(L-R) Shelby Barker, Kelly Cothern, Matt Etchison, Peyton Morrow, Gabriel Tomer
A total of $10,000 was awarded from the Lebovitz Lively Arts Scholarship this year to Mattoon High School graduates majoring in visual or performing arts. Five scholarships of $2,000 each were awarded to the following students: Shelby Barker, Kelly Cothern, Matt Etchison, Peyton Morrow and Gabriel Tomer.
Shelby Barker (Class of 2014) is attending Southern Illinois University Carbondale majoring in interior design. Kelly Cothern (Class of 2017) will attend Lake Land College to pursue a degree in art. Matt Etchison (Class of 2016) is attending Northern Illinois University and is majoring in music education. Peyton Morrow (Class of 2017) will attend Webster University in the fall to pursue a degree in animation. Gabriel Tomer (Class of 2017) will attend Eastern Illinois University in the fall, majoring in music.
The scholarship was named in honor of Carl Lebovitz and James K. Lively, formerly of Mattoon. Lively worked as a freelance translator of many Slavic languages and was a patron of the arts during all of his adult life. He died in 1998. Lebovitz, also a language translator, was a founding member of the Mattoon Arts Council and a patron of the arts throughout his life. He participated in local theatrical productions over the years, and was the Journal Gazette/Times-Courier’s arts reviewer-at-large for 30 years. Lebovitz died in 2009. The Lebovitz Lively Arts Scholarship has reached its seventh year of awarding scholarships to applicants who are graduates of Mattoon High School and major in the visual or performing arts.
