Senior Christopher Vaughn was surprised by a group of VFW members who awarded him for winning the Voices of Democracy scholarship during his English class Monday, Jan. 26.
Accompanying Rich Héroux was Vaughn’s father, Mark Vaughn, to help present the award.
“I was really taken off guard when they came into my class, and I was not expecting it at all,” Vaughn said.
During the classroom presentation, Vaughn received a certificate and a check for $150 to use towards his college expenses.
The Voices of Democracy Scholarship allows students to express ideas related to democratic ideas and principles. Applicants submit a 3 to 5 minute audio recording of themselves verbally presenting the essay.
The topic this year for the scholarship was “Why Are Veterans Important to Our Nation’s History and Future.”
Vaughn, whose uncle is a retired colonel in the Air Force, chose to elaborate on why veterans are important to our lives and to our country. Vaughn was able to compile war stories from his uncle and information he learned from history class to create his winning essay.
The process revealed to Vaughn, “the importance of veterans to our society, their service to the country and how they contributed to the freedom of our nation.”
Vaughn faced several challenges. One in particular was his computer.
It took Vaughn three tries to complete the video, and he described the process of getting a perfect take as, “exhausting.”
With a deadline of Nov. 1, Vaughn had been anxiously awaiting his results for over two and half months. With his victory at the local level, Vaughn now has the opportunity to compete at the state level, where that winner will receive a scholarship of $16,000.
The money would go to his post-secondary education. Vaughn is looking into several universities, with some of his top choices being UNC Charlotte, UNC Wilmington and NC State.
Vaughn plans on majoring in sports management and wants a career where he’s a part of sports.
Vaughn’s passion for sports management is not new, and someday he hopes to be the general manager of an NBA franchise.
Vaughn said of his passion for sports management, “Ever since ninth grade, I’ve been in love with it. It just feels right. It captures my attention, and I just want to get better and better.”