Fund Purpose
Provides support for educational scholarships for graduating high school seniors currently residing in Harrison County, Indiana, who have participated in 4-H programs for at least seven years.

Fund Story
John and Lara (Wenning) Dickerson of Corydon established the Jonathan Delaney Dickerson Memorial Scholarship Fund in January 2007 in loving memory of their son. This Fund provides scholarship support to graduating seniors of Harrison County who have participated in 4-H programs for at least 7 years and plan to attend a 4-year college or university.

This scholarship is to help the youth of Harrison County achieve their academic desires and thus their future goals in life.  The scholarship fund was formed with the help of friends and family members, many from Harrison County, and matching funds from the Harrison County Community Foundation.  The first scholarship was awarded in 2008 and will continue to benefit young adults every year.

Jonathan, born December 11, 2003 in Holland, Michigan, was a very well rounded and traveled young boy.  At six months old he “earned his wings” on his first flight to Hawaii.  This trip also included his first boat and horse pulled carriage rides.  At this tender age, he was simply entertained watching birds, which could both fly and walk.  At the age of one, he touched stingrays at Sea World, visited Disney World, and took the Disney Wonder cruise to Nassau where he also visited Atlantis.  When he was 2 years old, he traveled to California and visited Disney Land, Sea World, Knott’s Berry Farm, and the San Diego Zoo.  At the zoo, he enjoyed the birds, elephants, and giraffe, mostly.  As he grew, his favorite shows were Bob the Builder and Thomas the Train, and he also enjoyed the outdoors.

While he lived in Michigan and traveled all around North America with his family, he spent considerable time on the family farm, near Central.  This is where he spent the summers outside on the swing, riding his toys, and “driving” the farm equipment with his Papaw.  Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Halloween holidays, as well as family reunions and birthdays, were celebrated at the farm and southern Indiana.

Since his mother grew up in 4-H (active over 10 years), as did his aunts Tiffany and Kayla Jacobs (over 10 years each), his grandparents Gerald and Kay Jacobs who served as 4-H leaders (Harrison Hoosiers Club) and superintendants at the 4-H fair (sheep, goats, and poultry), and his big sister Caitlyn Welch who was active in 4-H, Junior Leaders, and FFA, it was natural for Jonathan to join in the fun.  He was a charming young boy who caught many people’s attention.  This was especially true during the 4-H fair where his big sister and other 4-H members would show him around the fair looking at the animals, enjoying rides, events, food, and friends.

Sadly, Jonathan’s life ended before his third birthday in a non-farm related accident on August 29, 2006. He is buried in the Central Cemetery at the family plot.  His grandparents were Gerald and Kay Jacobs of Corydon, and Brian and Rowena Dickerson of Lafayette.  He also had great grandparents, Al and Irene (Neely-Trobaugh) Cuerdon of New Albany.

Scholarship Recipients:
2008: Jennifer Jones
2009: Mary Gibson
2010: Cody Roby
2011: Taylor Fulkerson
2012: Daniel Book
2013: Justin Miller
2014: Olivia Lawson
2015: Hannah Elliott
2016: Cheyenne Sieberns
2017: Jacob Johnson
2018: Rachel Lett
2019: Jacob Clifton
2020: Hannah Lemmel
2021: Tessa Travis
2022: Adriana Engleman