Silvia Candice Hooser

Congratulations to Silvia Hooser, daughter of Haygan and John Hooser, SMA '73, who was selected as the first recipient of the Henry Scholarship Honoring SMA Alumni, Faculty, and Staff.  Silvia attended Beaufort County public schools through the third grade and was then home-schooled through the 11th grade, after which she joined and graduated with the class of 2000, at Grace Christian School in Staunton, Virginia, earning a 3.9 GPA.

She was a competitor in South Carolina's Beaufort County gymnastic meets, participating in state-level events and receiving several first-place medals.  After moving to Staunton, she coached gymnastics, served as a member of the Mercy Ships medical mission, and she has been active at Calvary Baptist Church, carrying on a tradition of religious participation from her high-school years at Beaufort Community Bible Church.  Silvia attended Blue Ridge Community College before applying to and being accepted by Mary Baldwin College, in 2001, where the scholarship will help her to pursue studies leading to a teaching degree and her becoming an elementary school teacher.

“I am sincerely grateful to Hunter Henry and deeply honored to be a recipient of The Henry Scholarship Honoring Staunton Military Academy Alumni, Faculty, and Staff.  Thank you.”

The Henry Scholarship for Staunton Military Academy Alumni, Faculty, and Staff is a separate $100,000 endowment to Mary Baldwin College that is in addition to the Henry Scholarship Honoring SMA.  This endowment, from Hunter W. Henry, Jr., honors the SMA and Hunter family traditions of outstanding citizenship and excellence in education, and is perpetually available for award, exclusively to descendants of SMA alumni, faculty, and staff who meet the criteria.  The scholarships it funds will be awarded by Mary Baldwin College to as many as two SMA alumni, faculty, or staff descendants on an annual, competitive basis.

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