Hope Initiative, Inc.’s Annual Scholarship Program

Hope Initiative maintains an Annual Scholarship Fund in order to reward students who have made measurable contributions to their communities and will continue doing so.

Applications came in from many different states, including: California, Texas, Connecticut, Ohio, Washington, and Massachusetts. A scholarship committee consisting of several graduate students and young professionals diligently evaluated the essays, recommendation letters, and application materials. The committee was extremely impressed by the high level of community service demonstrated by all the applicants.

At the end of an extremely difficult process, Hope Initiative has selected six individuals who will each receive a $1,000 scholarship to go towards his or her education. Hope Initiative has also selected two finalists who will each receive a $500 scholarship. Along with the $3,000 in scholarships awarded at the Vietnamese Festival’s pageant earlier this spring, Hope Initiative’s Annual Scholarship Fund will have disbursed $10,000 in financial assistance to students this year.

The recipients and finalists for the scholarships are:

Diana Dang

Kendrick Dean

Thao Duong

Jenny Le

Annie Khuong

Audrey Nguyen

Thanh Hien Pham

Sandra Paek

Jordan Peck

Stephanie Vu

From volunteering on medical mission trips to Haiti and Costa Rica, to traveling to Zambia with speech pathologists and rehabilitation service professionals to assist those with communication disorders, to founding a small business that donates 20% of its profits towards underprivileged children in Vietnam, to volunteering at a dental clinic that provides homeless individuals with free dental care, each of the recipients has made an impact in the lives of others.

Not only have they been recognized for their service by their peers, the recipients have spearheaded community service projects, raised money and awareness for causes such as multiple sclerosis, domestic abuse, speech disabilities, and lymphoma, and have dedicated countless hours of community service through organizations such as:

• Empowered By Your Support, a music program for underprivileged students;
• Tri-County Dive and Rescue, a non-profit that provides fast response divers for water emergencies, as well as K-9 search and recovery teams;
• Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, a summer program for campers with chronic illnesses and their siblings;
• Big Sister Little Sister;
• Healthcare for the Homeless;
• UNICEF;
• HP Young Employee Network;
• An Evening With Champions, a non-profit charity committee dedicated towards fighting cancer;
• Connective Link Among Special Needs Programs (CLASP), a non-profit which establishes rehabilitative programs for those with special needs in developing countries;
• Vietnamese Culture and Science Association (VCSA);
• UNICEF
• HP Young Employee Network
• and many other non-profits and organizations.