Four John Marshall High School graduating seniors are the recipients of LFIA’s Tom LaBonge and Lynne T. Jewell Scholarships. The scholarship winners were announced during the Marshall High Senior Awards Ceremony on June 6th. All the scholarship winners had stellar academics, significant volunteer work within or outside the school, and some held part-time jobs, too. It is always a difficult task for LFIA to choose the winners as all the applicants were exceptional. Here are the 2024 winners:
Lynne T. Jewell Scholarship
Ashley Perez – Ashley is going to Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland to study linguistics and communications.
Alexa Yanez – Alexa will be attending UC Berkeley and plans to major in Architecture.
Tom LaBonge Leadership Award
Joseph Gamez – Joseph is headed to Swarthmore where he will pursue studies in pre-med.
Dezarae Mendoza – Dezarae has been accepted by Smith College and plans to study psychology.
Lynne T. Jewell Scholarship
In memory of long-time board member, the Jewell family and LFIA announced the Lynne T. Jewell Scholarship this year. The award is earmarked for a deserving Marshall High School senior who is accepted to college. The scholarship is specified for housing, tuition and academic supplies. This is the first year LFIA has awarded the Lynne T. Jewell Scholarship
A longtime community leader, Lynne spent almost 40 years in our neighborhood, working on history, education and preservation projects. She was an LFIA board member for over 23 years, most recently serving as Vice President. A trained journalist, Lynne had a keen interest in Marshall High, and spearheaded our initial scholarship programs there. Lynne also co-chaired the LFIA history committee and the extensive LFIA archives at Cal State Northridge are largely her work. Her contributions to LFIA and the Los Feliz community are too numerous to name.
Tom LaBonge Leadership Award
The Tom LaBonge Leadership Award goes to a college-bound senior with financial need who demonstrates a strong commitment to leadership, community service and academic achievement.
Tom LaBonge spent nearly four decades in public service, including serving as the CD 4 council member from 2001 to 2015. He was a member of the John Marshall High School Class of 1971, where he was a star football player. He received his Bachelor degree in sociology from California State University, Los Angeles.
LFIA’s scholarships are made possible by the generous donations of our Los Feliz friends and neighbors. If you would like to help LFIA celebrate next year’s amazing students as they head off to college, please contribute to the scholarship fund here.