About
The Whatcom County Student Athlete Scholarship was created by Jeff Reinert (former Sehome High School student-athlete and current Head Basketball Coach for the College of Southern Idaho Men’s Basketball team) for the advancement of education for Whatcom County students. The Scholarship awards two students a year with an $8,000.00 scholarship to be used at any university or school the students select. Our fundraising golf tournament celebrated its last year in the summer of 2013, finalizing our goal of having enough funds to carry the scholarships forward for years to come.
Todd Curran was someone who typifies the spirit of this scholarship. Todd attended Sehome High School from 1979 – 1981 and participated in basketball, football, and track and field. An excellent student and athlete, Todd was a three-year letterman for the Mariners, graduating with a 3.9 G.P.A. Todd attended the University of Washington and graduated with a chemical engineering degree in 1986. Todd was married in 1993. He was 32 years old when cancer was diagnosed in November of that year. He loved to learn and looked forward to sharing that with his only child, a daughter, born in 1994. In April of 1995, while living in Florida, Todd died of a brain tumor.
His memory lives on and is a fine example of what this scholarship is all about. Todd was a first-class individual who represented himself, his family, and his school admirably. He cared about people and went out of his way to help those in need. The Whatcom County Student Athlete Scholarship is pleased to dedicate this scholarship to the memory of TODD CURRAN.
Selection Committee
Learn more about our current selection committee.
Selection Committee Member
Carol Curran Garguile
The Whatcom County Scholarship is named in honor of Carol’s son, Todd. She has been involved in fundraising and recipient selection since 1996. Carol worked as an office manager and bookkeeper in the dental industry for over 33 years before retiring in 2011. She has been on the Whatcom Hospice Foundation Board for 26 years and has served as President, Chair of the annual auction, and has served on other committees as well. She also volunteers with several service groups through her church. Carol enjoys spending time with her children and grandchildren as well as attending the theater, symphony, and other music events. In addition, she enjoys daily exercise classes including a walking group.
Selection Committee Member
Pattie Hoelzle
Patti Hoelzle won the Todd Curran Memorial Scholarship in 2001. She attended Ferndale High School and then graduated from Washington State University (Go Cougs) with a degree in Psychology. She then went on to earn her Master of Education degree in School Counseling from Western Washington University. She has been an elementary school counselor in both the Nooksack and Ferndale School districts for the last 16 years and also is the head volleyball coach at Ferndale High School. Patti has an amazingly supportive husband and two forever children gifted to them through foster care with a handful of other little wonders visiting her home from time to time. She loves being a part of the Todd Curran scholarship family and continues to be in awe of the youth that applies every single year.
Selection Committee Member
Travis Kane
Travis Kane won the Todd Curran Memorial Scholarship in 2002. He attended Squalicum High School and then graduated from Western Washington University where he played competitive rugby for Vikings as well as the Chuckanut Bay Geoducks. He studied business and marketing and has worked in digital advertising for 15 years. Travis works for a Connected TV company based out of Denver, Strategus, where he leads a team of Account Managers. Travis has never left beautiful Bellingham where he has a wife and two children, whom he tells everyday that 'baseball is in their blood'.
Selection Committee Member
Kristina Thayer
Kristina (Francis) Thayer won the Todd Curran Memorial scholarship in 2004. She attended Blaine High School and went on to play Basketball at Whitman College in Walla Walla, WA. She earned her BA from Whitman in Psychology in 2008 and started a career in sales and customer service. Kristina now lives in Bellingham and works as the Director of Business Development for MSNW Group, LLC leading their sales and marketing team. Outside of work Kristina loves spending time with her young family and golfing whenever she gets the chance.
Selection Committee Member
Dr. Julie (Seholm) De King
Dr. Julie (Seholm) De King was the recipient of the Todd Curran Memorial Scholarship in 1998. A graduate of Bellingham High School, Julie remained local and attended Whatcom Community College playing basketball for the Lady Orcas for two years. After receiving her AAS degree, she went on to graduate with her BA in Human Services from Western Washington University. Julie’s passion for working with youth at-risk led her to obtain her Master of Social Work degree from Eastern Washington University in 2007. After working in both the child welfare system and the educational systems, Julie went on to obtain her Doctorate in Social Work from Tulane University in May 2022. She currently lives in Bellingham with her two daughters and works as a school social worker in the Everett School District. Julie loves spending time with her daughters, enjoying the outdoors, and giving back to her community.
Selection Committee Member
Erika Van Dyken
Erika (Ramstead) Van Dyken was awarded the Todd Curran Memorial Scholarship in 2009. A three-sport student-athlete at Nooksack Valley High School, she continued her education and basketball career at Western Washington University, graduating in 2014. She initially pursued a career in sales while also coaching at Nooksack Valley High School before discovering her passion for working with students. In 2019, she returned to school and earned a master's degree in secondary education from Grand Canyon University.
Erika is now a 7th-grade English Language Arts and social studies teacher at Nooksack Valley Middle School and serves as a girls' basketball coach at Nooksack Valley High School. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her husband, Alex, their son, Lukas, and their daughter, Elliott. Her hobbies include sports, camping, and watching movies.
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Selection Committee Member
Anthony Zanin
Anthony Zanin won the Todd Curran Memorial Scholarship in 2008. He attended Ferndale High School and played soccer and tennis. Anthony continued his education at Western Washington University where he earned a B.S. in Mathematics. During his time at WWU he was introduced to the fire service and was drawn by the team atmosphere and community service aspects of the job. After graduating from WWU, he became a volunteer firefighter for four years before being hired in his hometown of Ferndale in 2017. Anthony continued his education in the fire service and became a paramedic in 2021. Outside of work Anthony enjoys spending time being a "girl dad" to his three daughters.
Selection Committee Member
Jeff Reinert
Jeff Reinert was born in Bellingham, Washington in 1962 and graduated from Sehome High School in 1980. After attending the University of New Mexico and Gonzaga University, Reinert graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in education in 1985. In 1985–86, he played professional basketball and taught high school physical education in Australia before beginning his coaching career. Reinert has coached for over 35 years in the collegiate ranks with stops at Simpson College (Iowa), the University of Nebraska, Brigham Young University, Utah Valley University, Oregon State University, and Fresno State University. He is currently the head men’s basketball coach at the College of Southern Idaho. Reinert also spent seven years as the head men’s basketball coach at Santa Margarita Catholic High School in Rancho Santa Margarita California.
Reinert is married to the former Trish Laeger and has one child, Gretchen Reinert, who is currently one of the assistant volleyball coaches at Stanford University.
Reinert started the Todd Curran Memorial Scholarship, while he was an assistant coach at BYU. The aim of the scholarship was to help all skill-level student-athletes from Whatcom County (where he grew up) attain help toward a college education. Through a golf tournament that was started up with the help of his high school friends, Reinert was able to start funding the scholarship that would last for 30 years.
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Selection Committee Member
Merrill Bevan
Merrill Bevan is a Lifelong Whatcom County kid who graduated from Sehome High School in 1995 where played Baseball and Tennis, and then had the honor of being one of the Todd Curran Scholarship recipients that year—its first year named after Todd. Merrill was able to use the scholarship to help fund his education at Whitman College in Walla Walla, WA where he was an Asian Studies major and a workman-like infielder for an almost .500 baseball club. While at Whitman he also had the chance to study in China at Nankai University and at American University in Washington, DC. The Todd Curran Scholarship was a vital part of both of those experiences, allowing Merrill to make the most of both experiences. After graduating from Whitman in 1999, Merrill returned to Whatcom County and joined a small local business called Wood Stone where he worked for 20 years. Like the team sports experiences that had shaped his earlier life, being part of that team as it grew to work with customers in 90 countries around the world was an incredible experience. Starting in 2019, Merrill joined another great team at Barron Heating & AC where he has the privilege to help support over 200 teammates in the trades as they try to redefine what the definition of winning and improving lives looks like. Merrill has been a member of the scholarship selection committee since 2000.
Past Winners
2025: Brady Bruland, Bellingham
2025: Melanie Anderson, Lynden
2024: Evan Rush, Squalicum
2024: Jesse Stewart, Lynden
2023: Campbell Nolte, Lynden
2023: Madison Barter, Mount Baker
2022: Case Zweegman, Lynden
2022: Ellie Van Berkman, Nooksack Valley
2021: Nathan Berg, Squalicum & Aidan Conner, Nooksack Valley
2021: Claire Skaggs, Meridian
2020: Colm Schaefer, Bellingham
2020: Jocelyn Seig, Ferndale
2019: Baylor Galley, Nooksack Valley
2019: Torina Hommes, Lynden Christian
2018: Hayden Linderman, Mount Baker & Carl Peterson, Squalicum
2018: Hannah Reidel, Bellingham
2017: Dawson Bowhay, Sehome
2017: Emmalee Baily, Lynden Christian
2016: Noah Swanson, Meridian
2016: Natalie Smith, Mount Baker
2015: Andrew Norvell, Sehome
2015: Kate Peterson, Sehome
2014: Davis Phillips, Meridian
2014: Hannah Carlson, Ferndale & Alexis McElwain, Blaine
2013: Bret DeGraaff, Lynden
2013: Meagan McIntyre, Sehome
2012: Levi Wigg, Mount Baker
2012: Katie Brudwick, Ferndale
2011: Travis Kurtz, Squalicum
2011: Emma Wayerski, Bellingham
2010: Nick Jacoby, Mount Baker
2010: Kika Kaui, Squalicum
2009: Jordan Crim, Ferndale
2009: Erika Ramstead, Nooksack Valley
2008: Anthony Zanin, Ferndale
2008: Kristine Sorenson, Nooksack Valley
2007: Peter Galbraith, Mount Baker
2007: Kyla Rohde, Mount Baker
2006: Robert Bleeker, Blaine
2006: Claire Morgan, Bellingham
2005: Casey Oswald, Bellingham
2005: Megan Shannon, Bellingham
2004: Brady Emmons, Meridian
2004: Kristina Francis, Blaine
2003: James Powell, Lynden
2003: Devin Dykstra, Nooksack Valley
2002: Travis Kane, Squalicum
2002: Katie Granger, Bellingham
2001: Joe Skillman, Nooksack Valley
2001: Patti Hoelzle, Ferndale
2000: Paul Terrell, Ferndale
2000: Carrie Larsen, Sehome
1999: Josh Randall, Meridian
1999: Katie Dorr, Squalicum
1998: Josh Turrell, Sehome
1998: Julie Seholm, Bellingham
1997: Jack DeWaard, Bellingham
1997: Brooke Bruner, Ferndale
1996: Marshall Udo, Ferndale
1996: Liz DeVore, Mount Baker
1995: Merrill Bevan, Sehome
1995: Shannon Lundgren, Lynden
1994: Patrick Ames, Meridian
1994: Amy Hankinson, Sehome
apply here
Every year two scholarships in the amount of $8,000 each ($2,000 per year for four years) will be awarded. Applications need not be based on financial need. Recipients may use the scholarship money at the school of their choice.
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Basic requirements include:
1. Involvement in some sports activity
2. Involvement in some community service activity
3. Minimum 3.0 GPA
4. Submission of application packet
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Application Deadline: April 1, 2026
Download this Application Information Packet
Download the Scholarship Form & Fill it Out
Email it to
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