Goodwill of North Florida has selected local student Ellis Rainey as the inaugural recipient of the recently established Adam R. Thayer Tech Scholarship.
The $5,000 scholarship aims to support the next generation of individuals pursuing continued education in information technology (IT) by rewarding superior student performance, academic achievement, encouraging community service and assisting students with an unmet financial need.
The scholarship was created to honor the life of Adam Thayer, Goodwill’s IT director and a Ponte Vedra resident. He was the son of former Goodwill CEO Bob Thayer and died unexpectedly in 2019.
Applicants were required to be in pursuit of a degree and were asked to write an essay about the importance of community service.
“Ellis wrote a very moving essay about service and his willingness to help others and give back to the community,” said David Rey, CEO of Goodwill of North Florida. “It spoke to the importance of good leadership and the value of possessing a strong character. It really stood out among the rest.”
Ellis, of St. Augustine, is a first-generation college student who will study IT at his
dream school, Florida State University in Tallahassee.
The Adam R. Thayer Scholarship will be awarded annually. For more information, go to goodwilljax.org.
