September 10, 2024
By JAMES EVANS
Rutherford County Schools
Director of Schools Dr. Jimmy Sullivan and his family have announced the first recipients of the Sullivan Family Scholarship.
The awards were announced during the School Board’s Sept. 5 meeting.
Director Sullivan and his wife, Kaycee, originally created the scholarship in honor of their son, Declan, who was diagnosed with a type of leukemia in April 2020.
However, the Sullivan family also lost their other son, Asher, in May 2024, after injuries he sustained during a tragic flash flooding event.
Declan, who is now 12 and cancer free, endured a gauntlet of treatments and medications for two and half years.
“What is neat for us, is most of the time, you get to go meet one of your heroes, but for Kaycee and I, we got to raise one of ours, really two of ours,” Jimmy said during the scholarship announcement.
The scholarships are funded by the Sullivans personally — Director Sullivan had requested to forgo a raise and use the money instead for the scholarship fund. They plan give the scholarship annually to a senior who is a survivor or is a sibling of a survivor of a critical illness to help them achieve their higher education goals.
For the inaugural scholarship awards, the Sullivans selected three recipients — two will receive $1,000 and one will receive $3,500.
Those recipients are:
- Clay Warren (Riverdale), recipient of $3,500 award
- Selina Ramirez (Siegel), recipient of $1,000 award
- Kevin Green (Blackman), recipient of $1,000 award
The Sullivans had intended for their son, Asher, to give the $3,500 award because Clay Warren has a sibling who is battling a critical illness, similar to Asher’s situation with his brother, Declan.