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CONWAY – The Conway Community Scholarship Committee announces the awarding of the Dr. Joseph A. Fleetwood, Jr. Scholarships for the 2024-2025 school year. The committee is honoring three local students who are pursuing careers in a medical-related field.

Scholarships are awarded to Robert Blake Birdsong of Conway, Sarah Kate Ricks of Seaboard, and Sydney Olivia Jones of Seaboard.

Birdsong, a 2020 graduate of Ridgecroft School, is attending East Carolina University and will be awarded a degree in Exercise Physiology at the conclusion of this academic semester. He will then continue at ECU towards a degree in Physical Therapy.

Ricks, a 2023 graduate of Northeast Academy, attends UNC-Wilmington with the goal of becoming a clinical social worker.

Jones will be graduating this year from Ridgecroft School and plans to attend North Carolina State University in the fall. She intends to pursue a degree in Nutrition Science which will hopefully provide a strong foundation for her further education in pharmacy or dental school.

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 or health and who may return to serve Northampton County and its citizens.

Scholarships have been given for over 20 years and past recipients of the Fleetwood scholarship include a pediatrician, nurses, pharmacists, a physical therapist, a dentist, 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.