Doniphan woman wins $1,000 Loughead scholarship from TRCC | News

POPLAR BLUFF, MO (KFVS) - The Three Rivers Community College Foundation has named Natalie Nacole Killian, from Doniphan, as the first recipient of the $1,000 M.E.L. Scholarship, named for Mary E. Loughead, from Poplar Bluff.

Killian, 33, is an elementary education major at Three Rivers College. She is the mother of two and a 1998 graduate of Sikeston High School. She is married to Darren W. Killian, from Doniphan, an agent for the state Department of Conservation.

Killian at first had planned a career in nursing.

“However, after being around my two children and watching them grow, I found a new passion . . . loving kids and preparing them for their future,” she wrote in her letter of application for the scholarship.

She works as an Ambassador and Peer Mentor for Student Support Services at Three Rivers; she is active in Parent-Teacher Organizations, serves as a Boy Scouts Tiger Scout leader and is a member of the Doniphan Church of God.

Creation of the M.E.L. Scholarship was announced last August by the TRCC Foundation. It is funded by a gift to the foundation from Mary Loughead and the late Dr. John R. Loughead, who died in early January. The scholarship is based on merit and need and is to be given annually to a Three Rivers student or recent graduate working toward a career in education.

The late Dr. John Loughead was one of the physicians involved in establishing and growing the former Lucy Lee Hospital, which eventually became Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center. His father, the late George R. Loughead, was superintendent of Poplar Bluff Schools for more than three decades. Mary Loughead is a career homemaker.

The TRCC foundation administers numerous scholarships and special projects that benefit Three Rivers College and its students. For additional information, contact Executive Director Judith Scott at 573-785-3743.

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