WELCOME TO THE SPECIAL NOTICES PAGES OF SOUTH BAY CHAPTER 53

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In early 1997, the idea to start a High School Scholarship for graduating Seniors was presented to the Board of Chapter 53. A "Kick-Off" donation was made, a rules committee formed and the program was off and running.

To encourage young people to look within their own families and to see the sacrifices that were made by their relatives who served in Vietnam.

To help keep the story of the Vietnam War alive.
To provide a positive group function for our Chapter.
To provide a platform for our Vietnam Veterans to interface with the Community in a positive manner.
To carry out our organization's motto

Our rules require the applicant to do a biography of the relative and to write an Essay on how the Vietnam War affected the family.
We ask for a "brag sheet", in order to see if an applicant has been active in serving his/her community.
After much discussion , it was decided not to focus solely on GPA, so as to allow more applicants.
The committee felt that the Essays themselves would, in many ways, indicate the academic level of the applicant.
To date, we have awarded Scholarships to 8 very deserving students.
This has been a 'grassroots effort', with the majority of the funds obtained through Chapter Yard Sales and by various donations.
A great deal of effort is required.
However, the rewards are great.
Most of the schools we have worked with have Awards Night's and Chapter 53 Members personally award the Scholarships.
This provides an instance for a very positive image of Vietnam Veterans.
Later in the summer, we invite the recipients and their parents to a Chapter meeting.
These meetings have been extremely popular and the warmth of the feelings generated is gratifying.
The Scholarship program has proven to be a "win-win" situation for the organization and the community.

V V A South Bay Chapter 53
Redondo Beach, CA