Kiwanis awards vocational scholarship

The Sisters Kiwanis Club awards financial aid to adults who are seeking a career change. This program, known as the Kiwanis Career Opportunity Fund (OCF) assists local adults (25 or older) who are financially unable to return to school or retrain for a career change.

Yumi Eykelbosch, a Sisters resident, was recently awarded an OCF scholarship that aids her studies for a B.S. degree in dental hygiene. Yumi attends the dental hygiene program at the Oregon Institute of Technology in Klamath Falls. She had worked for several years, as a dental assistant, in a Sisters practice but wanted to advance her career in the field.

When presented with the OCF award, Yumi was asked why she was returning to college. She responded that, as a single mother, she was having a tough time financially and a career as a dental hygienist would combine stable employment with a comfortable income. She also emphasized that Kiwanis' financial support helped make it possible for her to be a full-time student.

The Kiwanis Career Opportunity Fund provides financial assistance to start, augment, or complete a career that may include vocational, technical, artistic or general fields of study. Funds are available to qualified residents within the Sisters area regardless of age, gender, disability, marital status, race or current occupation. Kiwanis does not set limitations on potential use of the award. Since its inception, the fund has awarded more than $30,000 in assistance to help 20 Sisters-area residents reach their career dream.

COF applications are available on the Kiwanis website: (sisterskiwanis.org/about-us/career-opportunity-fund), at the Sisters Habitat for Humanity office, from Family Access Network or by calling 541-410-2870.

If you wish to aid the COF, make checks payable to Sisters Kiwanis Foundation and post to Sisters Kiwanis, P.O. Box 1296, Sisters, OR, 97759.