08-05-2025
17th annual Ryan Clark Scholarship and Community Service Award Banquet held at Lakeside High School
EVANS, Ga. (WJBF) – The 17th annual Ryan Clark Scholarship and Community Service Award Banquet was held Wednesday night at Lakeside High School.
The scholarship was founded in 2010 to honor Ryan Clark who was killed in the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007.
Clark was raised in Augusta and graduated from Lakeside High School in 2002.
Ryan's mom, Letitie Clark, says Ryan was passionate about giving back to his community and it's inspiring to see students have the same passion so many years later.
'It's a joy that we can give back to our community no matter what the reason, we can always help someone, and he would be thrilled to know that his legacy is continuing to help.' said Clark.
Savannah Finley won the award in 2015 and is now a medical student at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.
She graduated from Lakeside High School and told me she was honored to be the guest speaker at the banquet.
'Ryan Clark's legacy just really instilled something in me, and it kept me motivated all these years later and I just want to carry forward that legacy.' Finley said.
The recipients of the award this year made history being an all-girls recipient list.
There were four scholarships given out and McKenzie Hill, Senior at The Academy of Richmond County, won the highest scholarship award of $2,000.
She says she is still choosing which college to attend but is honored to have been given this award.
'It means quite a lot, to Mrs. Clark, just being able to honor her son and his legacy and to give back to the community and know that I have done my part thus far to give back to my community and exemplify some of what Ryan has done for our community and other, so, it means a lot.' said Hill.
The hope is for Ryan's legacy to be remembered through community service many years later.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJBF.
