Legacy Events for Education awards scholarships

Legacy Events for Education hosted its annual scholarship recipient ceremony Monday, April 22, at the Ocoee Lakeshore Center.

The event recognizes outstanding seniors from West Orange and Southwest Orange County schools who have made an impactful difference in their community through volunteerism both on and off campus.

Since its inception in 2019, Legacy has delivered more than $120,000 in scholarships and grants to local graduates and their schools through the production of fundraising events like the Central Florida Chili Cook Off and the Hamlin Craft Beer Festival, sponsorships from local businesses, and individual donations from the community.

Legacy’s programs include the Leave a Legacy and Teacher Nominated scholarships, as well as the Legacy Leaders Academy. The scholarships are awarded to students who have performed hundreds of volunteer hours during high school. The academy includes classes such as College Prep 101 — Parent Edition and Finance for the Future, presented to both parents and students in partnership with local coaches, tutors and financial institutions.

David Terry, president and founder of Legacy, thanked board members, event sponsors, volunteers and his family members. He said he is excited about the expansion of the organization.

What started with just Windermere High School has grown to encompass West Orange, Horizon and Ocoee high schools. He said more new additions to Legacy’s programs are coming soon.

“I probably do about 1,000 hours-plus a year, and I also have a full-time job,” Terry said. “I do everything during the year for this night, so that I can be here with you and your children and to give checks to deserving young people, because we work pretty hard all year to do this, and this is something that is very rewarding to us.”

LEAVING A LEGACY

Jessica Villegas, Legacy secretary who has served on the board for the last two years, welcomed attendees and served as the event’s emcee. 

“It’s been my genuine pleasure to see so many young people come through our scholarship program and meet so many young leaders who have been leaving a lasting legacy on their schools and their community,” she said. “They give from the heart, and they have the spirit of leaders, and that is so often overlooked in our society. We don’t recognize that enough, so I want to genuinely thank each of you for everything that you have contributed to our communities and to our schools over the last several years.”

Annual sponsors for the event include Hamlin, Shannon Till — State Farm, Observer Media Group, Horizon West Happenings, the city of Ocoee and Cannonfire Photography. 

The scholarship sponsors are McCoy Federal Credit Union, McCoy Cares Scholarship; Orlando Health, Dr. Cheri Richardson Scholarship; Horizon Custom Home Technologies, Teacher Nominated scholarships; and Horizon West Professionals, Rising Star Entrepreneur Grant. 

Several board members and community partners shared words throughout the ceremony, including Heather Easterling, Boyd Development; Lyndsay Fogarty, McCoy Federal Credit Union; and Joseph Khayat, Orlando Health.

Till shared a personal story that related to the importance of leaving a positive impact on the community.  

“We all put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into this all year long, and this is the exact reason why,” she said. “My goal, my reason for being in this area is really to help our community and really make a difference and inspire those around me. … This organization, more than many of the other ones that I work with, really gives me the ability to give back in a way that goes beyond more than just the people I touch. … We all have options. These days, we talk about four-letter words. We all know what four-letter words are. They can be hate, pain and a lot of other words that we’re really not looking forward to, but what they can also be is love, help and other happy words. You individually are responsible with your own words and actions. Make sure you’re looking at life through the lens of the Boggle and looking for the four-letter words that you want to attract.”