2018 Prater Music Scholarship
Bluegrass music loving trumpet player
Wins 2018 Prater Music Scholarship
For immediate release:
May 10, 2018
OCILLA, GA – A bluegrass music moving trumpet player who sings and acts has been named the 2018 Dave Prater Music Scholarship winner.
Reid Griffin received the $1,500 award Thursday night during the annual Prater Music Fest scholarship dinner.
The festival continues with a free street dance from 6 to 10 pm Friday night May 11th on North Cherry Street in downtown Ocilla. Live music, food and fun are in store.
This is the second year scholarships were awarded in honor of the late Ocilla native and R&B singer from the group Sam and Dave. The duo won a Grammy Award in 1967 for their biggest hit: “Soul Man.”
Ocilla began honoring Dave Prater in 2015 and proceeds from the dinner, t-shirt sales and sponsors go toward scholarships for Irwin County High School seniors interested in pursuing careers in music.
Griffin told scholarship judges: “Music, theater and the performing arts are literally my entire life.”
Griffin has been involved in Irwin County’s band program for seven years. It is his moving rendition of “Taps” that has sounded over the Irwin County Veteran’s Day service the last four years. He counts those performances as his great achievements because it helps him give back to his community and veterans.
He said winning the Prater scholarship was less about the money and more about the name. “Dave Prater and I share the same home town. I have kept that knowledge with me every single step of the way. It has been one of the most important factors in my success. It has been the fire beneath me, keeping me moving forward,” Griffin wrote in his application. “I was told so many times that someone like me, who comes from a school like me, who grew up in a town like me, could NEVER achieve the goals that I have pursued. If someone like Dave Prater could make it? Well, someone Like Me could, too.”
After his interview, judges said they were impressed not only with his trumpet playing but also with his maturity, poise and communication skills.
Only three students applied for the award and judges selected only one winner. The other applicants were: Hannah Clayton, a singer who said she wanted to become an anesthesiologist; and Charity Curtis, a trumpet player and JROTC member whose goal is to join the U.S. military become director of a military band.
It’s not too late to support the scholarship. Donations can be made at Ocilla City Hall or by calling 229-468-5141. For more information about the scholarship or events, go to www.PraterMusicFest.com.
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Wins 2018 Prater Music Scholarship
For immediate release:
May 10, 2018
OCILLA, GA – A bluegrass music moving trumpet player who sings and acts has been named the 2018 Dave Prater Music Scholarship winner.
Reid Griffin received the $1,500 award Thursday night during the annual Prater Music Fest scholarship dinner.
The festival continues with a free street dance from 6 to 10 pm Friday night May 11th on North Cherry Street in downtown Ocilla. Live music, food and fun are in store.
This is the second year scholarships were awarded in honor of the late Ocilla native and R&B singer from the group Sam and Dave. The duo won a Grammy Award in 1967 for their biggest hit: “Soul Man.”
Ocilla began honoring Dave Prater in 2015 and proceeds from the dinner, t-shirt sales and sponsors go toward scholarships for Irwin County High School seniors interested in pursuing careers in music.
Griffin told scholarship judges: “Music, theater and the performing arts are literally my entire life.”
Griffin has been involved in Irwin County’s band program for seven years. It is his moving rendition of “Taps” that has sounded over the Irwin County Veteran’s Day service the last four years. He counts those performances as his great achievements because it helps him give back to his community and veterans.
He said winning the Prater scholarship was less about the money and more about the name. “Dave Prater and I share the same home town. I have kept that knowledge with me every single step of the way. It has been one of the most important factors in my success. It has been the fire beneath me, keeping me moving forward,” Griffin wrote in his application. “I was told so many times that someone like me, who comes from a school like me, who grew up in a town like me, could NEVER achieve the goals that I have pursued. If someone like Dave Prater could make it? Well, someone Like Me could, too.”
After his interview, judges said they were impressed not only with his trumpet playing but also with his maturity, poise and communication skills.
Only three students applied for the award and judges selected only one winner. The other applicants were: Hannah Clayton, a singer who said she wanted to become an anesthesiologist; and Charity Curtis, a trumpet player and JROTC member whose goal is to join the U.S. military become director of a military band.
It’s not too late to support the scholarship. Donations can be made at Ocilla City Hall or by calling 229-468-5141. For more information about the scholarship or events, go to www.PraterMusicFest.com.
-30-
