Coach Russ Morrell Memorial… | South Dakota Community Foundation

Coach Russ Morrell Memorial Scholarship Fund

To provide financial support in assisting aspiring South Dakota students in their efforts to achieve degrees from institutions of higher learning.

Fund Details

For high school athletes, coaches are a part of daily life, but it is a rare privilege when that daily interaction grows into mutual respect and admiration. Coach Russ Morrell inspired that type of relationship with young people over the 40 years he taught and coached in the communities of Irene, Burke, Bon Homme and Wagner.

In order to continue the generosity Morrell embodied, former students, friends and colleagues donated money to establish the Coach Russ Morrell Memorial Scholarship at the South Dakota Community Foundation (SDCF).

The scholarship’s goal is to assist South Dakota students in their efforts to earn degrees from post-secondary institutions. The scholarship fund will make it possible to award a $1,000 scholarship each year. The scholarship gives preference to students from Burke, Bon Homme or Wagner. The family has established application criteria and asks applicants to submit an essay relaying a time in their lives where they demonstrated resourcefulness and optimism in the face of adversity – a value that was highly esteemed by the scholarship’s namesake.

Scholarship Application

Past Recipients

  • 2018 Abbigail Baker
  • 2019 Jenna Bruns
  • 2020 Bennett McIntosh
  • 2021 Abigail Brunsing
  • 2022 Alaina Bechen