Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Rotary hosts annual academic banquet

Twenty of Gurdons brightest students were honored at the Gurdon Rotary Clubs annual academic awards banquet on Thursday, April 26.

Each year the club honors the top ten students in the junior and senior classes, according to Billy Tarpley who will become the clubs president this summer.

Its just a great way to let the top kids know that someone is watching and is proud of them, he said after the event which took place in the Gurdon High School cafetorium.

Students and their parents were treated to dinner before hearing from keynote speaker Sam Weaver, head mens basketball coach at Henderson State University.

Weaver encouraged the students to reach for their goals. He also told them not to be ashamed of graduating from a school in a small town like Gurdon.

He was a real inspiration to them, Tarpley said.

Also during the banquet, the Rotary president Steven Orsburn presented the annual Rotary scholarship to Daniel Frances, 2007 Gurdon High School valedictorian. The scholarship totals $500.

The ten juniors honored at the banquet were Tori Morehead, Hilda Cruz, Sara Boyce, Kirby Sandidge, Ashlyn Escalante, Ryan Gosney, Danielle Pruitt, Salli Singleton, Tynesha Ivory and Zachary Duncan.

The ten seniors honored were Daniel Frances, Meghan Robbins, Porcha Anderson, Branaie Weems, Cadee Miller, LaDonna Lasker, Rachel Reeves, Ashley Berry, Dadrian Glenn, Kayce Baird and Samantha Sistrunk.