The American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA) has awarded $25,000 in scholarships to the children of home furnishings industry workers.
The 10 $2,500 scholarships were presented in April by AHFA’s Solution Partners division, which sponsors an annual golf tournament to support the scholarship fund. Next year, the division will add two more scholarships, increasing the award total to $30,000.
AHFA’s Solution Partners division is made up of more than 150 companies that supply products and services to the residential furniture industry worldwide. In addition to the scholarship fund, the division’s annual golf tournament supports the MyFurnitureCareer.com website, an initiative that helps recruit skilled workers for positions in the home furnishings industry. This year’s tournament is Wednesday, September 18, at Lake Hickory Country Club in Hickory, NC. Team sign-up and sponsorship information is at www.ahfa.us/events.
The 2019 Solution Partners Scholarship winners are Arik Daniels, son of Flexsteel employee Kevin Daniels; Kylie Davis, daughter of HSM Solutions employee Cindy Davis; Madison Drovie, daughter of Vanguard employee Clinton Drovie; Abigail Hanby, daughter of United employee Douglas Hanby; Hallie Kilbride, daughter of Norwalk employee John Kilbride; James Ortale, son of Ethan Allen employee Frank Ortale; Nolan Pratt, son of England employee Sondra Pratt; Jason Jimenez Pulido, son of Craftmaster employee Wilmar Jimenez; Makayla Ward, daughter of Hickory White employee Randall Ward; and Weston Warren, son of Franklin employee Roger Warren.
Eight of the one-year scholarships were presented based on financial need and academic merit. Two were presented based on academic merit alone. Students may reapply for the scholarship each year they are in school, provided a parent remains employed full time at an AHFA member company.
“With the cost of higher education today, families need all the help they can get,” says Mary O’Keeffe, Solution Partners Executive Director. “Our program is unique in that it is not tied to any particular major, and the funds can be applied to a four-year college, a community college or a technical school.”
