MacDill Commissary announces 2011 Scholarship Winners Published May 25, 2011 By to the Thunderbolt MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- Paula Lewis, MacDill Air Force Base Commissary director, recently announced the MacDill winners for the Scholarships for Military Children Program. The MacDill winners are: Nicole Kliewer Michaela Jones Shannon Free Kalyn Hoppe Ashley Vargas Matthew Pesek Tyler Cooney David Cobb Ameer Jala Joanna Singleton Brandon R. Minton. Each winner receive $1,500 from the Scholarship for Military Children Program. "We're excited to report that the scholarship program continues to be a success in helping military families defray the costs of education," said Ms. Lewis. The scholarships are part of the Scholarships for Military Children Program, which is funded by manufacturers and suppliers that provide products and services for the Defense Commissary Agency's 259 commissaries around the globe. Scholarship Managers, a professional scholarship firm, selects the winners based on academic merit, participation in extracurricular and volunteer activities, and the quality of their essays. Recipients are notified by letter. The full list of scholarship recipients and sponsoring business partners is posted online at http://www.militaryscholar.org. Nearly every one of the Defense Commissary Agency's stores will announce a local winner; many commissaries will announce multiple winners. The Scholarships for Military Children program is administered by Fisher House Foundation, a nonprofit organization responsible for building comfort homes near military medical centers. The foundation bears all costs of the program so that every dollar donated goes for scholarships. The general public has the opportunity to donate to the program through the military scholar Web site. The full list of scholarship recipients is posted online at http://www.militaryscholar.org