Rebecca Russell wins Jim Cresson Scholarship

Rebecca Russell, who recently graduated from Milford High School, is the 2011 recipient of the Jim Cresson Scholarship, named for the late Cape Gazette reporter.  Rebecca graduated as her class valedictorian and was the recipient of many other awards.  She plans to continue her education at the University of Delaware, where she intends to complete the honors program with distinction.

In high school, Rebecca was a drum major, president of the Key Club, recipient of the President’s Volunteer Service Award, a participant in all-state orchestra and band, and a Secretary of Education Scholar.

Jim Cresson, a Sussex County native, was a journalist and photographer in Delaware.  A Vietnam veteran, outdoorsman, artist, and musician, Jim had a great love for his country and nature, and a particular fondness for Native American history and culture. He spent the final years of his journalism career writing and taking photographs for the Cape Gazette before his death in an automobile accident in 2005.

The Jim Cresson Memorial Fund Scholarship recognizes a Sussex County senior who, through an essay contest focusing on interests that Jim Cresson shared, demonstrates some of the fine qualities that made up the character of Jim Cresson. Each year, Sussex County seniors are invited to apply for the scholarship in the second semester of their senior year.

Administered by the Greater Lewes Foundation, the Jim Cresson Memorial Fund was established by friends of Jim to perpetuate his memory.