About
The Amanda-Clearcreek Alumni Association represents all persons who have graduated from Amanda High School and Stoutsville High School, and the Amanda-Clearcreek High School from 1960 forward. There is no membership fee as you are automatically a member when you graduate. There is a database of addresses that we always need help updating. A spring newsletter with the June banquet invitation is sent out in April to all alumni. The Association is happy to help in providing the addresses that we have for individual classes and need their help in return to update our list. Contact Julie Saum Feliciano at 969-8327 or via e-mail at: juliefeliciano@yahoo.com or Vanessa Ebbrecht Butterbaugh at 969-8222 or e-mail her at work at: ymvanessa@hocking.net or at home at: rvbutter@live.com.
The organization is run by officers and a Board of Directors. They take care of the banquet, alumni tournament, newsletter, database, and any other projects as needed. The endowment fund is administered by a five member Board of Trustees. The Executive Director is the liaison between these two groups and maintains the records of the scholarships. Information about creating a scholarship or any questions should be directed to the Executive Director, Carolyn Tilley, at:
740-654-8363 or e-mail her at: ctilley5455@att.net, or President Ron Butterbaugh at 740-969-8222 or e-mail at home at rvbutter@live.com or at work at Ron. Butterbaugh@mascorcg.com.
The first graduating class of Amanda was in 1898 and an alumni organization was started in 1922. They have met for a spring banquet meeting continuously since that time. The Stoutsville High School graduated its first class in 1903 and started the alumni in 1911. The group also meets in May of each year to get together as alumni up to consolidation in 1960. All are now part of the Amanda-Clearcreek Alumni Association.
The banquet was a meeting and a social gathering as the years went by. But in 1990, it was in need of reorganization. With the leadership of Ned Young and many others, it was given new life. Several scholarships had been given up to that time, but Dr. Wallace Barr and Dr. Wayne Hiatt and many other dedicated people worked on the idea of an endowment fund for that purpose. Tax-exempt status was received with the writing of a constitution and by-laws. Our first donation came from the son of a former coach, Don LaBonte, in the name of his father for a scholar-athlete scholarship. Guidelines were set up for all scholarships similar to ones he suggested for his.
It was originally decided that a person or family or business who donated $15,000 would have a permanent endowed scholarship. That amount was $20,000. But the Trustees voted in the spring of 2013 to raise the amount as of January 1, 2014, to $25,000. We had 4 new endowed scholarships for the year 2013. At this time, we have over 40 endowed donors . Three of these are now four-year scholarships. The Johns Family generously gave $200,000 to the Alumni and $200,000 to the Fairfield County Foundation in 1997 for one of these. If grades are maintained, it supports 4 students at a time. Dr. Wallace Barr set up one from his family before he died in 2000. In 2007 the Trustees used part of the annual earnings from the Hedges-Strickland Trust at the Fairfield County Foundation to set up another four-year continuing scholarship. Each of these provide support for four students at any one time with the proper grade point average maintained. Other scholarships are one-time memorials, class scholarships, or extra from the Endowment Fund.
The Endowment Fund at this time has invested about $1.3 million with additional Johns money in the Foundation and the amount from the trust fund of Mrs. Esther Strickland invested there also. Earnings from that amount come to the alumni each year beginning in 2007. One of the Strickland scholarships was turned into a four-year scholarship. The Association presents about $90,000 each year to over 50 recipients. The Alumni had started giving scholarships for $250 in 1983 before the idea of an endowment fund was set up. After meeting the needs of incoming freshman, upper class students are considered. Also available for the A-C seniors and college students is the estate of Elsie McClelland Davis Memorial invested with the Fairfield Foundation in Lancaster, with the first scholarship given in 2003. It is limited to those students attending a school supported by the State of Ohio. These are no longer presented at the A-C banquet at the request of the Foundation.
Sometimes, one-time scholarships become available in the spring. The seniors receive information from their guidance counselor concerning the scholarships. The forms are also available on the school web site under “Alumni”. Most are for 3 point+ GPA averages and a 22 ACT score. However, some donors specify other qualifications, no test score requirements, etc. A teacher committee chooses the senior applicants. After the senior needs are met, upper class college students are considered. These upper class applications are always available in the Johns Memorial Library, from Mrs. Tilley, ctilley5455@att.net, or on the web site. Over 621 scholarships have been given over the years, some even before the Endowment Fund started. Nearly as much as been given as we have invested in our account.We would like to hear updates at any time from our many recipients.
A-C Alumni Celebrated the 100th Anniversary
The A-C Alumni celebrated the 100th anniversary of its first graduating class from the Amanda building in 1998. As part of its celebration a directory of graduates was published with many pictures and history of the districts. There are over 5000 graduates. Around 4000 are living and nearly that many spring newsletters are sent out. The decade parties were held on the Friday before the banquet and a golf tournament on Sunday after the banquet. Over 300 Cat’s Meow miniatures of the 1911 Amanda building were sold at that time.
As the new building was being finished, the last banquet in the old Amanda site was held on June 14th, 2003. During the prior year paving bricks were sold, and they were to be placed in a walkway of the new building. Over 400 were placed in August of 2003 ready for the grand opening. A scholarship was given from the proceeds. The Alumni presented a bicentennial painting by Ed Kitchen to the superintendent for the new school as well as two new flags from our representatives, the national flag and the state flag.
Watercolor paintings of both buildings were sold and can still be ordered. Also, a video history was made that can be ordered on video cassette tape or DVD. Contact Ron Butterbaugh at 969-8222 or rvbutter@live.com or Carolyn Tilley. 654-8363.
The banquet is always the Saturday night after graduation at 6 P.M. It will be held May 31 this coming 2014. There will be an open house first. Most scholarship recipients and their donors will meet and have pictures taken directly before the banquet. The scholarship recipients will then be introduced at the banquet. The banquet will be a potluck with the Alumni furnishing meats, drinks, and service.
All alumni should receive a newsletter by May 1. It will contain an invitation to the banquet, reservation form, scholarship information, and other news. Please let us know if you don’t receive your newsletter. Several parts of the two demolished buildings were saved. The Alumni along with many community members have met to discuss an appropriate use and placement of these pieces. Bricks were sold, donations were received, and fundraisers at the banquets enabled the Alumni to start construction with alumnus, John Brewer, in the spring of 2008. The granite pieces with laser pictures and history of each building were donated by Taylor Funeral Home and Kingston National Bank, both of Amanda. The wall was completed and the dedication was held before the 2008 banquet. The light donated by the school, shines on this special Legacy Wall each night. Stop by and take a look. Please help us keep up on unknown alumni. Out of 5200 graduates, over 1000 are lost or unknown. We always need your help!