The Two Ten Footwear Foundation, the national charitable foundation of America’s footwear industry, said the Bruce Fendell Memorial Scholarship will be supporting two new scholars, Mariah Dorn and Michelle Verastegui, in their educational pursuits.
This year, due to the generosity of scholarship donors, Two Ten was able to increase the scholarship awards for new applicants from $3,000 to $4,000 per student. These families who were unable to contribute anything towards their education now have $20,000 towards their future, no strings attached.
Two Ten Scholar, Mariah Dorn
Mariah Dorn and Michelle Verastegui epitomize this ideal. MaDorniah is a sophomore from Chippewa Falls, WI, attending University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. She is a marketing major with a passion for assisting her community. She was awarded the “First You, Then Me” award for her time as a Student Ambassador helping her community. She organized fundraisers for disaster relief, cooked and fed the homeless and tutored at-risk youth in high school. Although she also played softball and ran cross-country, she “eventually found it to be more beneficial for both myself and the people I was serving to focus my energy and time into [my volunteer program] specifically.”
Two Ten Scholar, Michelle Verastegui
The second Bruce Fendell scholar, Michelle Verastegui, is a freshman from San Antonio, TX. She is pursuing a Biology degree at the University of Texas at Austin, and is also very community-service driven. While being involved in several Honor Societies, bands and ensembles, robotics teams and sport teams, she remained involved in several major community-service groups. She worked with the Random Acts of Kindness Club, creating a positive environment inside the school and outside within the community. She worked with the Mexican American Unity Council, where they would “talk about culture empowerment and organize community service activities through the year.” Being part of the robotics team herself, she also joined a community group mentoring elementary students in math and STEM fields.
Bruce Fendell
Bruce Fendell was known for being a leader, mentor and a passionate giver to his community, and this is why the scholarship created in his name was matched with two scholars who possessed the same passion and drives. With the generous donations of his daughter Rachel Fendell Satinsky, Fila USA President Jon Epstein, Joseph Farivar of the Joseph Farivar Educational Foundation and countless others, this scholarship is making it possible for Mariah Verastegui and Michelle Verasteguito accomplish their goal of finishing college, attaining a degree and developing skills to better assist their community in the image of Bruce Fendell.
