Port St. Joe honors Class of 2024

It was a joyous moment for members of the Port St. Joe High School graduating class of 2024 receiving their diplomas on May 23.

And it was a sorrowful time as well, as the parents of Travis Rozelle Jenkins, Jr. received his diploma posthumously, years after the popular student perished in a tragic automobile accident.

“In our time of joy on this special day, we remember our loved ones who are no longer with us,” read a page dedicated to him in the commencement program. “We are saddened by their absence but we are comforted in knowing that they are forever in our hearts and memories,”

Following the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance by Braden Jackson, and the invocation from Zhyion Quinn, Class President Lance Larry gave his address.

Following that the audience in the high school gymnasium heard from Superintendent Jim Norton, and from Principal Sissy Godwin, who assisted in the presentation of the diplomas to the 104 graduates.

Placed in the Hall of Fame were Jenna Barfield, Wenses Benedict, Samantha Childers

Marcus Clayton, CJ Conway, Hannah Da Costa, Nataleigh Parham, Cullen Partie, Avery Pharr, Fisher Van Der Tulip, Elyse Williams and TJ Jenkins, honorary.

Florida Bright Futures scholarships, eligible for 100% tuition, went to Natalie Parham,

Cullen Partie, Annabelle Partin, Avery Pharr and Elyse Williams. The Florida Medallion Scholarship, eligible for 75% tuition, went to Hunter Hicks, Tyrus Strickland, CJ Conway and Sara Durham

The following is a list of the many scholarships and achievements that were handed out, as well as their amounts.

Academic Achievement: CJ Conway $700, Kai Presley $150, Carson Hendricks $150, Weston Taranto $200

Aldonia Quinn, $250: Lance Larry, Zhyion Quinn, Mikhai Larry

American Legion 116 Willis V. Rowan, $250: Annabelle Partin

Andrew Sheppard Memorial, $500: Uwenses Benedict

Anealia Johnson-Bush UCF, $500: Cullen Partie

Band Boosters, $500: Natalie Parham, Sara Durham

BECASA Creative Careers, $1,000: Avery Pharr, Dakota Tousignant

Billy C. Quinn, $250: CJ Conway, Zhyion Quinn, Sha’Myra O’Neal, Mikhai

Larry

Billy Tapper Longshoremen’s Union, $350: Zhyion Quinn, Weston Taranto

Bro. Howard Browning, $500: Brooke White

Bryce Nelson, $500: Hannah DaCosta

B. Walter Wilder, $1,400: Tessa Talarico

City-Wide Missionary, $200: Mikhai Larry, Zhyion Quinn, Sha’Myra O’Neal

C. Leonard Belin, $1,400: Destiny Gray

C. Luther Pickles, $500: Hunter Hicks, Avery Pharr

Damon and Gillie McNair, $500: Mikhai Larry

David Childress, $1,000: Samantha Childers

Delta Kappa Gamma Beta Beta, $500: Brooke White

Donnie and Carolyn M. Young, $1,600: Riley McGuffin

Dr. Krista Thompson Health Science, $1,000: Addyson Creekmore

Dr. Krista Thompson out of state, $1,000: Mary Margaret Farrell

Dr. Timothy Beard, $1,000: Zhyion Quinn

Edwin G. Williams, $1,000: Lance Larry

Emerald Coast Federal Credit Union Teresa Lynn Taylor, $500: Daylon Hunnings

Military Enlistment Awards, $100: Zachary Cassidy, Elijah Reynolds, Kaylee Schweikert, Ethan Elliot, and Wake Giffen

Fantasia, $1,000: Hunter Hicks

First United Methodist Baxter/Taylor, $1,000: Kevin Barnes

First United Methodist Care Closet Wewa, $1,000: Riley McGuffin

Gulf Coast State College Achievement – Gulf County: $2,000 Riley McGuffin, $1,000 Samantha Childers

George and Hilda Duren Family ROTC: $5,000 Annabelle Partin, $2,000 Sara Durham, $1,000 Riley McGuffin

George Tapper, $2,500: Elyse Williams

Gibson, $4,000: Maya Itzkovitz

Gulf Coast Electric Coop, $1,000: Tessa Talarico

Greg Johnson Memorial, $1,400: Addyson Creekmore

Gulf County Educators, $400: Lance Larry

Gulf County Sheriff’s Office, $1,000: Hannah Creamer

Herman Dean, $250: Natalie Parham

James Cooley Masonic Lodge #111, $500: Maelee Lewis

Jimmy and Susan Wilder, $1,400: Danika Kelly, Kylie Ingalls, Chloe Davis, Dylan Davis, John Cullen

J. Lamar Faison, $250: Emma Leffew

John Reeves PACE, $1,400: Riley McGuffin, Maelee Lewis, Jenna Barfield

Jonathan Paul Pierce Memorial, $1,400: Destiny Gray

Justin Ayers Dream On, $1,000: Jenna Barfield

Karen Taylor Memorial, $1,500: Brooke White

Kiwanis Service, $1,400: Mikhai Larry

Kiwanis Subject Areas, $100: Science – Avery Pharr; Math – Natalie Parham; Social Studies – Cullen Partie; English – Dylan Davis

Kiwanis Vocational, $1,000: Brandon Heckenlively

Knights of Pythias, $500: Sara Durham, Mikhai Larry, Zhion Quinn

Lila Gunter Nursing, $2,000: Hannah Creamer

Lowery-Worley: Bryleigh Jones $250; Fisher Vandertulip $250

Margaret Key Biggs, $250: Brooke White

Margie Davis, $500: Isabella Canington

Marilyn Witten, $1,500: Garrett Acree, Chelsea Bishop

Martin Niederer 9/11: Maya Itzkovitz $5,000, Mary Margaret Farrell $1,000

Miller Heating and Air, $1,250: Elyse Williams, Hunter Hicks

Murphy Nursing, $1,400: Sara Durham

Dr. Naomi Barnes Memorial Odyssey of the Mind: Jenna Barfield and Isabella Canington

National Honor Society: Natalie Parham $200, Elyse Williams $300

Norman C. Buchert Engineering/Math, $1,500: Maya Itzkovitz

North Florida Bass, $500: Chelsea Bishop

Pat and Bob Kerrigan, $1,000: Danny Nguyen, Cullen Partie, Emma Leffew, Landry Rowland, Dakota Tousignant

GCSC Pathways to Success, $8,400: Zhyion Quinn, Danica Kelly, CJ Conway

Paul Gant Memorial, $250: Zhyion Quinn, Fisher Vandertulip, Lance Larry, Mikhai Larry

Paul and Marlene Sewell, $5,00 Brookelyn White

Peppers Spanish, $1,000: Elyse Williams

Perry and Young, $500: Samantha Childers

Port St. Joe Garden Collicott-Miller, $1,000: Cullen Partie

PSJ Ministerial Alliance, $750: Samantha Childers, CJ Conway

Prevail, $1,000: Addyson Creekmore

R. Marion Craig, $250: Avery Pharr

ROTC Academic Achievement, $1,000: Arlena Gleichner

Sacred Heart Hospital, $500: Annabelle Partin

Sam Cox Memorial, $1,500: Maya Itzkovitz

Sara Taylor Memorial, $300: Gabriella Dimitrijevich

SGT Linda Lewis Memorial, $500: Sha’Myra O’Neal

Swivel Sisters Women’s Fishing Club, $4,000: Samantha Childers

Temple Watson SGA, $1,000: Samantha Childers

Tony Barbee Memorial, $500: Dylan Davis

Travis TJ Jenkins Memorial, $500: Max Godwin, Lance Larry, Mikhai Larry, Samantha Childers

Vern Eppinette, $500: Estevan Angel

VFW Community, $5,000: Samantha Childers

Victor LaFeryl FUMC Care Closet, $1,500: Sara Durham

Plant A Seed Scholarship, $5,500: Emma Leffew

University of Auburn: Nataleigh Parham (Band Scholarship, Meredith Ann Birchfield Endowment Scholarship and the Academic Charter Scholarship) 

Troy State University: Avery Pharr (Band scholarship; Scholars Award; Chancellor’s Award for Global Competitiveness)

Savannah College of Art and Design: Dakota Tousignant (Student Recognition Scholarship and SCAD Academic Honors Scholarship)

Gulf Coast State College: Hannah Da Costa (National Junior College Athletic Association Cross Country scholarship)

Huntingdon College: Brooke White (Scarlet & Grey cheerleading scholarship)

Auburn University at Montgomery: Fisher Van Der Tulip (Baseball scholarship) 

Troy State University: Mary Margaret Farrell (Trojan Leadership Scholarship and the Sunshine Scholars Award and Chancellor’s Award for Global Competitiveness)

Florida Southern College: Arlena Gleichner (Watson Scholarship)

University of Florida: Maya Itzkovitz (Gator Spirit Scholarship)

Southeastern University: CJ Conway (President’s Academic Scholarship, the Florida Realtors Education Foundation Scholarship, Apalachicola Masonic Lodge 76 Scholarship and scholarship from Redemption Point Church of God)

Unmanned Safety Institute Ground Safety Certification: Lawson Smiley (Also a Federal Aviation Pilot License Part 107 for unmanned aircraft)

EKG Technician Certification: Samantha Childers, Sara Durham, Annabelle Partin, Avery Pharr, Elyse Williams

Phlebotomy Certification: Samantha Childers, Sara Durham, Tylar Miller, Annabelle Partin, Avery Pharr, Isabelle Watt, Elyse Williams