Dewuhs-Keckritz Trust awards $36,000 in scholarships to local students

Six Union County seniors were among 12 students in Union and Wallowa counties who received $36,000 in Dewuhs-Keckritz Educational Trust scholarships, giving local graduates a direct boost as they head into college, trade school or training.

In Union County, the award list included La Grande High School students Kaden Jones, Elizabeth Carpenter, Malaika Gitome and Maylie Eby, along with Union High School students Samuel Platz and Henry Wing. Six students in Wallowa County also made the list, keeping the trust’s awards split evenly across the two counties it serves.

The scholarships ranged from $2,000 to $5,000, enough to matter immediately for students facing tuition, fees, books and housing costs. For Union County families, that kind of support can shape whether a student starts at a community college, stays in Oregon for a university, or chooses a training program without taking on as much debt.

The trust itself is rooted in local estate gifts rather than outside philanthropy. It was created in 1972 from the wills of the late Joe Dewuhs and Anton Keckritz and has continued as a yearly source of support for Eastern Oregon students. Its mission is straightforward: provide grants to students in Eastern Oregon to help them pursue educational goals.

The trust’s history page names the original trustees appointed in the wills as Carl Helm and Carlos Easley of La Grande; Anita Marquart, Leslie McClellan and Merton Davis of Union; Roy Comstock of Cove; and William Schaan of Baker. Florence Davidson was later appointed in 1973 after Marquart declined to serve, and Wilbur Smith of High Valley later replaced McClellan after he resigned in 1976.

The scholarship awards also show the program is part of a steady pipeline, not a one-time gift. In 2022, 12 students across Union and Wallowa counties received $36,000, including four $5,000 awards. In 2023, four Union County students were selected in the annual competition.

Applications open in January each year and must be submitted by March 31, so next year’s seniors already know the timeline. Based in Joseph, Oregon, the trust remains one of the region’s clearest examples of local money being turned back into local opportunity, one graduating class at a time.