Former Millwood students awarded scholarships in honor of late teacher

From left, Roman Childers, Brittany Griswold and Curtis McNeil are recipients of the Barry Leach Memorial Scholarship. Seventeen years ago, the faculty and staff at Millwood Elementary School established the Barry Leach Memorial Scholarship Fund in memory of Leach, who taught at Millwood for 23 years sharing his love for science. He died in September 2000 after a vigilant fight against cancer. The fund is used to provide financial assistance to Sumter School District seniors who are former Millwood students. Since its formation, $33,700 has been awarded in scholarships. Recently, $3,000 was awarded to three students, bringing the scholarship total to $36,700. "Millwood Elementary plans to make this scholarship opportunity available for many years to come," said Dr. Johnny Hilton, chairman of the Barry Leach Memorial Scholarship Fund. "We know of no better way to honor Barry Leach, who dedicated his life to helping others learn, than to provide scholarship assistance to students planning to further their education." The Barry Leach Memorial Scholarship Fund is tax exempt under section 501 (c) (3) as a public charity. All gifts and donations to the scholarship fund are tax deductible.