Wednesday, April 30, 2025
The Mountain Ranch Scholarship Committee is proud to announce that we will be awarding six high school graduates scholarships to help them pursue their dreams of higher learning. The scholarship ceremony will occur on Friday, May 2 at the Mountain Ranch Town Hall. A potluck dinner will be held at 5:30 p.m. with the ceremony to follow. Scholarship recipients will be:
Mackenna Kiernan is a lovely young woman who cares deeply about horses. Mackenna grew up on her ranch, where she learned how to ride and care for horses from a young age. She has continued horse lessons throughout her life and is now learning more advanced techniques and new maneuvers, including how to trim horses’ hooves, and how to bond with her horse and understand horses’ feelings.
Mackenna’s career dreams are to become a veterinarian or to get a degree in Animal Science/Business to become a large barn/ranch manager. She has been accepted to Modesto Junior College’s Animal Science Program and plans to transfer to UC Davis or Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
The Mountain Ranch Scholarship Committee wishes Mackenna all the best!
Neko Valentine is a delightful young man who has many interests. He enjoys the outdoors, exploring caves, and hiking. He also likes to travel; earlier this year he went to Puerto Rico and enjoyed snorkeling there.
His enjoyment of the outdoors, interest in doing hands-on physical work, and desire to help others in the event of a power loss, led him to his goal of a career in the electrical industry. After graduating, Neko plans to apply to a five year apprenticeship program under a Journeyman Electrician. He plans to attend Columbia College in the fall if he is unable to get into the electrician program the first year and apply again the following year.
Neko is a hard worker with an infectious optimism that will support him in whatever he does. We are so pleased to offer Neko a scholarship and wish him all the best!
Coming from Monterey over 4 years ago, Kevin Vasques finds Mountain Ranch “quiet and nice,” and the people “welcoming and kind.” Kevin credits some of his teachers that have inspired, and developed his interest in what he now loves to learn about.
He has worked hard through his 4 years at Calaveras High School as he wants to continue his education at Columbia College in welding and electrical repair. He is happy that he has had 4 years of Ag Tech. Kevin says he likes doing things that are “hands on” and wants to work, not only for himself, but towards a stable position so that he can help others with his skills. He really cares about his community and wants to make sure that electrical lines will be safe to prevent future forest fires.
Kevin also has been a TA and photographer helping with his senior yearbook in charge of the dynamic duos, look-alike pages, and JV and Varsity shots.
Outside of school, Kevin and his friends like to explore the Mountain Ranch area. He and his buddies also like to play card games and video games. He currently has a job at the Wildlife Café.
We are lucky to have Kevin in our community and pleased he will receive our Mountain Ranch Community scholarship, knowing he will help communities wherever he may land.
It was a grey and stormy day when I met Anastacia Sharp at the Mountain Ranch Park, but she brought the sunshine and the joy. An outstanding student academically, Anastacia is also gifted in music and dance and has just finished choreographing the dances for Bret Harte’s Spring musical, Chicago. She grew up in Mountain Ranch and was full of delight about the new puppies recently born on her ranch. She credits her family and early upbringing for making her independent and practical.
Anastacia has fixed her sights on becoming an orthodontist but hasn’t decided which, of the four universities that have accepted her, she will attend. As a child who liked her braces (who does that?!) and after a summer internship at a dental office, the long road of college and dental school is a challenge to which she looks forward. She also hopes the security of a medical degree will allow her to continue her interest in the arts.
The Mountain Ranch community is delighted to offer a scholarship to our hometown girl, Anastacia Sharp.
Lavannah Henaghan dreams of adventure and exploring the world. After she finishes her degree at San Joaquin Delta College and obtains her nursing degree, she wants to travel. At this point, it doesn’t matter where, the world is her oyster.
Over her four years at Calaveras High School, she has blossomed from a quiet, anxious freshman into a fearless and forthright senior. She has developed a well-rounded life, volunteering for several community services. Her favorite subjects at CHS have been psychology, art, English, and soccer. Although Lavannah has become a passionately competitive person, when she meets new people, she’s shy at first, learning to trust strangers one step at a time. She’s thankful for the support of her grandparents who have cared for her and brought her and her siblings to Mountain Ranch. She loves the area’s rural atmosphere and her many close friends.
Born in Bakersfield in 2006, Hope Whaley says she grew tired of the noise and traffic and was overjoyed when her family moved to the rural community of Mountain Ranch in 2020. “It was the greatest thing that ever happened to me,” she says. She loves waking up to the sounds of chirping birds in the trees and hearing the roar of the creek that flows past her house. Now, she can’t imagine living anywhere else.
Since moving to her new town, she has made many great friendships at Calaveras High. A member of the Cheerleading Team, she was chosen to be Spirit Captain in her senior year.
She plans to use her scholarship to continue her general education and, eventually to go into the field of Cosmetology. Someday she dreams of traveling to other locales but, for now, is content to help her mom and brother at home.
She says, since moving to the area, she’s never met anyone who treated her unkindly here and suggests that anyone who has the chance to move to Mountain Ranch should definitely do so!
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