HERITAGE CLASSIC FOUNDATION AWARDS 11 SCHOLARSHIPS TO AREA SENIORS

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SC (March 16, 2026) – Eleven outstanding Beaufort County seniors have been named Heritage Classic Foundation scholars for the 2025-2026 school year. The students come from five different high schools.

Seniors in all Beaufort and Jasper County high schools were eligible to apply and applications were reviewed on the basis of academic success, community service, essays written by the student and financial need. Fourteen finalists were interviewed by the Scholar Committee.

During Monday’s awards presentation, Heritage Classic Foundation Chairman Simon Fraser told the audience, “This is always an exciting day for the Heritage Classic Foundation. We believe the résumés of these young adults are stronger than ever. The teachers and administrators of our school systems, as well as the award winners, deserve special praise.” Fraser also noted, “You are not just straight‑A students. You are leaders in your schools, communities and churches. Your interests range from volunteerism to sports to caring for the environment.”

Six of the newly named Scholars will receive a $16,000 scholarship over the next four years. Four additional awards carry a $20,000 opportunity. Two of the latter scholarships honor Scholar Committee chairmen who have passed, John Zimmerman and Mike Malanick. One honors the late Scholar Committee member Charlie Brown, and the Tartan Club Award recognizes the donations made by the Tartan Club. Created by the Heritage Classic Foundation, the Tartan Club is a group made up of individuals throughout the community who share a desire to help others through the awarding of scholar grants for area students.

The Kirby Scholarship, a one-year $4,000 scholar award, was created in memoriam of past Scholar Committee chairman Ward Kirby and is granted every year.

Next fall, a total of 49 Beaufort and Jasper County collegians will be attending school and will have received Foundation grants at an expenditure of $194,000. A grand total of $5.75M will have been awarded to 408 students after the 2026 distribution.

In addition to these eleven scholarships, the Foundation is funding four $2,500 annual scholarships to the University of South Carolina Beaufort and two $1,500 annual scholarships to the Technical College of the Lowcountry.

The following graduating seniors were selected:

Beaufort High School​ – Sophia Brown, Laurel Hinderliter, James Riddle, Halle Tran

Bluffton High School – Tamyra Bolden, Katherine Seraiah Riddle, Rebecca Wohn

Hilton Head Island High School – Jackson Hollman, Kaden Stewart

Legacy Christian Academy – William Carter Cole

May River High School​ – Myla Greene

ABOUT THE 2026 SCHOLARS

Tamyra Bolden
Tamyra’s favorite class at Bluffton High is AP US History and is a National AP Scholar. She is a three-sport athlete - excelling at soccer, track and field and basketball. As captain of the basketball team, she led fundraisers to buy team sneakers. She is active with her school’s chapter of Teens for Healthy Youth and is a Beaufort County Parks and Rec sports volunteer. She will study criminal justice with the goal of becoming a criminal defense attorney.

Sophia (Sophie) Brown
Sophia co-founded a student newspaper at Beaufort High and was the captain of the tennis team. She also plays soccer and is the senior class vice president. She volunteers with CAPA and takes sustainability seriously, spending time as “Adopt-a-Highway” trash collector and testing water quality for Adopt-a-Stream. She intends to study environmental studies and go on to law school.

William Carter Cole
William is president of the Student Council and captain of the soccer team at Legacy Christian Academy in Ridgeland. He volunteers at a soccer camp, the Special Olympics and is a Fellowship of Christian Athletes leader. He works as a plumbing apprentice and plans to study business management.

Myla Greene - Mike Malanick Award
Myla volunteers in May River High School’s Buddies club where she helps with events like the Special Olympics. She is President of the National Honor Society and is an award-winning member of DECA. She spent last summer in Mexico as a residential caregiver in a children’s home for young girls. She is a founding member of the League of Student Voters, a club that promotes educated civic engagement through monthly newsletters. That interest in government and politics has led her to study International Relations.

Laurel Hinderliter
Laurel co-founded Students Demand Action at Beaufort High School, a gun violence prevention organization. As advocacy lead, she spoke to legislators at the South Carolina Statehouse. She was president of the French National Honor Society and is a School Improvement Council student representative. Her interest in medicine earned her a summer internship at Beaufort Memorial.

Jackson Hollman
Jackson is an International Baccalaureate Diploma candidate at Hilton Head Island High School and has been on the baseball team for four years. He volunteers his time at a youth baseball camp where he shares his love for the game and has also volunteered at the RBC Heritage and with Project Unified. He plans to pursue a degree in financial management.

James Riddle - Ward Kirby Award

James plays in the Beaufort High concert band and acts in the University of South Carolina’s Children’s Theatre. He is heavily involved in his church and wants to become a minister. He obtained an associate’s degree through dual enrollment credits and works part time at Chick-fil-A.

Katherine Seraiah Riddle
Katherine is the captain of Bluffton High School’s award winning Academic Worldquest team. She is active in her church and loves working in their food bank during Lent each year. She has five siblings and plans to study neuroscience. After interning at May River Dermatology, her goal is to become a Physician’s Assistant and return to Bluffton to work there with her mentors.

Kaden Stewart - Tartan Club Award
Kaden is a three-sport athlete at Hilton Head Island High and is the captain of the track team. He holds the 400-meter record at this high school, earning All-State honors in the process. A teacher sparked his interest in computer science and grew his passion for coding, computers and new AI technology. He is a member of DECA and competed at the state level. He is teaching himself to play the piano and volunteers at his church.

Halle Tran - Charlie Brown Award
Halle is the president of the Beaufort High Garden Club that distributes free fresh produce to the community. She is a National Merit Semifinalist and AP Scholar with Distinction who plans to study Biochemistry and have a career in medicine. She has interned at two medical facilities in her community. She also cares about the environment and is a 10-year veteran of the Friends of Hunting Island Sea Turtle Conservation Project.

Rebecca Wohn - John Zimmerman Award
Rebecca is the President of Bluffton High School’s National Honor Society and earned the AP Scholar with Distinction and the S.C. Seal of Biliteracy by demonstrating proficiency in the Spanish language. She was an intern at Beaufort Memorial and a member of the HHI/Bluffton Chamber of Commerce Junior Leadership class last year. AP Chemistry was her favorite class and led her to want to major in Chemistry.