April 22 is an important date for 12 Wake Forest high school seniors because two of them will be named the 2017 Trentini scholars for their schools, Heritage and Wake Forest high.
The names of the winners will be announced during the 37th annual Trentini Banquet at The Forks Cafeteria. It begins at 6 p.m. and tickets are still available at www.trentinifoundation.org. The speaker is Coach George Whitfield, a member of seven different halls of fame including the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame, who began coaching in 1959, the same year as Coach Tony Trentini. Whitfield’’s baseball teams won eight state championships and 15 conference titles.
The faculty and administration at the two high schools select six nominees for the scholarships, and a committee from the Trentini board of directors interview and choose the winners. The selection criteria include overall achievement in academics, athletics, leadership and school activities; fulfilled potential for self-development, general character and maturity.
The top winner at Wake Forest High will receive a $30,000 scholarship to attend a four-year college; the winner at Heritage High receives a $5,000 scholarship to a four-year college. The other selected students at Wake Forest receive $1,000 each, and those at Heritage receive $250 each. In addition, one Wake Forest senior receives a $1,000 scholarship to attend a community college.
This year’s nominees at Wake Forest High, their parents and the college they plan to attend are Colton Compton, parents Shelly and Craig Compton, N.C. State; Emily Babb, parent Gregory Babb, UNC-W; Joseph Hannum, parents Sheri and Mickey Hannum, UNC-CH; Joseph Haston, parents Kim and Edward Haston; Juliana Micchia, parents Gina and Joseph Micchia, UNC-CH; and Krysten Le, parents Minh and Hai Le, UNC-CH.
The Heritage High nominees are Baylee Roy, parents Dawn and Scott Roy, UNC-CH; Ian Hinkley, parents Karen and Wayne Hinkley, MIT; Steven Glenn, parents, Amy and Steve Glenn, UNC-CH; Susann Rivera, parents Susan and Eliberto Rivera; Talia Crowther, parents Teresa and Manny Crowther; and James Burrows, Tina and Jim Burrows, University of South Carolina at Sumter.
Tony Trentini, for whom the non-profit foundation is named, was a teacher and coach and a remarkable role model at Wake Forest High School. After his death at an early age, James Warren, John Rich and several other members of Trentini’s football team, the Bulldogs, decided to honor his memory and provide a lasting community good by establishing a foundation to give scholarships to high school students. The first banquet was held in the spring of 1981 and Tony Chambers won the scholarship, then $500.
