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Inaugural Pellegrin Awards at Trends '97
Presented to Wissert, Damron, and Woods

Sharon K. Wissert, Michele Damron, and Melanie Woods topped a competitive field to receive the first undergraduate and graduate grants presented from the chapter's newly established Melissa Pellegrin Memorial Scholarship Fund at the Trends '97 technical communication conference at the Expo Center October 3.

Wissert's undergraduate award was for $400; the two graduate grants were for $300 apiece.

Presentation of the awards capped an emotional dedication ceremony for the scholarship fund, which honors the memory of a recent UCF graduate, fellow chapter member, and esteemed professional colleague.

The names of this year's recipients were the first to be engraved on the memorial plaque that will be on permanent display at the UCF English Department.

Melissa's parents, Fred and Margaret Flesche, were on hand to receive a commemorative plaque, and they made a generous contribution to the fund.

In addition, both Melissa's employer, TRC, Inc., and her professional colleagues at TRC made substantial contributions. Melissa's fiancé, Victor Chapel, accepted a plaque on behalf of the company -- which has pledged an annual endowment to the fund -- and its employees.

In addition to the UCF scholarships, excellence awards of $100 each were presented to Burton Braman of Seminole Community College and Luis Perez of Valencia C.C.

An organizational communication major with a 3.5 GPA, Wissert plans to use her minor in technical communication as a foundation on which to pursue her masters in the discipline at UCF.

Damron is carrying a 4.0 graduate GPA on top of full-time employment with Harcourt Brace Johanovich. She also earned a 4.0 cumulative GPA as an undergraduate.

Woods, who works as a medical technologist at Florida Hospital Waterman, also sports a 4.0 graduate GPA. She has maintained a 4.0 average in her undergraduate creative writing major, 3.4 overall.

"We congratulate all of the students on their scholarships and awards," declared Dan Voss, manager of the STC Education Committee which made the selections. "They were tops in an excellent field. We had a difficult time making our decisions."

In the conclusion of her essay in the scholarship application, Woods stated: "I hope to work with professionals whose purpose coincides with mine: a commitment to provide quality communication that will best meet the needs of our readers."

Such is the unique challenge of our profession.