SHIPPEN TWP. — Four area students are the beneficiaries of scholarships of $1,900 each at a ceremony on May 18 at the Grand Canyon Snowmobile Club’s annual Upper Pine Creek Trout Tournament.

The scholarships are presented by the Snowmobile Club, Seneca Resources, ProCom Roofing in Bucks County and an anonymous donor. Public donations added to the initial $1,500 scholarship to give each recipient another $400.

This year’s recipients are Lily Hess, Ben Schlosser, Autumn Mead and River Moyer.

Lily, a senior at Cowanesque Valley High School in Westfield, is the daughter of Luke and Julie Hess of Millerton. She is attending Alfred State University in New York to pursue an associate’s degree in agricultural business.

“I hope to pursue a career in agriculture and bring some knowledge back to the family farm.”

All four recipients said they are grateful and proud to have been selected for the scholarship, which is awarded to students pursuing degrees in wildlife, ecology and the environment. Students had to complete an application and write an essay.

Lily wrote how the family farm, Hess Dairy, uses no-till practices and Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program, a voluntary program that plants trees to address local and national conservation concerns like water quality, wildlife habitat and soil erosion.

Ben, a student at North Penn-Mansfield High School, is the son of Will and Julie Schlosser of Mansfield. He will attend Penn State University to study environmental resource management.

He has been involved in a research project on the presence of wolbachia in insects and aquatic life on the Tioga River and whether acid mine drainage has an impact. The study took place on two streams near Island Park, Blossburg, one of which contains AMD

“I’m happy to get an environmental scholarship for school and to see the support for it,” Ben said.

Brett and Shanadel Fenstermacher of Tioga are the guardians of Autumn, also a student at Cowanesque Valley. She plans to attend Wilson College in Chambersburg to pursue studies in veterinary technology.

“I love animals,” she said. “Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve wanted to be around animals.”

Having applied for several scholarships, learning that she will receive this one made the entire college process real and believable for Autumn.

She hopes to be a vet tech for small animals and is keeping open the possibility of being a veterinarian.

River, the son of Greg and Melina Moyer of Wellsboro, is a student at Wellsboro High School. He will attend Juniata College to study biology. He hopes to eventually earn his doctorate and go into field research.

Science and the environment is an interest for the entire Moyer family. River’s dad is a professor for Commonwealth University-Mansfield’s fishery program and his mother is the elementary STEM coordinator for Wellsboro Area School District.

The scholarship could be a way for some recipients to give back to the community after getting a degree and returning to the area, River said.