Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation and members of the Arland D. Williams, Jr. Scholarship committee are pleased to announce Mattisen Boswell was awarded the $3,500 Arland D. Williams, Jr. Scholarship at the 36th annual scholarship presentation luncheon on Friday, August 13, 2021.
Mattisen Boswell is a 2018 graduate of Mattoon High School, and is currently studying Agriculture Business with a minor in Leadership Studies at the College of ACES at the University of Illinois. Mattisen plans to move back to Mattoon to assist with the family farm and to use her Agricultural Business degree in the community.
The Arland D. Williams, Jr. Scholarship honors the memory of the late Arland D. Williams, Jr. who graduated from Mattoon High School. Mr. Williams became a well-known example of extraordinary heroism when his actions saved five people after a 1982 airplane crash in Washington D.C. His selfless actions cost him his life, but his heroism lives on.
The scholarship fund was established in May 1983 by Mrs. Virginia Williams, mother of Arland D. Williams, Jr. Since 1985, 38 scholarships have been awarded, totaling more than $88,000. Friends and classmates of Arland D. Williams, Jr. serve on the scholarship committee and present the award each year. Gayla McDaniel, Phyliss Roytek, Paul Saegesser, Jason Hortenstine and Barb Love served on the 2021 scholarship review committee.
The Arland D. Williams Jr. Scholarship is one of several scholarship funds managed by Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation who also manages more than 180 affiliated funds for the immediate and long-term benefit of communities in southeastern Illinois. For more information, contact Amanda Lessley, President/CEO of Southeastern Illinois Community Foundation, at 217.342.4988 or amanda@enrichingourcommunity.org.
