The Dana Michelle Pettaway
2021 Servant’s Heart Scholarship Recipients
Since 2006, 54 scholarships have been awarded to college-bound high school seniors, totaling over $108,000. DMP Ministries is committed to assisting service-minded, young Christians to achieve their educational goals as they evangelize and serve as "the light" in a world filled with chaos. WE MUST SUPPORT THEM in prayer, by example, and with finances!
Our 2021 Scholarship Recipients are outstanding students who provide initiation and leadership of ministry service in their schools, churches and communities. They truly are making a difference!
William Chen
Northwestern University
“Service is an important part of my life. I believe strongly in giving back to organizations and people that have influenced me so that they can continue providing that influence on future generations.” Although William lost his father at an early age, he stayed focused and disciplined.
He has won multiple awards, such as Eagle Scout, Qualifications for National Quiz Bowl Championship, 2nd Place & Honorable Mention at Blinn College Piano Competition, Quarterfinalist at VEX Robotics World Championship, VEX Robotics State Champion, USA Biology Olympiad Semifinalist (top 600/10100), and National Merit Semifinalist (PSAT 99th percentile).
William is also an accomplished violist, and member of the Houston Youth Symphony (Philharmonic). As a tutor for Vanguard Prep, he constructed lessons for and taught SAT reading to assist individuals who lacked educational resources to do well on standardized tests. William has performed several hours of service in his school, church and community.
Evan Samuel Delaune
University of Texas at Austin
At Cy-fair high school, Evan was a Varsity Football starting player, a member of the National Honors Society and Distinguished Honor Roll, and President and Middle School Liaison for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA).
Evan taught relatable, understandable and poignant lessons during his tenure with FCA, and provided essential leadership in planning and carrying out its work and mission. He is a leader in his church’s youth group. “Through all the highs and lows, God has been my strength and my shield. He guides my thinking and decisions in a world that provides frequent temptations.”
Notably, Evan lovingly serves a family with a young boy named Johnny who has Downs Syndrome. Evan took Johnny under his wing and formed a special bond by spending countless hours of quality time with him. Johnny’s parent states, “Evan’s instincts for caring for a student like Johnny are impeccable, but that is largely because of his servant’s heart and enthusiastic willingness to submit.” Evan ranked 7/833 in his class, with a GPA of 6.8.
Kiara Flowers
Prairie View A&M University
Kiara received our “Overcomer” scholarship award. She was a member of the Varsity Basketball team at Cesar Chavez High School for 3 years, and served as Team Captain. Kiara has a can-do attitude and a deep sense of faith, apparent through the many obstacles she has overcome in her life.
One such obstacle, she recalls, was having to find a job to help her mother pay bills to provide for her and her younger siblings. “At times, I wanted to lose faith, but I had to trust in God and tell myself that good comes to those who wait. I reminded myself every day to have faith and keep pushing no matter how difficult things may get. Faith is the key we need in life.” She finally received a call for an interview and landed a job.
Despite time constraints, Kiara has volunteered numerous hours while taking rigorous courses. She maintained excellent grades. Her zealousness to give back to her community was contagious, and had a major impact on the many other youth who came forward wanting to volunteer. She is described by mentors and teachers as being dedicated, motivated and determined. She has a 3.56 GPA. Kiara desires to become a pediatric nurse.
Zachary Glover, III
University of Houston
As the Covid-19 pandemic intensified and things shut down, Zachary knew that serving would turn his feelings of hopelessness into a positive, so he sought to use his free time to serve and make a difference. Thus, he initiated a tutoring business in which he volunteered to assist students whose grades were suffering due to virtual learning. As a result, he has helped students, ages 4 to 21, turn their grades around.
Zachary stated, “… hardships do not come into your life to defeat you, but to make you stronger. Once I view them [hardships] with that mindset, the setback turns into a major comeback.” Zachary attends Andover Civic Association meetings just to stay up-to-date with his neighborhood and to see if there are any seniors with unmet needs he can address. At Dobie High School, Zachary ranks 147/977 with a 3.51 GPA.
He was involved in multiple organizations and has over 1000 volunteer hours, including his service with the Dobie Sports Medicine Student Athletic Training Program in which he earned multiple excellence awards. He was in Honors Choir and AP classes, and is also an active member in his church. Zachary will major in kinesiology to become a Sports Medicine Physician.
Madelynn Ponder
Texas A & M University
Madelynn’s faith is the center of her life, and she continually seeks to put that faith into action by serving. She cares about others regardless of race or creed, and is unafraid to share the Lord in conversation. She is a servant to her peers and does not need to be the center of attention to lead. Madelynn is a member of the Langham Creek Band, is on the drumline, and is an oboe player. As an officer in the Tri M Music Honor Society, her service has spread beyond the band hall to serve the needs of all the music programs at Langham Creek.
She is a member of the student leadership team and has volunteered countless hours at band events, even serving in set up/tear down crews, and moving equipment. Madelynn leads a small praise and worship band on the high school campus in which she sings and plays guitar. In the midst of a pandemic, she found an additional way to serve by volunteering at an outdoor food distribution by filling cars with bags of food as they drove by her tent. Madelynn is also very active at her church. She has a 6.69/7 GPA, and ranks 39/724 in her class.
Olivia Rhodes
Baylor University
God has blessed Olivia with the gift of organizing and serving which made it possible for her to draw many groups of people together to promote fellowship and participate in service. She states, “Serving God isn’t always easy, but when we call out to Him, He will equip us with everything we need. He has only just begun to use me and I know He has many things in store for me to advance His kingdom. ‘As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as a good steward of God’s grace in its’ various forms, Peter 4:10.’”
Some of Olivia’s awards are: Distinguished Honor Roll, FIFA Certified Soccer Referee – Grass Roots Ref, Mock Shark Tank Winner, Heart and Hustle Award (voted by her soccer team), and Austin Labor Day Cup Champions. Olivia was inducted into the Math, Spanish and National Honors Societies. She has numerous service hours, and maintained a GPA of over 6.6. She is heavily involved in Student Ministry at her church, serving the community, and missions.
Sophia Snapp
University of Texas at Austin
Sophia completed her Girl Scout Gold Award by building an ecological educational garden, a gardening curriculum, and gardening instructional videos for her church’s school. She has helped to design and implement many worthwhile tools and programs for Clear Creek Independent School District. Sophia was President of the National Technical Honor Society and Co-founder and Exec. Committee Member of the CCISD Students for Safety.
She is described as compassionate, caring, mature in faithful living and in applying her faith. Sophia connects deeply with people of all backgrounds and serves to challenge structures of inequity, and to alleviate symptoms of inequity. “Making a lasting impact on my community is something very important to me. I have tried very hard to ensure that my outreach activities will help the community long after my involvement in each project”.
