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Northwest Florida Military Association Shield   Military Officers Association of America Shield

 
 

2024 Officers and Directors are Dave Parisot, President (nwfmoasf@gmail.com); George Colton, Secretary-Treasurer-Director (treasurer@nwfmoa.org); Directors: Robert Allen, Karl Eschmann, Charles Farmer, and Fred Westfall

Click HERE for the Scholarship Fund By-Laws


Donate today!
You may donate to the Scholarship Fund by check.  Please click on the “NWFMOA Scholarship Donation Form” below and follow instructions on the form. 

You may also use the form to make Memorial donations.

Contact Info: Dave Parisot, Maj, USAF (Ret.)

(nwfmoasf@gmail.com) or (850) 613-6545

As a qualified 501C(3) corporation, donations to the Scholarship Fund
are tax deductible as provided by law.


     

   Policies and Procedures for
                                  the JROTC Scholarship Fund                          


       Click below to view the NWFMOA JROTC Scholarship Award Winners
   
 

Click below to view the NWFMOA ROTC Scholarship Award Winners
 



JROTC Educational Support Grant Program


Click HERE for the Educational Support Grant Program Guidelines
   

NWFMOA Scholarship Fund, Inc.

A Brief istory of the Organization

(As compiled by Dave Parisot, President, 2015-2023)

The NWFMOA Scholarship Fund was established in May 1981 for the purpose of recognizing outstanding JROTC students in the five Okaloosa County High Schools of Baker, Crestview, Fort Walton Beach, Choctawhatchee, and Niceville.   The program was approved by the Board of Officers of Northwest Florida Chapter of The Retired Officers Association (TROA). In 1982 the Scholarship Committee selected Cadet Blum of Crestview High School from the five nominees of the Okaloosa County high schools with JROTC programs. Funds for this first scholarship of $500 came from a golf tournament and cash donations. [Source:  Email from Bob Secrest to Frank Glunn, Feb 2012]

The NWFROC Scholarship Fund, Inc. was established with the Internal Revenue Service as a Chapter 501c(3) non-profit organization in March 1997.  When The Retired Officers Association (TROA) changed its name to the Military Officers Association (MOAA), the organizational name was changed with the IRS to the NWFMOA Scholarship Fund, Inc in 2003.

Prior to 2015, scholarship awards of $500 were made to a JROTC cadet form each of the five Okaloosa County high schools with JROTC programs: Baker School, Choctawhatchee H.S., Crestview H.S., Fort Walton Beach H.S., and Niceville H.S.

At the 2015 Annual Board of Directors meeting on Feb. 25, 2015, the Scholarship Board unanimously approved increasing the scholarship amounts to $1,500 for each of the five high school JROTC programs, and the winner from each school would be interviewed by the Scholarship Committee to select the winner of the $3,000 scholarship to be paid out over two years. Scholarships awarded totaled $9,000 that year.  A formal scholarship application was adopted with academic, community service, and leadership criteria and the requirement for scholarship winners to enroll in ROTC at their college.  In addition, scholarship checks will be paid direct to the colleges after receipt of letters of enrollment from both the college and the ROTC unit.  The “Policies and Procedures for Scholarship Selections and Awards” and the “Scholarship Application” were adopted and posted on the NWFMOA website of www.nwfmoa.org.

At the Annual Board of Directors meeting on Jan. 17, 2018, the Scholarship Fund Board of Directors unanimously approved increasing the number of scholarships awarded to seven by adding the JROTC programs at Navarre and Walton High Schools.  The scholarship amounts were increased to $2,000 to each of seven JROTC high school programs.  The winner from each school would appear before the Scholarship Committee for interviews/questions to select the winner of the $4,000 “Lt. Col. James “Jim” Heavener Memorial Scholarship”.  This scholarship was created to honor Jim for his bequest of substantial funds to the Scholarship Fund upon his death in Sept. 2016.  The Board also unanimously approved designating one of the Okaloosa County scholarships as the “Chong Cha (Kim) Parisot Memorial Scholarship” in memory of the deceased wife of David Parisot who will fund this scholarship annually. Thus the total amount of awarded scholarships for 2018 was $16,000. This amount of scholarship awards was continued for 2019.

At the annual Board of Directors meeting in January 2020, the scholarship amounts were increased to $2,500 for each JROTC cadet plus the top scholarship of $4,000 for the “Lt. Col. James and Mrs. Una Heavener Memorial Scholarship”.  An additional scholarship of $2,500 was added, thus bringing the total of awarded scholarships to eight and the total amount of $21,500.  This program of eight scholarships totaling $21,500 was continued for 2021.

The Scholarship Fund Board met in November 2021 and agreed to increase each of the scholarships by $500, i.e., from $2,500 to $3,000 and from $4,000 to $4,500 for the Heavener Scholarship.  Thanks to the generosity of Dr. Howard and Mrs. Irene Fisher, we will be awarding an additional scholarship starting in 2022.  Thank you Howard and Irene!  (See below for the complete list of endowed scholarships.) Thus, in 2022, we will have eight scholarships available at $3,000 each and one for $4,500.  This scholarship program is not possible without the generosity of our Chapter members and Business donors. We also created an Educational Support Grant program for our seven local JROTC units.

At a special board of directors meeting in April 2022, we added two additional scholarships at the junior and senior college level of ROTC of $4,000 each. To be eligible, one of the criteria is that the ROTC cadet must be a graduate of one of twelve local high schools in Okaloosa or Walton counties, plus Navarre HS. Click on the icons above for more information on the JROTC and UWF ROTC Scholarship programs, and the Educational Support Grant program.

In the period of 2015 through 2022, the NWFMOA Scholarship Fund, Inc. has awarded 39 scholarships to local JROTC cadets totaling over $100,000.  Total scholarships awarded since 1982 total over $125,000.  Our Scholarship Program is a way of promoting one of the missions of NWFMOA “To help build future military officers and leaders”.

At the annual Scholarship Board of Directors meeting in 2015, the Board revived the recognition program for those who donate $100 or more to the Scholarship Fund and renamed it the BG Frank Glunn Century Club in memory of a previous past-President.  In January 2017 the Scholarship Board unanimously adopted a new recognition program for our BG Frank Glunn Century Club members.  It is called the “Gold Century Club”.  It recognizes those who have donated $500 or more cumulatively since we reactivated the Century Club in 2015. Gold Club members receive a Certificate of Membership upon entry with the certificates presented at the annual Scholarship luncheon, The Scholarship Fund and the JROTC cadets who receive our scholarships are most thankful for all donations to the Fund.

In 2017 the Scholarship Funds “Business Donor Program” was established to recognize those local businesses who donate to the program, either by monetary or ‘in-kind’ donations.  Four levels of donations were set:  “Business Bronze Donors” ($100-$249); “Business Silver Donors” ($250-$499); “Business Gold Donors” ($500-$749); and, “Business Platinum Donors” ($750+).

The NWFMOA Scholarship Fund, Inc. is an IRS approved 501c(3) non-profit corporation.  Donations to the Fund are tax deductible as approved by law.  The Scholarship Fund is also registered as a non-profit charity with the Florida Dept. of Agriculture and Consumer Services.  The Scholarship Fund officers and directors are all volunteers and serve without compensation.

Endowed scholarships as of May 2022: The “Lt. Col. James ‘Jim’ Heavener, USAF, Ret., and Mrs. Una Heavener Memorial Scholarship” of $4,500 (established in 2018 and funded by the Heavener estate); the “Chong Cha (Kim) Parisot Memorial Scholarship” of $3,000 (established in 2017 and funded by Maj. Dave Parisot); and, the “Dr. (Lt. Col., USAF, Ret.) Howard and Mrs. Irene Fisher Scholarship” of $3,000 (established in 2022 and funded by the Fishers). In 2023 Dr. Fred Westfall (Lt. Col, USAF Ret. and Jan Westfall and Col Karl Eschmann (USAF, Ret) and Charlotte Eschmann also created Endowed Scholarships.

 Below is the complete list of Endowed Scholarships, our Gold Century Club members ($500 cumulative minimum donation since 2015) and BG Frank Glunn Century Club members ($100 minimum donation) for the most previous 12 months along with our Business Donors. Your support is greatly appreciated.  All of these donations are used to fund our scholarships. [Note: (D) means deceased and (R) means Renewal of membership.].

Endowed Scholarships: Lt Col Jim and Mrs Una Heavener (via their estate effective 2018), Dave Parisot in memory of his wife, Chong Cha (Kim) Parisot (effective 2017), and Dr (Lt Col) Howard and Mrs Irene Fisher (effective 2022), and Dr. (Lt Col, USAF, Ret) Fred and Mrs. Jan Westfall Scholarship (effective 2023), and Col Karl Eschmann (USAF, Ret) and Mrs. Charlotte Eschmann Scholarship (effective 2024).

Gold Century Club: Bill Ryan (Feb 2016); Ruth Cullen, (D)  (Oct 2016); Dave Parisot (Feb 2017); Janet Taylor (Mar 2017); Chris Beam (Mar 2017); Bob Garcia (D) (July 2017); Rod Gerdes (Nov 2017); Larry Bush (Nov 2017); Dr. Howard & Irene Fisher (Nov 2017); Eileen Arpke (Feb 2018); Fred & Jan Westfall (Apr 2018); Clyde Locke (D) (Apr 2018); WWII, Korea, and Vietnam Veteran Sam Lombardo (D) (July 2018); Dennis Phillips (Aug 2018); Karl & Charlotte Eschmann (Oct 2018); Carol Baker (Jan 2019); Ann Adelsperger (Feb 2019); Don Litke (Aug 2019); Fred Boyer (D) (Aug 2019). Dr. Keith Kulow (Nov 2019); Al Bills (Nov. 2019); Kay Dent (Nov. 2019); Dr. Roger Riggenbach (Dec 2019); Robert “Pete” Peterzen (Dec 2019); Nick Marotta (Oct  2020); Kathy & Jesse Bush (Dec 2020); Patt & Caroline Maney (Dec 2020); Kevin Kirby (Apr 2021); Scott & Janet Berry (May 2021); Douglas Hardin (D) (Sept 2021);  Patrick Boab (Dec. 2021); Bob Allen (Feb 2022); Bobbi Hanson Garcia (Mar 2022); Joy Houck (Mar 2022); George Colton (May 2022); Bob Secrest (May 2022); Brig. Gen Fran & Mrs Connie Hendricks (Oct 2022); Les Matheson (Feb 2023); Dan Brown (April 2023); Tess Bass (August 2023); Bob Gramm (Dec 2023); and Larry Tashlik (Dec 2023).  [Note: 42 total members]


BG Frank Glunn Century Club: 
(past 12 months) (R = Renewal)  
March 2023: Kevin Kirby (R), Rod Gerdes (R), Les Matheson (R); April 2023: Dennis Phillips, Dan Brown (R) (In memory of Col. Don Panzenhagen), Al Bills (R), Larry Bush (R); May 2023: Chris Beam (R), Bob Secrest (R) and Dr. Howard and Mrs. Irene Fisher (R). June 2023: Dave Parisot (R) (In memory of Maj Bill Van Hoesen); August 2023: Dan Brown (R); Christine Hallion; Kevin Kirby (R); Dick Solt (R); Dave Parisot (R) (In memory of Col. ‘Skip’ Harrington and Col. Bill Byerley); Tess Bass (R); October 2023: George Colton (R); November 2023: Pat Johnson, Pete Peterzen (R), Dave Parisot (R)(In memory of Chong Parisot), Keith & Elizabeth Kulow (R), Tess Bass (R); December 2023: Les Matheson (R), Jeff Watson (R)(In memory of Maj. John Besten, USAF, Ret), Karl and Charlotte Eschmann (R); Bob Gramm (R); Brig Gen Fran & Connie Hendricks (R); Larry Tashlik (R); Kay Dent (In memory of Troy Dent and Larry Ketter); and Janet Ryan Taylor (R) (In honor of Major Bill Ryan): February 2024: Rod Gerdes (R).

2023 Business Platinum Donors: ($1,000+)  
Bass, Byrd & Associates at Merrill Lynch of FWB (R) and Florida Power & Light  
                                                                               

2022/2023 Business Gold Donors ($500 - $749):

December 2022: Eglin Federal Credit Union (R), Step One Automotive Group (R), Residence Inn & Suites by Marriott of FWB (In-kind) (R), TownePlace Suites by Marriott of FWB (In kind)(R), David Scott Lee (Crestview) Buick/Jeep (in-kind)(R). 

2022/2023 Business Silver Donors ($250 - $499):

December 2022: Shalimar Pointe Golf Club (In kind); Rocky Bayou Golf Club (In kind), Indian Bayou Golf & Country Club (In kind), International House of Pancakes (IHOP) of FWB (In-kind).

2022/2023 Business Bronze Donors ($100 - $249)

May 2022: Eye MD of Niceville (R); December 2022: Buffalo Reef of FWB (in-kind), Mary's Kitchen of FWB (in-kind)(R), Painting With a Twist of FWB (in-kind)(R), Repeat Street Thrift Store of FWB (in-kind)(R), Tammy's Journeys of FWB (In kind)(R), Popeye's Louisiana Kitchen of FWB (In kind)(R), Samuel's Roadhouse of Crestview (In-kind(R), The Shack Waterfront Restuarant & Marina of FWB, Conexion Newspaper of Navarre,  Lisa Jo Spencer, P.A. of Mary Esther.

Please support our local businesses that have contributed to our scholarship program.

NWFMOA Scholarship Fund: “HELPING TO BUILD FUTURE MILITARY OFFICERS AND LEADERS"

THE NWFMOA SCHOLARSHIP FUND, INC, IS A 501C(3) CORPORATION.  DONATIONS ARE TAX  EXEMPT AS PROVIDED BY LAW.  REGISTRATION # CH20374.  A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE FL DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE & CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING (800) 435-7352 WITHIN THE STATE OF FLORIDA OR VIA THEIR WEBSITE OF WWW.800HELPFLA.COM.  REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT.  IRS FEIN is 59-3434498




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