Lillie Gardner Awarded Dr. Henry W. Indyk Scholarship

LILLIE GARDNER AWARDED DR. HENRY W. INDYK SCHOLARSHIP

Twins Lillie and Carlie Gardner have jointly been awarded the four-year Dr. Henry W. Indyk Scholarship, which is administered by The Lawn Institute. They will be splitting the scholarship funds. Lillie and Carlie are the daughters of Clay and Denise Gardner of DMG Turf and Farms in Angier, North Carolina.

Beginning in her junior year, most of Lillie’s classes have been part of a dual credit program, earning both high school and college credit. She will graduate this spring with a diploma from Harnett Central High School in Angier, NC, and an associate degree through Central Carolina Community College in Sanford, NC. Though Lillie had been accepted at Campbell University, after exploring her options, she decided instead to attend the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in the fall where she will major in Marketing and Graphic Design.

Her love of design started early and by Middle School she learned the basics of calligraphy and started practicing and improving her skills. In her essay outlining her career goals, Lillie wrote, “Ultimately, I have come to the decision that I want to have a career in Marketing and Graphic Design. I have always loved creating, drawing, writing, and coming up with different ideas for designs.” And, “… learning more about how to turn what I love into a job, I began doing small jobs for people in my community.”

In February of 2018, she turned those small jobs into her own business. In her essay, she explained, “I created and designed signs, logos, stickers, labels, monograms, hats, clothing items, and other accessories. Along with these small jobs, my parents tasked me with creating a new logo for our turfgrass business. They only gave me a few guidelines that they wanted to incorporate into the logo, but the rest was for me to figure out and create. There was some trial and error as I was figuring out what worked and what did not work but I was able to create something that we all loved.”

In her essay on how the turfgrass industry has shaped her character, Lillie wrote, “Growing up and living on a farm that sells turfgrass, along with other row crops, showed me the importance of hard work, responsibility, and the labor that goes into the turfgrass industry.” And, “… I have been able to take these characteristics and work ethic that they have taught me and use them in my daily life.”

Lillie played volleyball during eighth grade but opted to try out for the Cross Country team as a freshman and found her sports niche. She says, “I run cross country in the fall, and compete in track during the winter and spring, concentrating on the long-distance running events, the two-mile, one-mile, one-kilometer and 800-meter races. There’s not really a down season for running.”

Lillie wrote, “As an avid cross country, four-year varsity runner, team captain, and state qualifier, I have used these qualities that my parents instilled in me to be my best. Being a runner takes a lot of hard work and dedication to be successful. I have had to put a lot of hours into this sport, strength training, overcoming injuries, and running longer and faster miles to improve my time.” And, “… I have also been able to maintain high grades and be a part of numerous clubs including: BETA Club, Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), DECA, Fellowship of Christian Students (FCS), and FFA, along with working on our family farm.”

Faith is at the center of Lillie’s life. Her favorite Bible verse is 1 Timothy 4:12, “Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.”

In her letter of recommendation, Amanda Hesselmeyer, School Counselor, Harnett Central High School wrote, “Lillie is one of the most caring and kindhearted students I have ever met. She is a goal setter and is determined to achieve both her academic and personal goals.” And, “She is involved in many extracurricular activities and she always tries her best in all she is doing.” And, “Lillie has enjoyed being a Peer Tutor at our school.” Hesselmeyer added, “Lillie has a very calming personality and works well with everyone she meets.”

CARLIE GARDNER AWARDED DR. HENRY W. INDYK SCHOLARSHIP

Twins Carlie and Lillie Gardner have jointly been awarded the four-year Dr. Henry W. Indyk Scholarship, which is administered by The Lawn Institute. They will be splitting the scholarship funds. Carlie and Lillie are the daughters of Clay and Denise Gardner of DMG Turf and Farms in Angier, North Carolina.

Beginning in her junior year, most of Carlie’s classes have been part of a dual credit program, earning both high school and college credit. She will graduate this spring with a diploma from Harnett Central High School in Angier, NC, and an associate degree through Central Carolina Community College in Sanford, NC.

Carlie will attend the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in the fall where she will major in Biology. She says, “I have a heart for helping others and want to be someone that can make a difference in others’ lives.” In one of her essays, Carlie wrote, “For College, I want to pursue a career in the medical fields, specially thinking about a Physician Assistant. To have a job in the physician assistant field not only requires a four-year undergraduate degree, but it also requires a graduate program which can take an additional three or more years.”

The college credits Carlie has completed will allow her to enter college as a sophomore. Carlie wrote, “This means I will only have to complete three years of undergraduate classes instead of four.” And “… hopefully get into a graduate program a year earlier. This will allow me to reach my goal quicker and start helping others faster.” And, “Receiving this scholarship will allow me to learn, study, and develop a greater understanding of the human body and how it works. I would be able to focus on my studies with less stress about finances.” And, “The generosity of awarding me this scholarship will be greatly appreciated and will allow me to give generosity to others by helping them with their medical needs.”

In her essay on how the turfgrass industry has shaped her character, Carlie wrote, “One thing it has taught me, and I have seen first-hand is patience.” And, “Growing up on a sod farm has taught me hard work and determination.” And, “… also has taught me about teamwork. When working together things can get done so much better and more efficiently, as long as everyone is determined.” She added, “I would never want to grow up any other way, in any other town, or on any other farm because of all the memories and lessons that I have learned here, at my home.”

Carlie started playing volleyball in eighth grade and continued throughout all four years of high school. She was the recipient of the Volleyball Coaches Award in 2018 and served as volleyball captain for two years. In addition to volleyball and working on the family farm, she was a member of DECA and of FBLA, where she served as treasurer for two years.

Carlie says, “I try to keep my faith in the center and above everything; when I do, I see that it allows everything to go a little more smoothly.” Her favorite Bible verse is Psalms 145: 17, “The Lord is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his works.”

In her letter of recommendation, Chelsey Cabe, Physical Education Teacher and Head Volleyball Coach at Harnett Central High School, wrote, “I have coached Carlie in volleyball and taught her in the classroom. In both of these areas she excels.” And, “As an athlete, I have watched Carlie set goals and reach each and every one of them. As a freshman, Carlie struggled with skills and played very minimal minutes in games. This never discouraged her or took away her love and desire for the game. Instead, I saw her incredible work ethic shine and her willingness to be dedicated and determined pay off. Carlie, now as a senior, is a leader on our team and a contributor on and off the court.” Cabe added, “Her love for God, her family and her friends is evident. This can be seen, not only in her words, but in her actions and attitude.” And, “… I look forward to watching her as she continues to grow and mature into the beautiful young woman I know she is becoming.”

AIDAN COOPER AWARDED DR. HENRY W. INDYK SCHOLARSHIP

Aidan Cooper has been awarded the one-year Dr. Henry W. Indyk Scholarship, which is administered by The Lawn Institute (TLI). He is the son of Jeremy and Kim Cooper. His Dad is manager of turf operations for Red Hen Turf Farm, Inc. in New Carlisle, Indiana. Red Hen Turf Farm President, Gordon Millar, endorsed Adian’s scholarship application.

Beginning in his sophomore year, the majority of Aidan’s classes have been part of a dual credit program, earning both high school and college credit. He will graduate this spring with a diploma from Penn High School, Mishawaka, IN, and an associate degree through Ivy Tech Community College, which has multiple locations in Indiana. Aidan says, “All the credits may not apply, but I anticipate it will give me at least a year’s worth of college credit. It’s a great way to complete the basics and makes sense financially.” Though Aidan had been accepted at Ball State University, further exploration of his options resulted in the decision to attend Indiana University Bloomington. He says, “I’ve been accepted into the honors college and received a better scholarship offer there, and they have a strong program in my major field of study, Computer and Information Systems.”

Aidan developed his interest in computers as a child and a computer programming class his freshman year turned that interest to a passion. In his sophomore year, he started working with the game system Unity to develop his own games online to offer to others for free. He also has used his programing skills to modify older computer games to work with today’s technology. In one of his essays for the scholarship application, Aidan wrote, “It brings me great joy whenever I finally squash a bug in the code for a video game I’m programming, or when I finally figure out what is wrong with a program on my friends’ computers, or when I see a modification that I made for a game get hundreds of downloads.”

He also attributes his experience working at Red Hen Turf Farm for helping him determine Computer and Information Systems should be his career path. In his essay on how the turfgrass industry shaped his personal character, Aidan wrote, “My father used to have to do a lot of manual planning in order to properly plan deliveries of sod and communicate with everyone that needed to know those plans, but with the Turf Logistics software, he is now able to plan deliveries and communicate details about those deliveries with ease, freeing up massive amounts of time for him and his coworkers for other, more high-level work. Pursuing an education in computer and information systems will allow me to use my talents with computers and turn them into a profitable venture that can also help businesses improve their operations using technology.” Aidan added, “The better businesses operate, the better the economy.”

Four years of foreign language study was a requirement of the dual credit program. Aidan selected Spanish and loved learning the language. He explains. “The bonus is being able to communicate in Spanish also should make me more valuable in the job market.”

In his letter of recommendation, James A. Schmidt, teacher of Social Studies at Penn High School, wrote, “I have known Aidan since he was a sophomore in my History Topics course.” And, “Aidan’s list of accomplishments during his high school career is endless. He is one of the best students I have ever had the pleasure of teaching. Aidan can be outgoing and dedicated and at the same time quietly set the highest example for others.” And he wrote of Aidan’s compassion for others, “… Aidan always goes a step beyond to find ways to make a difference in others’ lives.” And “He is as diligent and responsible in the classroom as he has shown outside of it. To say he works well with others is an understatement.” In his evaluation of Aidan’s scholastic abilities, leadership abilities, and general character, Mr. Schmidt gave Aidan the highest ranking, exceptional, in all the categories listed: leadership, attitude, organization, reliability, attendance, and initiative.