Kate Ford, York Hospital Director of Volunteer and Student Services; Eli Steere, scholarship recipient; Dr. Patrick Taylor, York Hospital President & CEO; Ava Kreie, scholarship recipient; and Judith McAllister, Friends of York Hospital Chair. (Not pictured is scholarship recipient Mia Kane.)
The Friends of York Hospital Scholarship Committee is pleased to announce that three local students in the Class of 2023 were selected to receive scholarships to facilitate their pursuit of careers in health care.
Mia Kane is a graduate of Sanford High School where she enjoyed honors and AP-level classes and was a member of the National Honor Society. An active officer in the Student Council, teammate on the soccer field, and volunteer with the Key Club, Mia is now attending the University of Southern Maine where she is studying to obtain a degree in nursing. According to Mia, “Caring for others motivates me and brings out the best in me. Caring is one of the virtues I value most in life and caring for others is the path I want to travel both personally and professionally.”
Ava Kreie is a graduate of Wells High School. While serving on Student Council and playing both basketball and softball, she made time for studying – making high honors – and participated in community service projects with Ronald McDonald Food Pantry, Holiday Baskets for Children in Need, and various food bank and blood drives. Ava is now attending Rivier University and pursuing a degree in nursing. In Ava’s own words, “As a nurse in any field you see and interact with people on some of their worst days, and you have to be a special person to look past their sickness or disability and just be their friend and caregiver when they need one most. I want to make a difference in this world.”
Eli Steere graduated from Wells High School in the top 10 of his class. In the classroom, Eli qualified for the National Honor Society, and outside of school, he was an accomplished Eagle Scout. According to Eli, he has a strong passion for “building things and helping people in need” and believes that a career in biomedical engineering will allow both of his passions to flourish. At Wells High School he played football and lacrosse and helped with the Wells Unified Basketball team as a community service project. Eli is attending the University of New Hampshire where he is in the Honors Program for Biomedical Engineering. (Eli’s mother, Dawn Plaisted Steere, was a former Friends of York Hospital Scholarship winner and now works as a Physical Therapist at York Hospital Home Care.)
Committee co-chairs Judith McAllister and Sue Little wish these impressive students well on their remarkable journeys to make the world a better place.
York Hospital President & CEO Dr. Patrick Taylor added, “There is a great need for health care workers across all clinical areas, and York Hospital is humbled to help these impressive students pursue careers that focus on health and healing. We wish them well and hope they come back to work at York Hospital someday, just like Eli’s mother did when she graduated college and joined our physical therapy department!”
Dawn Plaisted Steere, mother of Eli Steere; Eli Steere, scholarship recipient; Dr. Patrick Taylor, York Hospital President & CEO; Ava Krie, scholarship recipient. Eli’s mother was a former Friends of York Hospital Scholarship winner and now works as a Physical Therapist at York Hospital Home Care. (Not pictured is scholarship recipient Mia Kane.)
The Friends of York Hospital Scholarship Program has been helping students achieve their higher education goals since 1962. Applicants must be high school seniors who plan to enter a medical/health care field and who graduate from a high school located in the York Hospital service area (Kittery, Eliot, the Berwicks, Sanford, Lebanon, Kennebunk, Wells, Ogunquit, and York). The application process includes an essay in which students describe their interest in working in the medical field and advocate for their selection, official school transcripts, and letters of recommendation from high school guidance counselors and employers. The selection committee, which is comprised of hospital staff and members of the Friends of York Hospital, reviews all applications, and determines the awards based on merit and need. The annual scholarship opens in January with an application deadline date in mid-March. Details are sent to participating high schools and posted on www.yorkhospital.com.
The Friends of York Hospital Scholarship Program is funded through generous donations from the Physician’s Committee and the York Hospital Apothecary, annual membership dues from the Friends of York Hospital, a popular Holiday Basket Raffle held each December, and donations from community members.
If you’d like to help future students who aspire to enter careers in health care, please donate online or make your check payable to Friends of York Hospital and send your tax-deductible contribution to:
Friends of York Hospital
ATTN: MARIE AIMO
15 Hospital Drive
York, ME 03909
For further questions about the Friends of York Hospital or volunteering at York Hospital, contact Kate Ford, Director of Volunteer and Student Experiences, at [email protected] or (207) 351-2224. For inquiries regarding York Hospital services, contact York Hospital Community Relations at (207) 351-2385 or [email protected], or visit www.yorkhospital.com.