Trustees of the Smolin-Melin Scholarship Fund are prepared to accept applications for scholarships for the academic year 2004-2005. Now is the time to indicate your interest. June 1, 2004 is the application deadline.

Victor Smolin and Carlton Melin were long time members of Local 10. They left a sum to establish the scholarship fund. They specified that scholarships were to be available to children of Local 10 members to further their “collegiate” education. Trustees of the Fund interpret “members” to mean active members in good standing at the time of disbursement of scholarship funds, deceased members and retired members. The Trustees interpret “collegiate” to apply only to full-time study (at least 12 units per semester or quarter) at either a four-year college or an academic junior college.

Based always on available assets, the Fund historically has awarded scholarships in a range from $1000 to $2500 for full-time students at four-year colleges or universities, and from $750 to $1750 for full-time students at two-year colleges.

Trustees are Richard Zuckerman, counsel for ILWU and for Local 10, Reino Erkkila, a retired member of Local 10 and a friend of Victor Smolin, and Eugene Vrana, Associate Director of Education and Librarian for ILWU.

If you have a son or daughter who is applying to enter college next fall, or is already a college student who is planning to continue, and the above requirements are met, you might want to apply for one of these scholarships.

To request an application, simply call Mathilda Mendonca, secretary to Mr. Zuckerman at (415) 771-6400. She will then send you the application form with the necessary explanatory material.