Wlaf1450Campbell High’s Joann Begley receives $10,000 scholarship from Firecracker 5K committee
By Jim Dossett
LAFOLLETTE, TN (SPECIAL TO WLAF)-
“All the lovely ladies in their finery tonight, I wish that I could know them one by one. And all the handsome gentlemen with lovin’ on their minds, waiting there to take the ladies home…”
That ballad by the great troubadour, Gordon Lightfoot resonated through my head the other night as I admired the young ladies attired in their exquisite finery, making their grand entrance into the palatial LaFollette Church of God, floating, flittering, like a mantle of colorful butterflies. The young men, were waiting, attired in an eclectic variety of clothing, some of which I would describe as “Kid Rock Chic.” They were quintessential young men, bursting with energy and themselves, and as my sainted mother would say, “full of piss and vinegar.”
Many of these fine youngsters were to be recipients of various awards of excellence they’d achieved during their brief stopover at Campbell County High School. And they were celebrated with gusto, by a packed house of relatives, family, and friends at this rite of passage; Senior Night.
Brenda Dossett, is a member of two scholarship boards; The Campbell County High School Relief Fund, and the Deerfield Firecracker 5K Fund, and had the distinct honor of awarding five scholarships to four deserving young people for their outstanding achievements and to support their plans to attend numerous schools of higher learning.
One of those students is Joann Begley, who was selected by a Firecracker 5K committee to receive a $10,000 scholarship based upon her sterling academic credentials, her work ethic in the community and her desire to improve the human condition in the future.
Joann will attend the University of Tennessee in her quest to become a nurse and operate her own clinic someday. She was very gracious and expressed her deep thanks for the benevolence of individuals and organizations to make her dreams and the welfare of many others a reality.
As we left the ceremonies, winding our way through a warren of parked cars, my wife and I were jubilant in respect for Joann and her praiseworthy classmates as they forge forward into the world to, coin a much used phrase, “to be the best that they can be.”
Our wish for every one of you can be captured in the body of Gordon Lightfoot’s ballad , “All the Lovely Ladies”: “Bless you all and keep you on the road to better things, heaven can be yours just for now.” (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED-05/12/2025-6AM-PHOTO SUBMITTED)