Two college scholarships in the amount of $2,000 each were awarded to graduating seniors from Geneva High School (GHS) on behalf of Alyssa Alvin Foundation for Hope on Wednesday, May 20, 2026.
Alyssa was a graduate of GHS in 2013 (her older brother, Vince, graduated from GHS four years earlier) and she was an active member of the school community, particularly with their music program. Despite struggling with her illness through her high school years, Alyssa went into remission during her senior year and had the pleasure of enjoying her graduation, senior prom and participating in the school’s Orchestra among other things.
Five years ago, at the suggestion of Mary Jane Johnson – Alyssa’s former high school counselor and current Board Member of Alyssa’s foundation – AAFH began awarding college scholarships to graduating seniors from Geneva High School. Qualifying students are those that have overcome their own significant challenges and intend to pursue college degrees in the fields of music or art which are th core programs of Alyssa Alvin Foundation for Hope a non-profit (501c3) organization.
This year, the annual scholarship award night at Geneva High School was attended by eight close friends of the AAFH organization. Both of Alyssa’s parents, Yolanda and George Alvin were present and joined by another Board member, Carmen Ziegler. In addition, volunteers and sponsors included Chris and Johnny Coconate, Mike Munro, Dannie Pickett and Tim Egan participated in the award presentation.
We were happy to award $2,000 scholarships to two graduating seniors Kaylee Skeens and Willow Houck who intend to pursue majors in the dramatic arts and art therapy, respectively. AAFH wishes them both the best of luck in their studies and are grateful that Alyssa’s legacy lives on in support of the arts she loved so much. We appreciated the opportunity to be at Geneva HS and hope to continue supporting Alyssa’s HS. If you would like to make a donation to support our programs, please go to our website: alyssaalvinfoundationforhope.org.
