Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

CONWAY – The Conway Community Scholarship Committee announces the awarding of the Dr. Joseph A. Fleetwood, Jr. Scholarships for the 2022-2023 school year.

The committee is excited to be honoring four local students who are pursuing careers in a medical-related field.

Scholarships are awarded to Robert Blake Birdsong and Rebecca Christine Sykes, both of Conway, Rebecca James McDermott of Woodland, and Dylan Brett Woodard of Jackson.

Birdsong, a 2020 graduate of Ridgecroft, is attending East Carolina University and is pursuing a degree in Exercise Physiology.

Sykes, a graduate of UNC-Wilmington, is currently pursuing a graduate degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at UNC-Pembroke.

McDermott, a graduate of Northeast Academy, will be studying nursing at Cape Fear Community College.

Woodard, a 2022 graduate of Halifax Academy, will be attending East Carolina University with plans to major in Sports Medicine or Dentistry.

The Town of Conway and its citizens established this scholarship in 1999 as a tribute to Dr. Fleetwood for his dedicated service to the community. It is awarded annually to students who plan to pursue a college degree in a field related to medicine and who may return to serve Northampton County and its citizens.

Scholarships have been given for over 20 years and past recipients include a pediatrician, nurses, pharmacists, a physical therapist, and many others in fields related to health.

The citizens of Conway and its surrounding areas are pleased to continue this scholarship on behalf of their “Dr. Joe” who served his patients tirelessly from 1950-1999. Dr. Fleetwood was a graduate of Conway High School, Wake Forest University, and the Bowman Gray School of Medicine. He completed his residency at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond and served in the U.S. Navy and as a member of the Naval Reserve from 1948-1978. He was the son of the late Dr. and Mrs. J.A. Fleetwood, Sr.

The Conway Community Scholarship Committee continues to raise funds to increase the endowment and is grateful for the continued support in fund raising from the Conway Ruritan Club. Tax-deductible contributions to the fund are welcome and can be made at any time.

For additional information on the scholarship, contact the North Carolina Community Foundation office at 1-888-375-8114.