Sarasota Academy Seniors Receive Scholarships, Inaugural Award from Military Foundation

Three seniors at Sarasota Military Academy, cadets Juliana Rendle, Noah Fischer and Aeryn Sachs, were recently selected to receive scholarships from the Sarasota Military Officers Foundation (SMOF). Fischer will receive the $2,000 JROTC Scholarship; Rendle will receive the $2,000 Merit Scholarship and Sachs will receive the prestigious Kay Blythe Tracy Award in the amount of $2,000.

The Sarasota Military Officers Foundation awards JROTC and merit-based scholarships to qualified, high-achieving high school seniors in the Greater Sarasota area. In 2020, the Foundation awarded eleven scholarships; of the eleven, SMOF awarded three JROTC scholarships and eight Merit scholarships throughout the entire county. Additionally, an SMA cadet was selected to receive the inaugural Kay Blythe Tracy Award, established after Tracy’s passing in 2019.

“We are always positively overwhelmed by the quality of applicants who participate in our scholarship program. Although we are not able to host our annual banquet to recognize the incredible cadets receiving scholarships this year, we want to congratulate them for their hard work and successes,” said Claire Power, Director and Chair of the Sarasota Military Officers Foundation Scholarship Committee.

The applications were reviewed by the scholarship committee established by SMOF.

“Kay Tracy and her husband George volunteered as advocates with Guardian Ad Litem in Sarasota. Kay was a retired university professor, an incredible volunteer, a remarkable woman and a member of the scholarship committee for many years. Giving back to the community and creating opportunities for the next generation was one of her passions,” said Power. “After Kay’s passing in 2019, the Board authorized the creation of this scholarship. We looked for an extraordinary applicant for this award, and found it in Aeryn Sachs. Congratulations to all of our scholarship recipients, we look forward to watching you continue to succeed and positively impact the world around you.”

In addition to creating scholarship opportunities for high school seniors and cadets in the community, the Sarasota Military Officers Foundation also donates to the State College of Florida Veterans program, the University of South Florida Veterans program and the Manatee

Technical College East & West campuses Veterans programs. To learn more about the scholarships or the Sarasota Military Officers Foundation, contact Claire Power at bcpower@comcast.net or visit https://www.sarasotamoaa.com/.