Brian LaViolette died in a swimming accident in Wisconsin in 1992.

Andrew Brownfield died in combat in Iraq in 2004.

The deaths of the two young people so many years and miles apart will forever be linked through a scholarship that has been established at Brownfield's alma mater, Akron North High School.

The Andrew D. Brownfield Scholarship of Honor, a $500 award, will be given out for the first time in spring 2006 to a young man or woman who plans to enter the military or go into public service.

The scholarship will be awarded through the Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation and funded by a $10,000 endowment from Omnova Solutions Foundation, formerly the GenCorp and General Tire Foundation, said Theresa Carter, executive director of the Omnova foundation in Fairlawn.

Doug LaViolette, father of Brian, said the scholarship will be a tribute not only to Brownfield but also to all the others from Ohio who have died in the Iraq war.

``It is a daunting task to try to select one Marine and soldier to represent all of those from Ohio,'' he said.

The Brownfield scholarship will go to a North High School graduate each year, the 57-year-old LaViolette said.

``Brian was 15, and he was a great kid,'' Doug LaViolette said. ``In his honor and memory, we said we would accomplish great things, and this is part of that. I don't know where it's going to end.''

Each scholarship winner will receive a medal from the foundation with the name of Andrew Brownfield inscribed on the back, he said.

According to the Associated Press, 106 Ohioans have been killed in Iraq.

Carter said the Omnova Solutions Foundation first established an endowment through the Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation at a Wisconsin high school. ``We learned the (LaViolette) foundation wanted to do this nationwide, and they approached us to think about doing it in the state of Ohio,'' she said.

The fact that this scholarship will go to young people who want to go into the military or public service work intrigued the Omnova foundation, Carter said.

``We applaud all of our soldiers who are defending our country, and this is a way to say thank you to them,'' she said. ``All are very important and have made a significant contribution.''

Brownfield's mother, Melody Roop of Stow, said it is an honor to have a scholarship in her son's name at his high school.

``It is fantastic that there is a foundation like this for these kids,'' she said.

Her son wanted to go to college, she said. ``He was a stickler for education,'' she said.

The 24-year-old Marine corporal died March 18, 2004, in a mortar attack at Al Asad Air Base.

Since the Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation was formed, the nonprofit organization has presented more than 250 scholarships. The organization gives out scholarships not only in memory of military members who have died in the war on terror, but also in the names of Medal of Honor winners. It also presents distinguished-student awards, awards to foreign students, and other scholarships.

The sacrifices American troops make in service to this nation are not bound by gender, region or even time.

With that in mind, the Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation today announced the creation of two new $500 scholarships in memory of U.S. troops who died in the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, and of 27 Marines based in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, who died on Jan. 26, 2005, in a military helicopter crash while serving in Iraq.

"It's important that we recognize the heroes of the past and honor those who are serving our nation now," said Hawaiian businessman Ohelo Kaopio, who donated the money that will be used for the scholarships. They will be given to students from Hawaii graduating from high school and entering the military.

The Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation was established in honor of Doug and Renee LaViolette's son, Brian, who was 15 when he died in a swimming accident in 1992 near Chambers Island. Since its inception, the scholarship foundation has assisted more than 250 students.

There is also the International Scholarship of Honor which presents a scholarship to a student from the nation of Poland.

A year ago the scholarship foundation began honoring soldiers and Marines from this area who died in service to the nation with the Scholarships of Honor program. The scholarships were created in the names of Spc. Nichole Frye, Pfc. Ryan Jerabek, Cpl. Jesse Thiry, Pfc. Isaiah Hunt, and Sgt. Benjamin Edinger, who were killed in Iraq in 2004.

In 2006 there will be a scholarship in Ohio to honor the 21 Marines based in Brook Park who were killed in Iraq during August 2005.

It was business that brought Kaopio and LaViolette together, but their bond has been cemented by a desire to honor those who sacrifice for the greater good.

LaViolette had approached Kate Hogan of the Green Bay Packers Pro Shop about the possibility of creating a new hat that could be sold in the pro shop to benefit the scholarship foundation.

Not only did Hogan agree to that request, she connected LaViolette to Kaopio, whose firm is a supplier of custom-made hats for the National Football League.

From that business connection came first a donation of $10,000 in hats and then an offer by Kaopio to establish these new scholarships in Hawaii.

"Since I've become aware of the foundation I've been so impressed — by Brian and the foundation," Kaopio said. "I've read the book about him and know his motto: 'The Journey is the Reward.' I know that what is being done means so much to the other people."

Scholarships sustain soldiers' legacy

An article by Nathan Phelps from the Green Bay Press-Gazette - December 23, 2004

Spc. Nichole Frye.

Pfc. Ryan Jerabek.

Cpl. Jesse Thiry.

Pfc. Isaiah Hunt.

Sgt. Benjamin Edinger.

All five were killed this year in Iraq.

The Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation honored those soldiers and Marines from this area Wednesday at a ceremony in Ashwaubenon announcing the creation of scholarships in each of their names at their respective high schools.

The goal: keeping the memory of their lives, service and sacrifice alive for future generations.

"They've given us the greatest Christmas present we could ever receive - and it's the gift of freedom," said Doug LaViolette, president of the Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation.

Sue and Randy Thiry of Casco said the scholarship is fitting of their son, a Marine who died in combat in April.

Jesse Thiry voluntarily left a stateside job to serve in Iraq. "It's a way for Jesse to live on and to give...other young men and women a chance for a higher education," his mom said. "Jesse would want to give back."

Photos of the Marines and soldiers looked back at the audience during the ceremony at the Resch Center.

U.S. Rep. Mark Green, R-Hobart, said the scholarship stands as a reminder that the people serving in the military and fighting in places like Iraq and Afghanistan aren't other people's children, and they don't come from far away towns and cities. They come from places like Hobart, the town of Little River, Suamico, Green Bay and Casco.

"We also feel tremendous awe and inspiration, and humility, because we realize what someone else has done this for us so we can be free," he said. The scholarship "will remind us that these are not other people's children...and they come from the very streets and neighborhoods and schools where we have all grown up."

Scholarship recipients must have plans to pursue a career in community service or enter the military. They must also demonstrate a passion toward helping others while in high school.

The Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation was established in honor of Doug LaViolette's son, Brian, who was 15 when he died in a swimming accident in 1992.

Pam Hunt, mother of Isaiah Hunt, said she suspects her son is waiting to see who the recipients of the scholarship will be. "So he can be a big brother," she said. "He was an excellent big brother."

Pam Hunt said she worries her son might be forgotten. "The thing you fear most is that people will forget, and even in face you might forget, some of the things that make him who he is," she said. "In things like this, you get reassurances that he'll still be there...and at least once a year someone else will be talking about Isaiah."

Doug LaViolette said the scholarship is a way to keep these memories alive and to ensure Frye, Thiry, Jerabek, Hunt and Edinger are not forgotten - nor are the sacrifices of their families.

Jesse Thiry's dad said the scholarships will do just that.

"It keeps Jesse's legacy alive, and people will remember what he did," Randy Thiry said. "When I see him again, I'll ask him why he gave it all up to go over there; because he wanted to make a difference. He told me that before he left."

The Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation’s International Scholarship of Honor

Borders, whether they are geographical, cultural, or political, so often define the world we live in. Rarely as a city, country or international community are we able to break down the walls that separate us, and join together to share our common bonds, dreams and futures.

After more than a decade of assisting students in Northeast Wisconsin with their educational journeys, The Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation has begun to share Brian’s message, that “the journey is the reward,” around the world. In 2003, the Foundation sponsored its first international scholarship in Poland as a gesture of goodwill. That simple gesture has evolved into the International Scholarship of Honor.

The ideals of the Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation have no borders around the world, and therefore the foundation is excited to extend its focus internationally. In 2004 the Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation awarded four scholarships to students in Poland. Bob Nueske of Nueske Meats in Wittenberg, Wisconsin, and Casey Cuene of Broadway Automotive in Green Bay, Wisconsin, helped to fund these initial scholarships in memory of loved ones who came from that part of the world.

The foundation’s International Scholarship of Honor is an extension of a program recognizing youth in the United States for their commitment to community, world peace, and education. The foundation is proud to extend that recognition to students around the globe through its International Scholarship of Honor.

The honor comes with a cash award to help with the student’s educational journey, and the International Scholarship of Honor medal from the Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation. At the center of the medal is a book symbolizing the pursuit for higher education, and the American Bald Eagle, a symbol for freedom. The pure, white ribbon holds the medal close to your heart, signifying our common bond, the international symbol of peace.