The National Volunteer Fire Council, in partnership with the Dunkin’ Brands Community Foundation, has selected 10 outstanding junior firefighters to receive a $5,000 scholarship through the National Junior Firefighter Scholarship and Grant Program. The departments of each of the scholarship recipients also will receive a $5,000 grant to support their junior firefighter programs. In total, the program has awarded $100,000.

“We are thrilled with the number of high-quality applications we received,” said NVFC Executive Director Heather Schafer. “The scholarship review committee faced a difficult task, but ultimately selected 10 applicants who serve as truly inspirational and outstanding examples of what it means to be a junior firefighter. These 10 individuals have gone above and beyond in their commitment and dedication to their programs, and they exemplify the future of the fire and emergency services.”

This is the scholarship and grant program's inaugural year and hundreds of junior firefighters applied for the competitive scholarships. In addition, the number of juniors and departments registered for the National Junior Firefighter Program has more than doubled since the scholarship application period opened.

The scholarship recipients are Natasha Boger, East Gold Hill (N.C.) Volunteer Fire Department; Ethan Goodman, Dixon Rural (Mo.) Fire Protection District; Elias Klar, Juda (Wis.) Community Fire Department; Jennifer Krawetzky, Coventry (Conn.) Volunteer Fire Association; Andrew Livingston, Mills River (N.C.) Volunteer Fire & Rescue; Brittany Philpott, Johnsonville (N.Y.) Volunteer Fire Company; Steven Reeves, Theodosia Area (Mo.) Volunteer Fire Department; Kayla Sulla, Great Neck (N.Y.) Alert Fire Company; Kelsey Tripp, Fairview (Ill.) Fire Department; and Ashley Wilson, Clayton (Del.)Fire Company, No. 1.