The Owensboro Family YMCA honored six high school seniors Friday afternoon during its annual Young Leaders Luncheon.
Now in its 17th year, the event continues to grow, celebrating students from Apollo, Daviess County, Owensboro, and Owensboro Catholic high schools who have “demonstrated integrity, excellence, and passion while maintaining a connection to the YMCA and serving their community.”
This year’s honorees were Landon Block (Owensboro High School), Alexia Latham (Apollo High School), Sam Leucht (OHS), Kate McCain (Daviess County High School), Josie Pinkston (Owensboro Catholic High School), and Sandra Siddons (OHS).
Each honoree received a scholarship, part of $10,000 awarded this year thanks to support from local businesses. YMCA CEO Tom Bontrager said the scholarships are not based on grades, though academic excellence often goes hand in hand with the service-oriented traits the YMCA seeks to recognize.
Bontrager said attendance grew from about 150 last year to roughly 175 this year. He also highlighted the YMCA’s recent successes, including the launch of the Rock Steady Boxing program, expansion of summer camps, and progress toward a new child care center.
“This is our thank you to the people in this room,” said YMCA CEO Tom Bontrager. “We want to get our story out, and these community leaders have been unbelievably supportive. We can’t do this without them.”
Abby Shelton, board chair, said the luncheon reflects how far the organization has come in the past decade.
“It’s absolutely amazing to see the transformation,” Shelton said. “The support from the community, city, state, and county governments has really stepped up to back our mission — to serve the community and make Owensboro a better place to live.”
The luncheon was held in the Jack T. Wells Center on the Kentucky Wesleyan College campus.
