BLYN — Women from across the North Olympic Peninsula gathered earlier this month in the annual Philanthropic Educational Organization Reciprocity Luncheon, a celebration of the gifts of education for local women.
Three speakers from various walks of life shared their stories at the Oct. 11 event, where 155 members of the international group — women who consider themselves sisters — lunched at 7 Cedars Casino. They’re recipients of grants and scholarships generated by Peninsula PEO chapters:
■ Jasmine McMullin of Sequim, 19, received $2,250 in a combined scholarship last year from three local PEO chapters and has continued to study English and elementary education at Western Washington University.
■ Xochitl Wasankari, a 1996 high school graduate, moved from her hometown of Tepic, Mexico, to Port Angeles with her husband, Mike, in 2004.
With a $1,000 scholarship from PEO, she was able to attend the Hair School here and work toward her state cosmetology license.
■ Stacy Forshaw of Sequim, a 1985 graduate of Sequim High School, is a single mother and a caregiver to her elderly parents.
She received a PEO grant of $3,000 plus $2,500 from the PEO State Emergency Fund to finish her associate degree at Peninsula College.
She hopes to earn a Bachelor of Science in nursing.
$2,000 scholarship
The newest scholarship recipient is July Rayann Bain, who in September was awarded $2,000 from PEO’s five Port Angeles chapters, said member Connie Thorson.
Bain, who graduated from high school this past June, was in the Running Start program at Peninsula College and plans to finish her Associate of Arts there before pursuing a degree in nursing, perhaps at the University of Washington.
The money isn’t the only thing that matters here, said Thorson.
PEO members also give these women moral support throughout the year.
“We send gift cards,” she said, while members have been known to buy groceries for a young woman in need.
PEO holds the reciprocity luncheon once a year to help chapters connect with and support one another.
PEO’s chapters on the North Olympic Peninsula include two in Port Townsend, five in Sequim and six in Port Angeles, Thorson noted.
To learn more about PEO projects, phone member Debbie Reid at 360-301-2642 or visit www.PEOwashington.org.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
