The Juneau Community Foundation and the Brady family of Skagway announce that the Margaret Frans Brady Fund has awarded $7,000 in scholarship funding in 2020 for five area residents pursuing artistic excellence:

• Reece Bleakley, Juneau – 2020 graduate of Thunder Mountain High School, will be studying flute and music at San Jose State University in California in the fall ($1,500).

• Dennis Corson, Juneau – 2020 graduate of Thunder Mountain High School, a classical and jazz performer and composer, will be studying music at Pacific Lutheran University in Washington this fall ($1,500).

• Eliza Myers, Skagway – 2020 graduate of Skagway High School, will be pursuing film/video production at Pierce College in Washington this fall ($1,000).

• Noatak Post, Juneau – Noatak, Juneau’s young viola virtuoso, will seek a degree in music education at Pacific Lutheran University ($2,000).

• Mina Yee, Skagway – a concert violinist at the age of 10, will be able to continue her professional lessons (virtually for the time being) with a grant to the Skagway Arts Council ($1,000).

“Despite this being a strange spring for everyone, we were pleased to see these five young artists take the time to apply during their busy at-home school schedules, and we are very happy to help them all,” said Jeff Brady, chair of the MFB Scholarship Committee.  

Brady said the committee did not see the usual wave of applications for those attending summer camps and retreats (all have been cancelled) in this year’s applications.

The Margaret Frans Brady Fund was established in 2012 at the Juneau Community Foundation to support arts and education projects and programs in Skagway and northern Southeast Alaska. A separate MFB Scholarship Fund was established a year later to assist students and artists in our area with scholarships to help them improve their creative abilities.

Including this year’s awards, more than $52,000 has been awarded to 60 area students of the arts since the scholarship fund was created in 2013.