One Call Announces Inaugural Kids' Chance of Florida One Call Scholarship Recipient
Friday, August 2, 2019 | 370 | 0
One Call, the nation's leading provider of specialized healthcare solutions for the workers' compensation industry, today announced that Jared Cooper of DeLand, Fla. is the inaugural recipient of the Kids' Chance of Florida One Call Scholarship.
One Call established the scholarship last fall in partnership with Kids' Chance of Florida, a state chapter of Kids' Chance of America, to help cover the cost of a college education for children of seriously or fatally injured workers in the company's home state of Florida. The scholarship commits to providing each recipient with $7,000 annually for four years.
This fall, Jared will be attending Stetson University, a private institution located in his hometown of DeLand. He will be studying biochemistry, with his sights set on a career in engineering. En route to pursuing his college goals, Jared attended Father Lopez Catholic High School where he was a well-rounded, exemplary student. He was captain of the swim team, involved in many clubs, including National Honor Society, and graduated summa cum laude. He is also a member of ROTC and loves the outdoors.
"I am grateful for this scholarship because it takes a huge burden off of me and my family," said Jared. "If it weren't for support like this, I wouldn't be able to attend college and pursue my dream of becoming an engineer."
Jared's father, a heavy equipment operator by trade, tragically passed away in 2006 on a job site. That left Jared's mother Wanda to financially provide and care for Jared and his three older siblings on her own. Wanda is not alone. In 2017, there were 5,147 fatal occupational injuries in the U.S. Of those, 3,131 were workers between the ages of 20 - 55, the prime years for raising children.[1]
"It is because of families like the Coopers that Kids' Chance exists," said Robert Wilson, president of Kids' Chance of Florida. "Our organization enables children affected by a parent's work-related injury or death to pursue their educational dreams without financial burden."
One Call employees began raising funds for the scholarship last November during Kids' Chance Awareness Week. Since then, the company has looked to expand its fundraising efforts in order to fund more scholarships in the future. One Call will continue to fundraise internally while also inviting industry professionals to participate. For example, One Call will donate $1 to the scholarship fund for every person who stops by the company's booth at the upcoming Workers' Compensation Educational Conference in Orlando on August 11-14.
"Workplace injuries greatly impact the entire family," said Chris Watson, Kids' Chance advocate and One Call chief operating officer. "Our employees are passionate about helping both injured workers and their families receive the care and support they need. This scholarship is just one way we're committed to helping the whole family recover so they can live life to the fullest."
View full article here: https://onecallcm.com/one-on-one/one-call-announces-inaugural-kcfl-scholarship