This award, named in honor of long-time Hancock County resident and philanthropist Martha Beckenholdt, recognizes a Hancock County high school junior who has contributed outstanding time, talent, and energy to philanthropic endeavors. These are the true attributes of the woman whom the award honors. The award recipient will select a Hancock County nonprofit organization or agency to receive a $1,000 grant in his or her name, donated by the Hancock County Community Foundation.
Applicants must be Hancock County high school juniors with a recommendation from a high school staff member or nonprofit organization leader located in Hancock County.
Application is closed for 2023 and will reopen in January, 2024
Meet the 2021/2022 Martha Beckenholdt Youth Philanthropy Award Recipient
The Community Foundation of Hancock County is honored to announce the 2022 Martha Beckenholdt Youth Philanthropy Award recipient, Claire Bishop of Greenfield-Central High School. This award, named in honor of long-time Hancock County resident and philanthropist Martha Beckenholdt, recognizes a Hancock County high school junior who has contributed outstanding time, talent, and energy to philanthropic endeavors. These are the true attributes of the woman whom the award honors.
Claire has grown up participating in 4-H and estimates she has served approximately 258 hours of volunteer work while a member of the Hancock County 4-H Junior Leaders, both during the fair and participating in community outreach. She has also been a part of Changing Footprints, a nonprofit dedicated to providing quality footwear to those in need. Following her passions of 1) teaching children and 2) robotics, Claire has spent over sixty hours mentoring elementary students about STEM and VEX Robotics. She also serves as president on the Techpoint Foundation for Youth advisory board which helps to host the Indiana VEX Robotics State Championship and raises awareness of STEM career exploration. She is also an active member of the Hanock County Children’s Choir, and she chose to present her $1,000 award to them.
Claire stated in her essay, “A wise poet once said, ‘Only by giving do you receive more than you already had.’ I’m no poet, but, over the last four years, I’ve resonated with the meaning of this quote. Community engagement is not just volunteering, but rather an opportunity to produce fruit for others all the while strengthening roots under the surface. Most would consider this a sacrifice of time and effort, yet I have found so much joy and fulfillment through serving my community.”
The recipient of the 2022 award was chosen via a two-step process. The blinded applications were evaluated first by Community Foundation staff who used a scoring rubric to narrow the field to four finalists. These finalists were then interviewed by Community Foundation staff to get deeper information about the students’ service activities.
