Roy Bates Scholarships awarded for the 28th time
Roy S. Bates
The 28th annual Roy Bates Scholarship winners were announced recently by the Wayne County Community Foundation.
After a review of nearly 45 applicants representing 11 schools in Wayne County, the following scholarship winners stood out above the rest and will share in a combined $20,000: Norwayne’s Caitlyn DeMassimo, Dalton’s Tess Denning, Rittman’s Sevi Garza, Smithville’s Caleb Keib, Central Christian’s Kaden Schrock, Triway’s Colton Snyder, Orrville’s Tamara Turner and Waynedale’s Kelsey Wolfe.
They will each receive a Bates Foundation one-time scholarship of $2,500 and are finalists for the Bates Player of the Year Award, which will be revealed later this spring.
The Bates Foundation, which is a component of the Wayne County Community Foundation, will reach $410,000 this year in scholarship money awarded to Wayne County student-athletes over nearly three decades.
Taking over as the Bates Foundation chairperson in 2021 is Rick Rottman, a 1969 Triway graduate who’s been a longtime coach and supporter of area athletics.
“It’s a real big honor to be able to serve on this committee,” Rottman said. “I really admired Roy Bates all the way back to my high school days. I got to know him better later in life and am happy to help the program that he created continue to honor the special student-athletes of Wayne County.”
The Bates committee reviewed “an outstanding pool of applicants,” Rottman said.
DeMassimo played basketball and ranks 46th in a class of 113 with a 3.56 GPA. She is the daughter of Jason and Julie DeMassimo. She is undecided on a college.
Denning participated in volleyball, basketball and softball and ranks 27th in a class of 76 with a 3.91 GPA. She is the daughter of Troy and Linda Denning and will attend the University of Northwestern Ohio.
Garza has participated in football, wrestling — going unbeaten and winning a state title this year — and baseball while compiling a 3.7 GPA that rates 22nd in a class of 95. He is the son of Rey and Terri Garza and will go to Ashland University.
Keib participated in football, basketball and track and has a 4.65 GPA to rank first in a class of 92. He is the son of Tim and Joi Keib and will attend Akron.
Schrock played soccer, basketball and baseball and has a 3.96 GPA, which is third in a class of 27. He is the son of Von and Rita Schrock and will go to Eastern Mennonite University.
Snyder played golf, football, basketball and baseball and has a 4.0 GPA, which is first in a class of 103. He is the son of Barth and Melissa Snyder and will attend Cleveland State or Ohio State.
Turner has participated in volleyball, basketball and track and ranks 20th in a class of 117 with a 3.79 GPA. She is the daughter of Dana and Stewart Turner, Sr. and is headed to The College of Wooster.
Wolfe played volleyball, basketball and softball and is 21st in a class of 93 with a 4.02 GPA. She is the daughter of Eddie and Stacy Wolfe and will attend Baldwin Wallace or Ohio Wesleyan.
Roy Bates died at age 88 in 2004 after a life that saw him work as a successful teacher, coach, broadcaster, referee, athlete and more.
Bates played baseball and basketball for the now defunct Chester High and coached at both Chester and Northwestern. He even helped Bobby Knight as a basketball assistant at Indiana University.
Bates set up the foundation that bears his name to honor Wayne County senior student-athletes based on character, grades and athletic ability — in that order.
To be eligible, applicants must have at least a 3.0 GPA, be a senior at a Wayne County high school, and play basketball and/or baseball/softball (his favorite sports). The rules state only one athlete per school can receive an award.
The Bates Foundation executive committee that chose the 2021 award winners consisted of Mike Breckenridge (WQKT radio), Doran Braun and Keith Snoddy (community representatives), Mike Plant (The Bargain Hunter/Wooster Weekly News editor), and Aaron Dorksen (WWN writer), along with Peggy (Bates) Yoder (Roy’s daughter) and Rottman.
A dinner to honor the scholarship winners and their parents will be held later in April at the Greystone Event Center in Wooster.
Aaron Dorksen can be emailed at aarondorksen24@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter at @AaronDorksen.