The Paul Harris fellows Scholarship was THE BRAIN CHILD OF JEFF WHITEHOUSE AND
WAS CREATED in 2003 for purpose of distinguishing and providing financial support to an overlooked
but deserving student In line with this criteria.:

LAST YEAR, ON its 20TH ANNIVERSARY, THE CLUB RETITLED the SCHOLARSHIP IN JEFF’S NAME
TO HONOR HIS MANY YEARS OF SERVICE TO OUR CLUB AND HIS strong COMMITMENT TO
THIS SCHOLARSHIP and its recipients.
This year Mr. Whitehouse passed away so this scholarship has become especially meaningful to our
Rotary club. Jeff was the kind of person who worked behind the scenes to help people who needed help
the most. He loved to seek out the student who had worked hard to overcome sometimes
extraordinary circumstances. I think his finest moment was when a previous Paul Harris scholarship
winner that he had selected, who is now a doctor, made a speech to our club that after she won the
Paul Harris scholarship she realized that she could now afford to go to the college of her choice and
difference that made in her life.

TODAY, we’ll award Jeff Whitehouse scholarships to TWO very deserving students:

FIRST, JANAYAH JONES
Raised by her grandparents, Janayah was inspired by their sacrifice and resilience. Taking the Business
Technology Program at Taconic she found that she has an interest in Business. She has achieved
excellent grades in this program. Her teacher, Ms Arace, commented “Janayah is a leader in the
classroom. Her critical thinking skills are prominently displayed in the questions she raises during class.
There is a clear drive to enhance and expand her skills and knowledge.” She has been an active
participant and Secretary of SkillsUSA making an impact on the school community.
In her work life, she has had to undergo some significant hardships as she works at Attorney Tom
Hamel’s office. Where she received a glowing letter of recommendation. Despite that she still thinks
that she’d like to be an attorney after attending Bentley College in the fall.
Her list of volunteer activities is a mile long, including United Way Community Cleanup, Danny Dollar
Fair, Reader Leaders at the Athenaeum, Student Council, and Linkcrew as a mentor to freshman
students. She is also the captain of the Volleyball team.
What really shined in her application was how actively she has been involved in her local community.
She has the honor of being selected as the Taconic student representative at the Pittsfield School
Committee meetings where she serves as the voice of her peers.
And finally in the words of one of her teachers, Mr. Phelps, “Janayah is Awesome!”

NEXT, KARALIN MELENDEZ

In her letter of recommendation, Karalin is identified as a standout student, she is the definition
of grit and determination.  And she is one of the kindest and most helpful students at PHS.
Most of us here today completed 11 th grade and 12 th grade, but how many of us completed them
in the same year. Karalin had to manage a massive amount of college prep courses and
credits.  She also works several part-time jobs outside of school to help raise money to support
herself and her mother, who she lives with.  

Her guidance counselor, Joey Marshall, wrote “What impresses me most about Karalin is the
determination and work ethic she has applied when balancing her academics, social
development, and health/life challenges that have been thrown her way. From her early
medical issues as an elementary student she is truly the definition of what it means to overcome
adversity.”
Karalin will be attending _______________________- next fall, where she hopes to major in
_____________________

Mr Whitehouse would have been thrilled at the selection of Karalin Melendez as the Jeff
Whitehouse/Paul Harris Fellows scholarship winner.

The Lyon Family established this scholarship in memory of Lynn Lyon, a
devoted husband, father, and grandfather who passed away in 2003 at
age 60.
Though he struggled academically and couldn’t afford extracurricular
activities due to work and family obligations, Lynn was known for his
strong work ethic and determination.
He began as an apprentice and became a master electrician, earned his
pilot's license at 20, became a flight instructor, managed Pittsfield
Airport for over 20 years, and founded Lyon Aviation—now a major
private jet charter company in the Northeast.
This scholarship honors students who reflect Lynn’s qualities of
perseverance, hard work, and a drive to develop skills. This year's
recipient is Kassandra Cardot.

Full Verbiage:

The Lyon Family established this scholarship in memory of Lynn Lyon.  A
husband, father and grandfather taken from them in 2003 at the early
age of 60.
 
While I didn’t know Lynn personally…I understand that he was a down-
to-earth guy, who himself struggled with academics…and was unable to
get involved in extra-curriculars and activities due to cost, work and
family responsibilities. 
 
What Lynn lacked in grades…he made up for with hard work and
determination.
Lynn started his career as an apprentice and became a master
electrician. 
 
He earned his pilot’s license at the age of 20, became a certified flight
instructor and managed the Pittsfield Airport for over 20 years. 
Lynn earned numerous aeronautical credentials including a top level
civilian pilot ranking.
 

In 1980, Lynn founded Lyon Aviation… still family owned, it is one of the
largest private jet charter operations in the Northeast …and flies
corporate and private clients all over the country and overseas. 
Lynn was a truly accomplished man that came from rather humble
beginnings. 
The Family has asked us to find a student that exhibits similar qualities
to Lynn… hardworking and determined to succeed…and if interested in
developing a particular skill or craft…so much the better.
I think we nailed it…and I’ll introduce her:  Kassandra Cardot

Let me take a few moments to reflect on Kassandra and her recent
accomplishments.
Kassandra a senior from Taconic High School is and has focused on
culinary arts for the past 5 years. Her plans are to attend a liberal arts
school in September of 2025.
Remarkably she has already achieved many accomplishments in the
culinary field which include obtaining OHSA-10, Always Food Safe Food
Handler and Servsafe Food Handler certificates. It is noted that she has
scored a perfect 100% on all of these certificates.
This comes as no surprise, I decided to scroll through her Academic
Transcript, I wanted to see how much we had in common academically.
It was evident that Kassandra and I have nothing in common
academically as she maintained a 99.93% GPA over the past 3 years and
currently has a 100.5% average so far this year.

I would have been happy if I maintained a 79.93% GPA for any single
year.
Kassandra resides in Pittsfield, she is the youngest child of 4 and also
the youngest of triplets.
She has volunteered for several organizations which include the Re-
Formation Academy / Corizonidos Community School where she
learned how to speak out about problems and issues the community is
faced with each passing year and in addition how to speak her mind
and fight for change
She has volunteered at the Robbins Ave Community Garden, where she
worked in the garden, weeded plant beds, planted seeds, weed
whacked and harvested plants.
She also volunteers at the Farmers Market at The Common where she
provided baked goods made in the ServeSafe certified kitchen at the
Unitarian Church on Wendell Ave. This also taught her about food
presentation, organizing inventory and time management.
She noted being on Youth Advisory Board at school, her
accomplishments include; assisting with the PhotoVoice project during
phase 1 where she has learned skills on empathy, government action,
vulnerability and leading positive group discussions. She served on the
Peer Mental Health Support subcommittee, she has visited Boston and
spoken with state representatives and led a discussion at the
Department of Health.
Lastly, she was a part of the community outreach section of the Taconic
Student Voice Summit, Portrait of a Graduate which is a project
collecting student opinions on mental health and substance abuse.

Kassandra has been described as dedicated, consistent, and a
conscientious student by her Culinary Arts instructor Daniel Moon, he
noted that her presence adds significant value to the school’s program
and he goes on to state that her creative baking and cooking skills
consistently set her apart. He also commends Kassandra on her ability
to conduct herself professionally even during moments of
disagreement and her ability to have fun but focus when it is necessary.
In a separate letter Carli McGurn of the Elizabeth Freeman Center
wrote a wonderful letter of recommendation for Kassandra. I mention
this because most of us know these are very boiler plate templates. Ms.
McGurn went on to note that not only was she recommending
Kassandra, she was doing so wholeheartedly. she has volunteered with
Kassandra over the past 6 years. They met at the Pittsfield Athenaeum.
Kassandra and her family played a vital role in the revitalization of the
young adult department which Ms. McGurn was tasked with.
During her time spent volunteering with Ms. McGurn she completed
many accomplishments which include running for student
representative as a freshman, starting a business creating opportunities
for her peers and lastly her proudest moment was her advocacy for the
opening of a student run snack bar to provide affordable, student made
food for the school community. I spoke with Ms. McGurn this week and
she was overly excited to inform me that in addition to Kassandra’s
other volunteer efforts she has recently joined the youth leadership
council for the Elizabeth Freeman Center.

Kassandra, you are nothing short of a great mentor, a great leader and
an overall genuinely kind human being. I would consider myself
successful if my daughters were to accomplish half of what you have.
Fellow Rotarians please join me in congratulating Kassandra Cardot as
our 2025 recipient of the Lyon Family Scholarship.