Deadline for 2010 scholarships for military children fast approaching Published Jan. 28, 2010 By Tech. Sgt. Charles Miller 47th Flying Training Wing public affairs LAUGHLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Feb. 17 marks the deadline for Laughlin community students to apply for the 2010 Scholarships for Military Children Program. One scholarship will be awarded locally and all students interested and eligible are encouraged to gather their materials and submit their applications as soon as possible. "We have the applications on a display at the front of the commissary for the patrons as they come in," said Buddie Kolath, store director. Applications on the display have been going fast, said Kolath, who has been the store director here for less than a month. Patrons have emptied it at least once since the new director arrived. "The scholarship applications will be available here through Feb. 17," said Kolath. One of the materials needed is an essay on the following topic: "You can travel back in time, however, you cannot change events. What point in history would you visit and why?" The Scholarships for Military Children Program was created 10 years ago to recognize the contributions of military families to the readiness of the fighting force and to celebrate the role of the commissary in the military family community. Online applications are available at http://www.commissaries.com and at http://www.militaryscholar.org. They must be turned in to the commissary by close of business Feb. 17. Those eligible to apply for a scholarship are dependent, unmarried children, younger than 21 (23 if enrolled as a full-time student at a college or university) of active-duty, Reserve, Guard or retired military members; and survivors of service members who died while on active duty, or survivors of individuals who died while receiving military retired pay. Eligibility is determined using DEERS, the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System database. Applicants should ensure that they, as well as their sponsor, are enrolled in DEERS and have a current ID card. An applicant must be planning to attend, or already be attending, an accredited college or university full time in the fall of 2010, or be enrolled in a program of studies designed to transfer directly into a four-year program. The scholarships program is administered by Fisher House Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides assistance to service members and their families. Scholarship Managers, a national, nonprofit scholarship management services organization, manages and awards the scholarships. Commissary vendors, manufacturers, brokers, suppliers and the general public donate money to the program, and every dollar donated goes directly to funding the scholarships. Since its inception in 2001, the program has awarded $7.3 million in scholarships to almost 5,000 children of service members. Tammy L. Moody, Defense Commissary Agency marketing and mass communications specialist contributed to this article.