En Memorium: The Bistline Scholarship
History of the Scholarship
The Seminole County Historical Society has sponsored the scholarship competition since 2013.
The scholarship was initiated at the request of Mrs. Carolyn Bistline. She personally funded the scholarship for several years to encourage young people to pursue careers and studies in local history. Mrs. Bistline was a former teacher at Lyman Middle School and a long-time resident of Longwood. She was also a life-time member of the Seminole County Historical Society, which is the membership and fund-raising organization for the Museum of Seminole County History. Mrs. Bistline passed away the day after the 2017 scholarship was awarded on May 25, 2017. Her obituary can be viewed here. Her brother-in-law, John, another long-time society supporter, sadly passed away a few months later on November 26, 2017. His obituary can be viewed here.
The loss of the Bistlines has had a profound effect on our community. In order to honor the memory of Carolyn, John, and the Bistline family, long-time supporters of the historical society, the Board of Directors of the Seminole County Historical Society has decided to fund the scholarship competition for one final year. The scholarship will be retired after the 2018 competition.
Past winners of the scholarship are:
Bryce Forgue - Lake Brantley High School - 2013
No Scholarship Awarded - 2014
James Henderson - Lyman High School - 2015
Julie Sparks - Seminole High School - 2016
Soloman E. Bland - Hagerty High School - 2017
Deanna Medina - Lyman High School - 2018
Please note: the Bistline Scholarship will NOT be awarded in 2019. The Historical Society is in the process of designing a new history scholarship competition that will debut in 2020.