Two local ballet dancers have been awarded the Jennifer Thoma Memorial Ballet Scholarship.
Skyler Wemple, 15, of Atascadero and Sarah Hill, 15, of Arroyo Grande will each receive a $2,500 scholarship to attend an intensive summer ballet training program.
The Jennifer Thoma Memorial Ballet Scholarship has been awarded to ten dancers since 2012. It was created after Thoma passed away from cancer in 2012. Her husband and children wanted to honor her passion for dance.
"This scholarship was established to help local dancers realize their own dreams by providing support for dancers to attend summer intensive training programs," said Bill Thoma. "Jennifer was a selfless, caring person committed to quietly helping others. She touched lives in ways she never fully realized and will continue to do so into the future through this scholarship."
Wemple attends Mission College Preparatory High School and dances at the Academy of Dance in San Luis Obispo. She plans to attend a summer ballet course in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Hill studies through the Academy of Truth and Learning and dances at the San Luis Obispo Movement Arts Center. She hopes to participate in a summer program in either New York City or Jackson, Mississippi.
