The Woodbine Agency's Big Dreams Scholarship at The Winston-Salem Foundation

ILLUMINATING

THE FUTURE

THE W IN S TON- S AL E M F OU NDATION 2013 REPORT TO THE COMMUNITY | 2012 ANNUAL REPORT

STUDENT AID

SUPPORTING

DREAMS

The Woodbine Agency

F

OR WOODBINE, big dreams matter.

Big dreams have spurred the brand revitalization agency’s growth in Winston-Salem over the past 28 years, and they continue to play a key role in the team’s creative approach with their clients.

When Woodbine was looking for a tangible way to give back to the community, the company turned to The Winston-Salem Foundation, where it established its Big Dreams Scholarship to support college students who dream of being the next generation of advertisers and marketers.

“I don’t think you can start a company without having a big dream and thinking forward,” says Maureen Hall, Woodbine’s founder. “Woodbine grew and thrived in the Winston-Salem community, and we wanted to give back through a foundation that also grew out of this community and continues to support it. Students are right at that point where they’re dreaming about the rest of their lives. They’re dreaming about possibilities.”

The scholarship exemplifies Woodbine’s five key values: ideas, interaction, intensity, integrity, and impact.

“We really do want to raise up the next generation to have an impact,” Maureen says.

“There’s no other way to do it than to help fund their dreams.”

The scholarship is awarded to a graduating Forsyth County high school senior who intends

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the winston-salem foundation annual report

to study in the communication arts field. After the first year of college, the recipient is offered a summer internship opportunity at Woodbine.

Instead of a traditional plaque, students receive a journal in which to record their thoughts, dreams, and inspirations, says Peter Mitchell, president and CEO. “There are a lot of ways to give back,” Peter says. “At the heart of Woodbine is relationships. Building that relationship with the students was a big thing.”

He also hopes that their scholarship recipients will be able to develop a community among themselves that will be beneficial in their future careers.

East Forsyth High School graduate Sarah Rierson was inspired to study communications at UNC-Chapel Hill by her uncle, who majored in broadcast journalism there. She was surprised to learn during her 2012 high school awards ceremony that she had won the first Big Dreams Scholarship.

“I was just really thankful for the scholarship,” Sarah says. “I had no idea I was receiving it. I was really surprised to see how they wanted to get to know me. I plan to do the same thing for some young person at a moment in my career.”

During her summer internship, she has helped with research on social media projects and especially enjoyed working on blog posts.

Peter encourages other businesses to follow this model of both supporting students financially while also building relationships with them. The support becomes more than a transaction, he says, “It’s transformational.”

The theme of Woodbine’s 25-year anniversary celebration highlighted one of Maureen’s favorite African proverbs: “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go with others.”

“This sense of community and knowing you’re not alone is really important,” she says.

THE WOODBINE BIG DREAMS SCHOLARSHIP, established through a student aid endowment in 2011 by The Woodbine Agency, provides a $1,000 award to a graduating Forsyth County high school student who intends to major in communications, graphic design, journalism, public relations, creative writing, digital media or a related field at an accredited vocational/technical school, community college, or college/university. Woodbine also offers a summer internship opportunity to the scholarship recipient after his or her first year of college.

Below: Peter Mitchell, Sarah Rierson, and Maureen Hall