scholarship went to Hannah Woodward. Hannah will enter the University of Virginia in the fall with plans to study physics. She was part of the MESA program at Albemarle. Hannah volunteered through the AHS Key Club and National Honor Society, and the Appalachian Service Project, and aspires to connect scientific research and public policy.

Mason Ancona received the Butler Scholarship at Western Albemarle High School. Mason has mentored younger students on the importance of the environment that sustains and enriches our lives. He wants to study engineering or architecture to develop buildings with smaller environmental footprints. He will enter Virginia Tech this fall.

The Monticello High School student awarded the Butler Scholarship is Lucas Johnson. Lucas will study Public Policy at Bowdoin College this fall. The co-founder of the student-staffed Albemarle County Mental Health Policy Council and the also the founder of a local non-profit focused on global health issues, Lucas also served as the Virginia Political Director of the High School Democrats of America.

The James and Nellie Butler Scholarship is awarded annually. High School seniors are encouraged to apply after January through the Albemarle County Democratic Party website: albemarledems.org.

 

Message from Albemarle Democratic Committee Chair Richard Brewer

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Greetings Albemarle Democrats!

Albemarle County has changed quite a bit from the small town I grew up in and I am honored to have the opportunity to serve with our new Committee to elect the next generation of leaders who will have such a profound effect on the future of our wonderful community.

National politics are scary right now and garner the lion’s share of media’s attention, however, it is the local races that will have the most significant impact on your day-to-day lives, the quality of education our children receive, and the growth of our community.

This year we will elect our representatives to the US Congress and Senate, allowing us to focus on only two incredibly important races. However, it is the work we do this year that will have an enormous impact on the 17 (that’s right, 17!) races that Albemarle County voters will decide on in 2019. Those races will determine control of the School Board, the Board of Supervisors, the House of Delegates, and the State Senate. The stakes could not be higher!

We have enjoyed tremendous success over the last 5 years with all Democratic or Democratically endorsed candidates, except for one race, winning the Albemarle County portion of their districts. Our only loss was the result of an embarrassingly low turnout of the electorate.

This success has not been by chance, and is the result of your hard work door knocking and organizing, the quality of our candidates and their commitment to campaigning, and the extreme nature of the Republican party.

Our tent has grown by welcoming the new energy outraged by the extreme factions of the right and the Republican party has shrunk to the point they openly welcome White Nationalists and elect leaders like Donald Trump. A big tent means we do not always agree on every issue, but we welcome fresh ideas from people who share our core values of caring about others and wanting to make a difference in our community.

I urge you to engage yourself even more with our new committee, look for ways to help our candidates and campaigns, consider running for office yourself, and most importantly, VOTE. When Democrats show up to vote, we all win!

Thank you,

Richard Brewer