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Thomas Sliter awarded $1,000 Black Dirt Scholarship

| 11 Jun 2013 | 09:14
    Photo by Peter Lyons Hall Black Dirt Scholarship Fund committee member Jane Hamburger shares a moment with the sholarship recipient Thomas Sliter. In the essay he submitted with his application, he wrote: "A person who considers himself to be successful will not look back and find more regrets than satisfaction in his choices."
    Photo by Peter Lyons Hall Black Dirt Scholarship Fund committee member Jane Hamburger shares a moment with the sholarship recipient Thomas Sliter. In the essay he submitted with his application, he wrote: "A person who considers himself to be successful will not look back and find more regrets than satisfaction in his choices."

WARWICK — During the annual senior awards night held at Warwick Valley High School, Thomas Sliter was named the recipient of the $1,000 Black Dirt Scholarship sponsored by the Pine Island Chamber of Commerce.

The scholarship is awarded to students planning on pursuing a college curriculum in either agriculture or culinary arts/hospitality, and who meet the qualifications of the application (http://warwickinfo.net/blackdirtfeast/application.pdf).

Sondra Hall, co-chair of the scholarship committee, said the Black Dirt scholarships “are all about character and community since the students must also demonstrate a commitment to and involvement in community volunteer service or community work experience.”

In his accompanying essay, Sliter wrote:

“A person who considers himself to be successful will not look back and find more regrets than satisfaction in his choices. A person must feel a sense of accomplishment to be successful. Without this, there will always be something that is missing inside. To reach this point a person will need to feel and understand what it is like to struggle against a challenge. Without a challenge then the accomplishment will be hollow and meaningless.

“This means,” he concluded, “that the easy way out of a task is not always the right way out.”

The Black Dirt Scholarship is funded with a portion of the proceeds from the Black Dirt Feast. The feast was first conceived of as a way to showcase some of the top chefs in the region and the farms who provide the produce that they use.

The event’s objective is to bring the entire community together to celebrate the beauty and bounty of the Black Dirt Region.

Sliter will be a guest speaker at this year’s event to be held on Aug. 6.

Since its founding in 1961, the mission of the Pine Island Chamber of Commerce (http://pineislandny.com) has been to promote prosperity in the business community, support and enhance the uniqueness of the region, and to enrich the lives of all residents through community spirit and cooperation.