by David Snow
The Paducah Sun
May 24, 2023
Used with permission
The McCracken County Community Career Endowment Inc. (MCCCE) honored the 25 recipients of its 2023-24 scholarships at an event held Sunday at the Clemens Fine Arts Center at the West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
MCCCE Inc. began in 2006 as an endowment set up by Fred and Peggy Paxton, who donated $1 million to the Community Foundation of West Kentucky to help set up the endowment for scholarships for Black students in Paducah and McCracken County. The scholarships get a dividend out of that every year.
The scholarships have been awarded every year since 2007.
The organization also distributes PaxtonScholars each year to six deserving high school juniors.
Fred Paxton was a former chairman of the board and president of Paxton Media Group — which owns The Paducah Sun and WPSD-TV — and was a publisher for The Sun.
Peggy Paxton attended Sunday’s program and said how proud she was to have been a part of the scholarship program.
The event’s keynote speaker was Marquise Greene, the senior account executive in the Dallas Mavericks Group and Events Department.
Greene was raised in Paducah and graduated from Paducah Tilghman High School in 2010. He received his bachelor’s degree at the University of Louisville, majoring in sports administration.
After graduating from college in 2015, Greene moved to St. Louis, where he was employed as an inside sales representative for the St. Louis Cardinals. After a short time with the team, he accepted the position with the Mavericks professional basketball team.
Greene spoke about transferring to the University of Louisville after his freshman year at Murray State University, saying it pulled him out of his comfort zone.
“I was uncomfortable, and I knew that’s what I needed to feel, that discomfort,” he said. “That discomfort started because I was aware and I was conscious of the need to mature. It’s easy to stay comfortable because the ego doesn’t like change.
‘For you to be able to grow as a person, you need to transform who you are. Being uncomfortable is good because it challenges you to step outside your comfort zone and try new things. When you do things that you’re not used to or make you feel uneasy, you create an opportunity for personal growth and development. You have to face fears that you’ve been avoiding. In the face of these fears, you can overcome them and become a more confident person.”
Students selected for the MCCCE scholarships were chosen based on their grade-point average, financial need, achievements and goals for the future. The MCCCE Educational Scholarship funds totaled about $45,000.
The 25 recipients, along with their chosen field of study and university, were:
• Maurice Baucom, psychology, West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
• Ma’Hali Brown, finance, University of Kentucky.
• Jo’Laysia Casey, nursing, University of Louisville.
• Gabrielle Copeland, theater and arts administration, University of Kentucky.
• Shaovion Davis, practical nursing, Hondros College of Nursing.
• Shymiya Daye, exercise science, University of Louisville.
• DaRoyce Flemons, kinesiology and exercise science, University of Kentucky.
• Diamond Gray, nursing, University of Kentucky.
• Raymond Green, mechanical engineering, West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
• Sarina Hamilton, graphic design, Murray State University.
• Audriah Hawthorne, communications disorders, Murray State University.
• Zoe Houston, physics and math, Murray State University.
• Chase Maxie, mechanical engineering, West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
• Lebran McMullen, business, Lindsey Wilson College.
• Roselyn Minter, civil engineering, University of Kentucky College of Engineering at Paducah.
• Katherine Morrison, nursing, University of Louisville.
• Khiland Moss, kinesiology, University of Kentucky.
• Jackson Mundy, business management, University of Louisville.
• Trinity Patterson, criminology, West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
• Wesley Saxton, nursing, West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
• Hanna Scott, learning and behavior disorders and middle school social studies, Murray State University.
• Avery Strayhorn, physical education, Murray State University.
• Brenda Taylor, education, Kentucky State University, Education Major
• Katelynn Williams, accounting, West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
• Ka’lieya Wilson, pre-nursing and dental hygiene, University of Louisville.
Maxie also earned the seventh annual B.A. Hamilton Memorial Scholarship.
Those who earned the Charles Hicks Memorial Scholarship — with their field of study and college or university — included:
• Synia Shaw-Laster, psychology, University of Kentucky.
• Madyson Wilson, business, West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
For the 17th consecutive year, the Ronald McDonald House Charities donated funds to purchase two new college-ready laptop computers with carrying cases.
Cathy Elliott presented the laptops to DaRoyce Flemons and Madyson Wilson, whose names were drawn for the prize.
Eight area mentoring and tutoring organizations each received $1,200 grants from the MCCCE Fredrickia Hargrove Mentoring and Tutoring Enrichment Program.
Recipients include the Ninth Street Tabernacle Youth Ministries Inc., L.I.F.E. Community Inc., The Luther Carson Four Rivers Center, KeysII at Broadway United Methodist Church, Tornado Alley Youth Services Center, Black Coal & Roses Society Young Ladies Organization, PTHS African American Leadership Club and the MCHS African American Leadership Club.