Samantha Haab Wins NYPL Scholarship
In addition to Haab, who was selected as the winner of the $2,500 scholarship among the four Stedler Division teams, Connor Grey (Jamestown) and Eleanor McCabe (Staten Island) were also selected as $2,500 recipients for the Pinckney and McNamara Divisions. The NY-Penn League Charitable Foundation also awarded $250 towards books to individuals representing the other 11 NY-Penn League teams.
The 2012 NYPL Scholarship Program was open to any graduating senior from a public or private high school, who has been accepted at any two or four-year college or university, vocational or technical education institution or program. Applicants were judged based on academic performance, volunteer and extracurricular activities, and the impact that their local team and Minor League Baseball have had on their lives.
Haab, who graduated from Stowe High School in June, says that her first memories of Vermont Lake Monsters/ Expos games came from the Lake Monsters' Hit the Books program, which promotes reading among kids.
"I think I was in first grade at the time, and that was the first time that I had been acknowledged and awarded for my pursuit of education." Haab said, "It felt good to be recognized, and the fun that ensued at the game helped me realize the importance and valued of education."
In addition to working with Students Helping Achieve Philanthropic Excellence (SHAPE) and the Environmental club at her school, Haab was a three sport athlete in high school. She played field hockey, ice hockey, and softball all four years of high school, being selected to Vermont's All State second team in both ice and field hockey, and was named a captain of her softball team her senior year. Haab will be attending St. Lawrence University in New York, where she will look to major Environmental Studies/ English or Conservation Biology.
Haab was honored by the Lake Monsters on Friday, August 17th before Vermont's game with the Staten Island Yankees at historic Centennial Field.