Congratulations to the 2016 Harold P. Wells Scholarship recipients, Connor Hoyle and Joshua Gilmore. Both students were recognized during the annual DeKalb High School Senior Awards Night held on May 25, 2016. The award was presented by Scholarship Donor Drew Wells, DeKalb Fire Department retiree and son of Harold P. Wells.

Connor Hoyle of DeKalb is a second-year student in the Kishwaukee Education Consortium Fire Science Program. He plans to attend either Eastern Kentucky University or Western Illinois University to study Fire Administration and/or Fire Protection Services.

Joshua Gilmore of DeKalb plans to attend Iowa State University where he will study Aerospace Engineering, a field of study that will help him reach his goal of working in the space exploration industry.

The Harold P. Wells Scholarship, administered at the DeKalb County Community Foundation, is an ongoing fund to benefit DeKalb Fire Department employees, family members of employees, and graduates of the Kishwaukee Education Consortium’s Fire Science Program. Scholarship funds are used to offset expenses for any educational purpose including college tuition, fire courses, educational short courses, conferences and summer camps.

Harold P. Wells passed away on May 11, 1996 at the age of 74. Dr. Wells graduated from high school in Danbury, Connecticut. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from Springfield College, MA., and a Masters and Ph. D. in Physical Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana. He taught in many places including Bangkok, Thailand, the University of Illinois, Yale University, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, and Northern Illinois University.

Dr. Wells was interested in people who wished to further their education. His desire for this fund was to help DeKalb Fire Department members and their families achieve their education goals. He chose the DeKalb Fire Department because his youngest son, Drew, was a member of the department at the time of his death. Dr. Wells lived in DeKalb for more than one-third of his life. His purpose in establishing this scholarship was to provide a way to give back by helping those who serve their community in the fire services division.

To date, over 65 scholarship funds have been created through the Community Foundation. Scholarship funds are an easy way to support and promote further education of the youth in our community. To contribute to the Harold P. Wells Scholarship fund, or to discuss setting up a fund that meets your charitable interests, please contact Dan Templin, Executive Director, 815-748-5383 or dan@dekalbccf.org.

Pictured: Connor Hoyle, scholarship donor Drew Wells, and Joshua Gilmore during the annual DeKalb High School awards night.