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Lavarnway, Simser Earn Watertown High School Graf Award

June 6, 2019 By admin

Pair of Seniors Honored Wednesday as Top Graduating Athletes

    WATERTOWN — Two Watertown High School seniors were recognized as the top graduating athletes and the recipients of the William I. Graf Award on Wednesday. Julia Lavarnway was selected as the women’s recipient, and Ryder Simser was named as the men’s honoree this year.

    The William I. Graf Award was created in 1954 by the Italian-American Civic Association to honor Mr. Graf’s leadership and civic engagement in the community. Mr. Graf was a multi-sport coach and athletic director at Watertown High School. Graf Award honorees are expected to have participated in at least two or more varsity sports in their senior year and demonstrate exceptional character and sportsmanship, discipline, fair play, training, athletic ability, and academics.

From left, Ryder Simser, Phyllis Johnson, Lee “Gus” Murray, Julia Lavarnway, and David Graf. The two students were named Wednesday as 2019 Watertown High School Graf Award Recipients. Phyllis Johnson and David Graf are William I. Graf’s children and Lee “Gus” Murray is Graf’s nephew.

    Julia is an accomplished four-year varsity lacrosse player at Watertown who also played varsity soccer in her junior and senior years. As a soccer player, she served as team captain in both years of play. In lacrosse, she distinguished herself as a Frontier League All Star in her junior and senior years and was a team captain during her senior year. Julia was also selected as a four-time scholar-athlete while playing lacrosse for the Cyclones and twice while playing soccer. This season she helped lead her team to a 9-6 record and an appearance in the Section 3 Class C Playoffs.

    Off the athletic field, Julia participated in Business Club, volunteered for Meals on Wheels and was a “Values of Volunteering” member. A National Honor Society member, Julia will attend Clarkson University, Potsdam, where she plans to study business and play Division III lacrosse. She is the daughter of Mark and Joanne Lavarnway, Watertown.

    Ryder is a standout three-sport varsity athlete, playing soccer and basketball during his junior and senior years and lacrosse for four years. As a lacrosse player, he distinguished himself as a four-time Frontier League All-Star and was named to the All-North Team during his last sophomore, junior and senior years. He received a Sportsmanship Award in basketball and soccer during his junior year and was named a Frontier League All-Star in soccer during his senior year. Ryder was also selected as a four-time scholar athlete while playing lacrosse for the Cyclones and twice while playing soccer and basketball. He was chosen as a Section 3 Academic All-American this year.

    Off the athletic field, Ryder was a member of the Northern New York Community Foundation Youth Philanthropy Council during his freshman, sophomore and junior years; a volunteer at the SPCA of Jefferson County and the Watertown Urban Mission. A National Honor Society Member, Ryder will attend LeMoyne College, Syracuse, where he plans to study biology and play Division II lacrosse. He is the son of Erin and Shane Simser, Watertown.

    More than 100 graduating high school seniors have received the Graf Award. Watertown High School’s athletics staff selects the recipients each year, and the Italian American Civic Association presents the award. Following the death of Mr. Graf’s son, William A. Graf, in 2013, the family decided to honor him by funding a financial award for recipients. William A. Graf, who also embodied the traits of the award, attended Watertown High School and played several varsity sports coached by his father, William I.

    Each recipient receives a financial award of $1,000. The Northern New York Community Foundation was selected to help continue the Graf family legacy by administering the fund in perpetuity and raising awareness of the award for students who strive to earn the prestigious honor.

About the Northern New York Community Foundation

     Since 1929, the Northern New York Community Foundation has invested in improving and enriching the quality of life in communities across Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties.

     Through partnerships with businesses and organizations, generous individual donors and families, and charitable foundations, the Community Foundation awards grants and scholarships from an endowment and collection of funds that benefit the region. Its commitment to donors helps individuals achieve their charitable objectives now and for generations to come by preserving enduring legacies of community philanthropy while inspiring others.

     The Community Foundation is a resource for donors, local charitable organizations, and professional advisors. It also works to bring people together at its permanent home in the Northern New York Philanthropy Center to discuss challenges our communities face and find creative solutions that strengthen the region and make it a great place to live, work, and play.

Filed Under: Recent News

Northern New York Community Foundation

131 Washington Street
Watertown, NY 13601

Phone: 315-782-7110
Fax: 315-782-0047

info@nnycf.org

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Northern New York Community Foundation
2 days ago
Northern New York Community Foundation

Congratulations to Kyle Moyer, the 2022 recipient of the Northern New York Community Foundation Anna Mae Searles Cooper Memorial Scholarship.

Kyle graduated in June from Belleville-Henderson High School in June and will attend SUNY Brockport to study exercise science. He aspires to work as a physical therapist.

Kyle is a National Honor Society member and an accomplished three-sport athlete, competing in varsity soccer, basketball, and baseball throughout high school. He is the son of Michelle and Jeromy Moyer, Mannsville.

Established in 2019 at the Community Foundation, the Anna Mae Searles Cooper Scholarship honors the life and legacy of longtime South Jefferson Central Schools teacher Anna Mae Searles Cooper. It is presented annually to a South Jefferson High School graduate who demonstrates exceptional motivation and potential.

Kyle recently met with scholarship founders Denny and Pamela Jerome and Anna Mae’s longtime dear friend, Sandra Haight, who presented him with a $1,000 scholarship award. Pictured, from left: Denny Jerome, Pamela Jerome, Kyle Moyer, and Sandra Haight.

We are honored to part of the special way that Anna Mae will be remembered as she continues to touch the lives of students in her community.

#NNYCF #Scholars #ClassOf2022
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Congratulations to Kyle Moyer, the 2022 recipient of the Northern New York Community Foundation Anna Mae Searles Cooper Memorial Scholarship.

Kyle graduated in June from Belleville-Henderson High School in June and will attend SUNY Brockport to study exercise science. He aspires to work as a physical therapist. 

Kyle is a National Honor Society member and an accomplished three-sport athlete, competing in varsity soccer, basketball, and baseball throughout high school. He is the son of Michelle and Jeromy Moyer, Mannsville.

Established in 2019 at the Community Foundation, the Anna Mae Searles Cooper Scholarship honors the life and legacy of longtime South Jefferson Central Schools teacher Anna Mae Searles Cooper. It is presented annually to a South Jefferson High School graduate who demonstrates exceptional motivation and potential.

Kyle recently met with scholarship founders Denny and Pamela Jerome and Anna Mae’s longtime dear friend, Sandra Haight, who presented him with a $1,000 scholarship award. Pictured, from left: Denny Jerome, Pamela Jerome, Kyle Moyer, and Sandra Haight.

We are honored to part of the special way that Anna Mae will be remembered as she continues to touch the lives of students in her community.

#NNYCF #Scholars #ClassOf2022
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Anna Mae would love seeing all the recipients of this scholarship. She was an amazing person!

Thank You for your generosity ❤️

Great teacher. She’s smiling on this

Congratulations

Thank you Anna Mae . Thank you Sandy .

Moyer Michelle

Pamela Jerome

Yes sir!

Awesome Michel Soluri Michel F. Soluri

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Northern New York Community Foundation
2 days ago
Northern New York Community Foundation

Watch your mailboxes for our Summer 2022 issue of “Thoughtful Giving” that is now on its way to all our valued donors, partners, and Community Foundation friends!

We feature a wide range of stories in 32 pages about the work donors make possible to strengthen communities across Northern New York. We also pay special tribute to many incredible people who our community recently lost and whose legacies will live on in many special ways.

Donors like YOU support so much of our work that improves the quality of life across Northern New York for everyone.

Click here for a “sneak peek” of the issue: issuu.com/nnycf/docs/tg_summer_2022

#ThoughtfulGiving #ThoughtfulLegacies #NNYCF #Grateful
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Watch your mailboxes for our Summer 2022 issue of “Thoughtful Giving” that is now on its way to all our valued donors, partners, and Community Foundation friends!

We feature a wide range of stories in 32 pages about the work donors make possible to strengthen communities across Northern New York. We also pay special tribute to many incredible people who our community recently lost and whose legacies will live on in many special ways.

Donors like YOU support so much of our work that improves the quality of life across Northern New York for everyone.

Click here for a “sneak peek” of the issue: issuu.com/nnycf/docs/tg_summer_2022

#ThoughtfulGiving #ThoughtfulLegacies #NNYCF #Grateful
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Northern New York Community Foundation
3 days ago
Northern New York Community Foundation

Congratulations to the 2022 recipients of the Northern New York Community Foundation North Side Legacy Fund Scholarship!

Pictured, from left: North Side Legacy Fund Advisory Committee member Terry Williams; Advisory Committee member and past League president William Parody; North Side Legacy Scholarship recipient Victoria Ledoux, Immaculate Heart Central graduate; scholarship recipient Martin J. Hutchins, Immaculate Heart Central; scholarship recipient Hannah M. Reichard, Cicero-North Syracuse High School; and Advisory Committee member Terri Mallette. Absent from photo: scholarship recipient Loise A. Pador, Watertown High School.

Each of this year’s recipients have strong family ties to Watertown’s North Side Improvement League.

We are honored to be the permanent home for the North Side Improvement League to build upon its legacy of charitable work and support for college-bound students. Because of this endowment, the League’s civic deeds and community pride will forever continue.

#NNYCF #NSIL #Scholars #ClassOf2022
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Congratulations to the 2022 recipients of the Northern New York Community Foundation North Side Legacy Fund Scholarship! 

Pictured, from left: North Side Legacy Fund Advisory Committee member Terry Williams; Advisory Committee member and past League president William Parody; North Side Legacy Scholarship recipient Victoria Ledoux, Immaculate Heart Central graduate; scholarship recipient Martin J. Hutchins, Immaculate Heart Central; scholarship recipient Hannah M. Reichard, Cicero-North Syracuse High School; and Advisory Committee member Terri Mallette. Absent from photo: scholarship recipient Loise A. Pador, Watertown High School.

Each of this year’s recipients have strong family ties to Watertown’s North Side Improvement League.

We are honored to be the permanent home for the North Side Improvement League to build upon its legacy of charitable work and support for college-bound students. Because of this endowment, the League’s civic deeds and community pride will forever continue.

#NNYCF #NSIL #Scholars #ClassOf2022
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So glad to see the North Side Improvement League is still touching the lives of our community. As a former volunteer with my grandparents and a descendent of a past president of the ladies auxiliary, I am proud of the organization!!!

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