By Krystal Moralee

Each year, one graduating senior from among St. Clair County’s public high schools is chosen for an award that will not only help them begin college but remain with them throughout the journey.

The John F. and Rose Marie Wismer Scholarship, established in 2003, is one of the Community Foundation of St. Clair County’s most prestigious awards.  It is a multi-year award that generally increases in value each year.

“The John F. Wismer and Rose Marie Wismer Scholarship is our most prestigious scholarship” said Jessica Flann, the Foundation’s Program Officer for Post-Secondary Success. “Each year a committee of superintendents will choose one student who demonstrates high intellectual and academic achievement and will be evaluated on their interest and respect for their fellow citizens, the ability to lead, and successful involvement in fine arts, athletics, co-curricular activities, and service work.”

This year’s newest Wismer recipient is Gavin Forbes, a 2026 graduate of Marysville High School who will begin at Tulane University this fall. For Forbes, the award is both practical support and a powerful vote of confidence from home. “Receiving the John F. & Rose Marie Wismer Community Foundation Scholarship is a tremendous honor and an opportunity for which I am deeply grateful,” he said. “This scholarship will help ease the financial burden of pursuing my education, allowing me to focus more fully on my academic and personal goals.”

For students already making their way through college, the scholarship has become more than an award received at high school graduation. Grant Vermeesch, a 2024 graduate of Capac Jr./Sr. High School, is heading into his third year at the University of Michigan, where he studies mechanical engineering. He has been able to join clubs, project teams, and the U-M bass fishing team while pursuing hands-on experiences that would be harder to manage alongside a part-time job. “This scholarship was very helpful in allowing me to pursue clubs and hands-on experience instead of working a part-time job during the semester to afford tuition,” Vermeesch said.

That same freedom has shaped the path of Brylynn Balon, the 2025 recipient and a Port Huron High School graduate studying elementary education at Saginaw Valley State University. Encouraged to apply by college advisor Troy Distelrath, himself a 2018 Wismer recipient, Balon said the scholarship has helped her focus on becoming a teacher instead of worrying as much about paying for college. The current cohort also includes 2023 recipient Therese Georgia, a Port Huron Northern High School graduate completing her imaging science degree at Rochester Institute of Technology, where she competed in cross country and track and worked with a student team to build an imaging system designed to detect the ripeness of strawberries.

The scholarship’s lasting impact reflects the vision of John and Rose Marie Wismer, whose deep philanthropic roots in the Blue Water area continue to open doors for local students. John Wismer understood personally how finances could shape a student’s educational path. He began college at what was then Port Huron Junior College, now St. Clair County Community College, later attended the University of Michigan, and ultimately worked nights while completing his education at Michigan State University.

Today, their legacy continues through students who leave small towns for new campuses, say yes to meaningful opportunities, and prepare to bring their talents back into the world. Because the scholarship is renewable through degree completion, it does more than help students start college; it helps them persist, grow, and graduate.

Donors can help extend that legacy. The Community Foundation of St. Clair County manages dozens of scholarships, life needs programs, and emergency funds that help local students pursue education and training beyond high school. Those who would like to help the next generation overcome financial barriers and pursue their own possibilities are invited to contact the Foundation to learn more about supporting or establishing an endowed fund.