New class of scholars honored ahead of Marines 250th birthday
Watch the video here.
WASHINGTON (Gray DC) – A record number of scholarships were awarded to the children of Marines and Navy Corpsmen last week during the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation’s annual ceremony.
The nonprofit group awarded over $12 million on July 28 to nearly 2,900 students who are pursuing a college degree or career technical education.
The group has been helping students pay for their education for over 60 years.
“Folks will say, ‘Well, thank you for your service.’ The Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation is about seeing how that thank you manifests itself in bona fide gratitude to Marines,” said Odie Van Opdorp, the COO of the foundation.
Some of the scholarship recipients were honored during a ceremony at the Marine Barracks in Washington.
“So, I’ve received it since I was a freshman, and it means a lot to me,” said Simona Richard, a rising senior at Howard University. “It’s been very life changing, I guess you could say.”
Both Richard and her father, Sergeant Major Jimmy F. Richard Jr., spoke during the ceremony to thank everyone who makes the scholarships possible.
“We know that service is what we do,” said Sergeant Richard. “We make a lot of sacrifices. Our children make sacrifices. And, it’s very special to know that there’s a foundation that’s willing to serve us, after all the service and sacrifice that many of us have given.”
The ceremony also conceited with the ongoing celebration of the United States Marines Corps 250th anniversary.
“For as long as the United States of America has been around, Marines have been serving in one capacity or another. And I think that that’s really historic. And the opportunity for just why what we do is so important,” said Ted Probert, CEO of the foundation.
The Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation is the nation’s oldest and largest provider of need-based scholarships to military children.
Copyright 2025 Gray DC. All rights reserved.