[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 76 (Monday, June 3, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E773-E774]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           RECOGNIZING LOUDOUN STUDENTS WHO ``BEAT THE ODDS''

                                  _____
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, June 3, 2013

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize four remarkable 
students from my congressional district who were recently awarded 
college scholarships through the ``Beat the Odds'' program.
  Hosted by the Loudoun Bar Association, ``Beat the Odds'' provides 
financial support to area students who have overcome challenging, and 
often tragic circumstances. The students who received awards this year 
have endured hardships ranging from sexual abuse to illness to poverty, 
yet have still achieved great success in the classroom or on the 
athletic field.
  I had the privilege of attending a ceremony for the recipients on 
Thursday, May 23, in Leesburg. It was an honor to meet the students and 
hear firsthand how they overcame adverse situations. Their ability to 
remain positive and work hard despite the difficulties they face is 
inspiring. I wish them all the best as they embrace this wonderful 
opportunity and move on to college.
  The recipients of this year's scholarships are: Jonathan ``Cory'' 
Dickey of Loudoun County High School, Shannon Hayes of Park View High 
School, Leanna Moron of Loudoun County High School and Vineetha Thekkel 
of Tuscarora High School.
  I submit two recent news articles from the Loudoun Times-Mirror and 
Leesburg Today on these remarkable students.

             [From the Loudoun Times-Mirror, May 24, 2013]

      Four Loudoun Students Awarded ``Beat the Odds'' Scholarships

                           (By Alanna Dvorak)

       Looking at Loudoun County High School senior Leanna Moron, 
     one wouldn't suspect the challenges she's overcome.
       The poised girl of Thai and Bolivian descent is an 
     academic, sitting within the top 10 percent of her class. She 
     takes time out of her day to work with English Language 
     Learners. She will be attending Penn State to study nursing.
       She's also endured multiple traumas, from sexual abuse, 
     financial struggles, alcoholic family members and 
     ``tremendous heartache and pain.''
       ``To know what she has lived through everyday and see her 
     still be who she is is amazing,'' said Megan Dunn, a guidance 
     counselor at Loudoun County and the person who nominated 
     Moron for the award.
       Moron received a $6,000 scholarship from the Loudoun Bar 
     Association's Beat the Odds program at a ceremony May 24 at 
     the historic courthouse in Leesburg. ``It's an amazing 
     honor,'' Moron said. ``I'm very thankful for this scholarship 
     and this opportunity.''
       The Beat the Odds program awards scholarships to students 
     who have overcome significant life obstacles, such as abuse, 
     illness or poverty. A national program, the Loudoun chapter 
     was founded nine years ago by members of the Loudoun County 
     Bar Association.
       ``In a given year, there are roughly 245 days we hold 
     court,'' said Juvenile and Domestics Court Judge Pamela 
     Brooks, who hosted the ceremony. ``I have two favorite days: 
     today and adoption day.''
       In addition to Moron, three other students received merit 
     awards at the ceremony.
       Jonathan ``Cory'' Dickey, a senior football player and 
     wrestler at Loudoun County High School, received a $2,000 
     award. At age 14, he physically stopped his alcoholic father 
     from strangling his mother. His father left and the family 
     was forced to make do with food stamps, social security 
     benefits his mother, who is unable to work, receives and a 
     part-time job Dickey took on. Still: the family was unable to 
     stave off foreclosure.
       ``I did it not only for myself, but I try to be strong for 
     my brothers,'' Dickey said. ``It is very tough growing up at 
     an early age but I think it's made me a stronger person in 
     the long run.''
       Park View's Shannon Hayes' parents divorced when she eight, 
     after her father's struggles with alcoholism made it unsafe 
     for her. Two years later, her mom became ill and her father 
     moved back in with the family to help out.
       ``I thought our family was finally growing back together,'' 
     Hayes said.
       However, her father was diagnosed with Leukemia and died 
     just 15 days before Hayes' 13th birthday. Hayes' family has 
     also struggled financially.
       Hayes received a $2,500 award to put toward her education 
     at Penn State, where she plans to study biochemistry to 
     become a genetic engineer.
       Vineetha Thekkel of Tuscarora received the third merit 
     award of the evening. Thekkel and her parents came to America 
     in 2009 and the then 13 year old immediately had to take on 
     an adult role, trying to find transportation for the family 
     from the airport. Once the family settled in Leesburg, the 
     young teenager then solicited for jobs for her mother and 
     deaf father. Despite being laughed out by numerous business 
     owners, Thekkel was able to help her parents find employment. 
     They currently each work three jobs.
       Thekkel credits much of her success to agencies around 
     Loudoun County who supported her family during their 
     financial struggles with food stamps and free medical care 
     and teachers who personally supported her.
       ``With their support, I was able to stay on top of my 
     schoolwork,'' Thekkel said.
       Thekkel will be attending Mt. Vernon Nazarene University in 
     Ohio and hopes to become a missionary doctor. She received a 
     $2,500 scholarship.

[[Page E774]]

       Several prominent members of the community came out to 
     support the students, including Board of Supervisor member 
     Ken Reed, School Board member Thomas Reed, Town of Leesburg 
     Mayor Kristen Umstattd and Congressman Frank Wolf, who served 
     as keynote speaker.
       Wolf told of his adversities from childhood and being 
     teased as a stutterer and poor student. He told the students 
     their adversity would determine their success, rather their 
     character and ability to overcome.
       ``Do not be afraid to take on tough issues,'' Wolf told the 
     students.
       The Beat the Odds program will hold a special event June 13 
     at the Tally Ho in Leesburg from 5 to 7:30 p.m. The event 
     will serve as both a fundraiser and an opportunity for the 
     community to hear the stories from this year's winners.
                                  ____


                [From the Leesburg Today, May 24, 2013]

   Bar Awards Scholarships To Help Students Continue Beating the Odds

       ``Everything has a way out. You have the choice to keep 
     going.''
       Those were the words of Vineetha Thekkel, a graduating 
     senior at Tuscarora High School, but it was a message shared 
     by all four students awarded scholarships through the Loudoun 
     Bar Association's Beat the Odds program during a ceremony at 
     the historic courthouse in Leesburg Thursday night.
       In its ninth year, the program provides financial support 
     to college-bound students who have overcome remarkably 
     challenging, often tragic circumstances. The annual awards 
     ceremonies--attended by relatives, teachers and members of 
     the Bar--are known for their emotional rollercoaster ride of 
     pride in the students' accomplishments and sadness at the 
     situations the teens lived through. The tales bring tears to 
     the eyes of even the most experienced lawyers in the room. 
     The wider public will have the opportunity to hear the 
     stories of this year's honorees and past scholarship winners 
     during a special June 13 event at the Tally Ho Theatre in 
     Leesburg.
       This year's winners, while coming from decidedly different 
     backgrounds, told similar stories involving domestic 
     violence, financial struggles and lost youth.
       At age 14, Jonathan ``Cory'' Dickey said he stopped his 
     alcoholic father from choking his mother and then had to 
     start working to support her and his siblings when his father 
     left. ``Dad got off easy,'' the Loudoun County High School 
     senior said. Food stamps and Social Security benefits for his 
     mother, who is unable to work because of a medical condition, 
     helped, but not enough to hold off a foreclosure. His hard 
     work has paid off with a chance to continue his education in 
     college. ``It's going to help me in so many ways,'' he said 
     of the $2,000 scholarship award.
       Park View High School's Shannon Hayes' parents divorced 
     when she was 8, after her mother felt that her father's 
     alcoholism made it too dangerous to live together. Two years 
     later her mother became ill and her father returned to help. 
     Although the relationship with her father healed and a strong 
     bond was formed, he died when she was 12. ``He was my best 
     friend,'' Hayes said. It was her father's wish that she 
     succeed that has inspired her to peruse a degree in 
     biochemistry at Penn State and a career in genetic 
     engineering. ``He is with me everyday. He is my angel.''
       Thekkel said she flew to the U.S. March 18, 2009, with her 
     deaf father and a mother who did not speak English. It was at 
     the airport making phone calls to try to find a ride where 
     the then-13-year-old realized, ``I had to be the adult in the 
     family.'' Once settled in a Leesburg townhouse, she went 
     around to area businesses to collect job applications for her 
     parents who now work three jobs. Although the halls of 
     Tuscarora High School presented a completely new experience 
     for the first-generation immigrant, it was at school where 
     she found support from teachers who understood the challenges 
     she faced.
       ``I loved going to school. That was the only place where I 
     could stay away from the tough times,'' she said. ``I was 
     forced to become an adult at a very young age.'' With the 
     help of her $2,500 scholarship, she will attend Mount Vernon 
     Nazarene University in Ohio with the goal of working as a 
     missionary doctor.
       Loudoun County's High School's Leanna Moron received the 
     largest scholarship--the $6,000 Beat the Odds Award. She 
     described her story as ``complex,'' involving family 
     financial struggles, a foreclosure, alcoholic and abusive 
     family members, ``and tremendous heartache and pain.''
       At times life may seem too challenging and hopeless, she 
     said, but with determination you can get through it. She 
     found education as ``a way out'' and will graduate in the top 
     10 percent of her class. She will pursue a nursing degree at 
     Penn State.
       Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Judge Pamela L. 
     Brooks led the ceremony and U.S. Rep. Frank R. Wolf (R-VA-10) 
     was the keynote speaker, telling students of his struggles 
     growing up in Philadelphia as a picked-on, stuttering youth 
     and poor student. He urged them to continue to be willing to 
     pay the price to do the right things and to thank God for the 
     adversity that helps make them better people.
       Attorney Matt Snow, co-chairman of the Bar's Beat the Odds 
     Committee, encourages residents to attend a special forum at 
     the Tally Ho, 5-7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 13, to gain a better 
     understanding of the program and the impact it is having on 
     the lives of the students. Attendees are advised to bring 
     tissues to wipe away tears; and may bring their checkbooks to 
     support the program.

                          ____________________