Where the Scholarship Becomes a Person: Meeting Our Styres Scholars

On Tuesday, August 11, the room at Carolina Country Club filled up a little earlier than usual. Coffee was poured, chairs were pulled in, and for the first time this year our club got to put faces to the Robert N. Styres Scholarship — this year's scholars, in person, standing at the front of the room. Then we turned to the work that makes those scholarships possible: kicking off this fall's Annual Capital City Golf Classic.

Ed Hagy, Ruth George, Jeff Marshall, Mary Konwinski, Aleah Mikaelian, Daniel Soutter, and Mark Carter.

The Scholars in the Room

Every year we talk about the Styres Scholarship in numbers. Since 2000, the fund has awarded more than $270,000 to 29 students, and six recipients are currently on track to finish four years of college. The numbers are worth repeating, because they are real.

But August 11 was not a numbers morning. It was a morning where three students stood up, said their names, and told us where they are headed: Ruth George, Aleah Mikaelian, and Daniel Soutter.

That is the part that does not show up on a spreadsheet. The scholarship was never designed to find the highest GPA in Wake County. It was built for students who have carried something heavy and kept going — students who have overcome adversity and shown up anyway. Named for Robert N. "Bob" Styres, a club member and military veteran who lived Service Above Self, the award is a four-year, renewable scholarship to the college, university, or community college of the student's choice.

Listening to Ruth, Aleah, and Daniel talk about the next four years, it was hard not to think about Bob Styres — and about the fact that a decision our club made in 2000 is still walking around Raleigh in the form of young people with plans.

Turning Golfers Into Scholarships

The second half of the meeting answered the obvious question: where does the money come from?

It comes from a golf tournament. Mary McCartan Konwinski, chair of the Styres Scholarship Committee, led the sponsorship discussion and opened this year's Capital City Golf Classic at North Ridge Country Club.

The Classic has run every fall since 1989. It draws about 140 golfers, fields a maximum of 36 teams, raises more than $30,000 in a typical year, and has brought in close to $400,000 to date. Every dollar goes to the Styres Scholarship Fund and the club's community projects through the Rotary Club of the Capital City Foundation, a 501(c)(3).

Sponsorships are where members can move the needle fastest. Bronze, Silver, and Gold levels are open now, along with raffle items, team prizes, and direct cash donations. If you know a business that would put its name on a hole, this is the month to ask. Teams are accepted first-come, first-served, and the field does fill.

There is a straight line from a sponsorship form in August to a tuition payment next fall. On August 11, we got to watch both ends of that line in the same room.

Why We Serve

Rotary's Four-Way Test asks whether the things we think, say, and do are true, fair to all concerned, likely to build goodwill and better friendships, and beneficial to all concerned. A scholarship for a student who has already proven she can carry weight is one of the cleanest answers to those four questions we have.

Service Above Self is easy to put on a banner. It is harder to sustain for twenty-six years, one tournament and one student at a time. That is what this club has done — and what the golfers, sponsors, and volunteers who show up each fall keep doing.

Because service isn't something we talk about. It's something we do.

Come and Join Us

We meet Tuesdays at 7:30 AM at Carolina Country Club, 2500 Glenwood Avenue in Raleigh — in person or on Zoom. Visitors, prospective members, and visiting Rotarians are all welcome; just come.

If you would rather start with a handshake and a pint, our Thirsty Third Thursday social runs at 6:00 PM on the third Thursday of every month at O'Malley's Irish Pub.

And if you want to help turn a bunch of golfers into a college education, reach out about a Golf Classic sponsorship. We will save you a seat and a cup of coffee.