by Jane Ames
The awards ceremony for the 2014 McDonalds McScholar Athletes was held recently at the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield. Scott Coen was the master of ceremonies with opening remarks made by George Gomez-Manager of McDonalds. This was the 18th year the awards have been presented. The keynote speaker was Kacey Bellamy, two time Team USA silver medalist and star defenseman for the professional women’s hockey team the Boston Blades.
This award annually honors two outstanding graduating seniors from each high school in Western Massachusetts. Students were nominated by their school principal based on:
- Record of academic achievement and service that have been truly exemplary
- Personal standards and accomplishments that are a positive model to others
- High levels of integrity, self-discipline, honesty and courage
- Outstanding performance in a varsity sport for two years
- Distinguished service to their classmates and schools
This year’s winners representing Frontier Regional are Niko Ames and Taryn Marquis.