Francis, Kozar receive first Bobby Doyle memorial scholarships

The family of Bobby Doyle awarded the first two scholarships in memory of the late great marathoner and high school running coach at last week's high school cross country awards banquets.

At the boys' dinner, held at the Crowne Plaza at the Crossings in Warwick, the Doyles presented a $1,250 scholarship to Coventry runner Steven Francis. Rose Kozar of Smithfield received the second scholarship at the girls' cross-country awards dinner, held the next night also at the Crowne Plaza.

The scholarship committee had a difficult task, said Bobby Doyle's wife Lori. The pool of scholarship applicants, who among other criteria had to be members of the National Honor Society and had to have competed in cross country for at least three years, included some extremely talented scholar-athletes. However, the committee was particularly impressed by Francis' and Kozar's essays, as well as their community service, she said.

The scholarships were funded by money raised at last summer's inaugural Bobby Doyle 5-Mile Summer Classic in Narragansett, with $250 added to each scholarship courtesy of a gift to the scholarship program from the Bill Falk Fund of the R.I. Track & Field Foundation.

Two more Bobby Doyle Memorial Scholarships will be awarded to track and field athletes in the spring.

Posted by Carolyn Thornton  at 12:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)