Character Counts—And Pays—For Students

For these four Gaithersburg High School students, character is more than something you choose in a video game.

Through their exemplary demonstrations of the Six Pillars of Character, the City  selected them to receive a total of $8,000 in scholarship money through the W. Edward Bohrer, Jr. Memorial CHARACTER COUNTS! Scholarship program.

Mirna Bolanos, Vivian Gimenez, Saeeda Khadim and Kenia Villatoro proved they understand what having character really means through their scholarship applications.

“(I)’m the first child in the family that will go to college," Bolanos wrote. "I want to be my little brother’s influence and teach him that you can achieve your goals no matter what happens throughout your life….  You need to do everything that is in your power to achieve your goals.”

“Caring is … a good way to build stronger bonds between friends:  when my friends see that I am interested in their well-being and their life, they will feel closer to me and it opens up doors, like trust and support,"Gimenez wrote. "Caring also gives me a chance to pay attention to other individuals’ needs.”

“(L)ife is hard and you have to go through so many obstacles, but nothing is impossible," Khadim wrote. "It is just that you have to put effort into it.  Anyone can make a difference and become someone’s role model.”

“When I came to this country, I didn’t know how important it was to be respectful," Villatoro said. "Now that I am a senior, I have learned that this value is essential because it is the compass that guides your life….  I believe that if I keep the six pillars…especially responsibility, I will succeed in life.”

The six pillars of character are trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship, as set forth by the City under former Mayor Bohrer in 1998.

Since the program's inception, more than $125,000 has been awarded to 59 high school seniors.