The Shannon E. Collins Foundation (SECF) committee chose Samara Villaruel and Ailany Reyes as the two recipients of the 2023-2024 Scholarship. Both applicants were awarded $5,000 towards their 2023-2024 school year tuition.
Four years ago, our colleague and friend, Shannon Collins lost her battle to Metastatic Breast Cancer. Her courage, strength, and resiliency during her 5-year journey was an inspiration to everyone around her. To honor her, the SECF was formed. The goal of the foundation is to keep Shannon’s legacy alive in our metal’s community and within the BL Duke family.
“It’s important to me, that our recipients know of the young lady they’re being honored by. When Shannon came to BL Duke, she put on those steel toe boots and hit the ground running! She left a lasting impact on BL Duke and in the metals industry. She was admired and respected. She made quite the name for herself in the industry and her customers loved her,” said Belinda Nunez at the event.
2023 -2024 SECF Winners
The committee members were impressed with every applicant received and it was a challenging task choosing just two winners. Congratulations to all the applicants on their educational success.
“Thank you for letting us get to know a little about you,” says Kaitlyn Evoy. “We sincerely hope all applicants choose to apply again in the future and wish them the best in their future endeavors.”
Samara Villaruel (left) is studying Biological Science and just entered her freshman year at the Illinois State University. Ailany Reyes (right) is studying to be an Ultrasound Technician at Aquarius Institute.
We can’t thank our committee members enough for helping us form and launch the SECF. They include Kaitlyn Evoy, Shannon’s sister, Jen DiSabato, cousin of Shannon, and lastly, Courtney Collins, Shannon’s sister-in-law. Together, they sorted through applications, discussed applicants, and chose the winners for the 2023 – 2024 scholarships.
To learn more about eligibility for this scholarship, click here. If you’re interested in applying for the 2024-2025 school year scholarship, please contact Kaitlyn Evoy at [email protected] for more information.
The Shannon E. Collins Foundation was created to keep Shannon’s light shining within BL Duke. It will assist BL Duke families with the cost associated with private high school, trade school or a four-year university.
The concept was originally created by Shannon who often discussed how to give back to the employees of BL Duke. Little did they know the foundation would later be formed in Shannon’s honor.