By A.M. Kelley
Superior Catholic Herald
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Superior Diocesan Council of Catholic Women member Anne Yourchuck of Luck, right, congratulates scholarship winner Beth Brisky, a member of St. Francis de Sales Parish in Spooner at the SDCCW convention on June 6 in Woodruff. (Catholic Herald photo by A.M. Kelley) |
WOODRUFF -- The Superior Diocesan Council of Catholic Women awarded two $500 scholarships at its annual convention on June 6 in Woodruff. Beth A. Brisky of St. Francis de Sales in Spooner and Christie J. Berkseth of the Cathedral of Christ the King in Superior were the recipients.
Brisky, 20, is an education major on the dean's list in her junior year at the University of Wisconsin-Superior. She has taught religious education to pre-schoolers at St. Mary Parish in Minong and has volunteered in the YMCA's After School and Kinder Club programs in a Duluth, Minn., elementary school.
Besides volunteer positions and studies, Brisky works to help fund her education.
"I'm down to working two jobs," she said.
She's a clerk in admitting at Miller Dwan Medical Center in Duluth and a receptionist, cashier, lot cleaner and car mover at Link Brothers Ford dealership in Minong, where her father, Thomas Brisky, is the general manager.
"Education is expensive and a little goes a long way," she said in appreciation for the scholarship.
Berkseth attends the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities and majors in biology. She'll be a junior this fall and hopes to become a dentist. She could not attend the awards ceremony in Woodruff because she was on her way to Africa to participate in a dental apprentice program.
She has received the United States Air Force ROTC American Legion Gold Award for military excellence and is regularly on the dean's list at U of M. With a keen interest in social justice issues, Berkseth started an interfaith student group to promote religious tolerance and understanding on campus.
Anne Yourchuck, a member of Our Lady of the Lakes in Balsam Lake, chaired the SDCCW scholarship committee. She and five other women culled through 47 applications this year. They made their selections based on grades, recommendations and narratives written by the applicants about their studies, work and faith.
© Superior Catholic Herald, 2006