May 2026 Newsletter

The Wildcat Foundation distributed $45,000 in scholarship funds to seniors during the Mechanicsburg Area Senior High School Senior Awards Ceremony on May 21.

The foundation partners with area groups and individuals to administer and select winners for six scholarships to each graduating class.

New additions this year include the Ronald L. Baker Memorial Award.

This year’s foundation scholarship winners are:

Charles H. Jr. and Jane Eagle Diller Business Scholarship

• This year’s selection was William Coffman. Coffman will receive $20,000 – $5,000 for each of his qualifying four years – studying Finance at Penn State Harrisburg.

Mechanicsburg Club/Wildcat Foundation Scholarship

The four students selected to receive $4,000 scholarships for 2026 are:

• Elle Fair – attending Messiah University
• Jackson Bowes – attending the University of Pittsburgh
• Leah Deavor – attending Duquesne University
• Isabella Valdez – attending Penn State Harrisburg

Janet B. Wentz English Award

• The 2026 winner of the $5,000 award is Aiden Pinsker, who will study History at George Washington University.

Ronald L. Baker Memorial Award

• The 2026 winner of the $1,000 award is Gabe Magaro, who will attend Villanova University.

Larry F. Carey Military Award

• The 2026 winners of the $500 award are Kathryn Goodena and Cole Sweitzer, who are both enlisting in the U.S. Marine Corps.
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Wildcat Foundation Board Scholarships

• The $1,000 award winners for 2026 are Annie Hu and Alexzandrea Heath, who will both attend Temple University.

The Wildcat Foundation extended its grant funding for the 2025-2026 school year with an additional grant award from its Food/Nutrition Designated Fund this spring.

Working with the Mechanicsburg Area School District’s Office of Student Services, the foundation issued a $10,000 grant to help create snack banks in the district’s four elementary school buildings as well as the Kindergarten Academy.

The money is made available from our Food/Nutrition Designated Fund thanks to donors from within the community and follows a $10,000 grant this past fall to help fortify the food pantries within the district.

“With a significant portion of our student population qualifying for free and reduced-price lunch (FRL), many arrive at or experience a mid-morning slump due to hunger, regardless of official meal programs. This project empowers every teacher across our elementary buildings with a confidential supply of nutritious snacks,” Director of Student Service Bethany Bridges said.

The grant funding will be distributed via an equity-based formula tied directly to each school's FRL percentage, ensuring resources are maximized where the need is greatest.

A portion of the grant will be allotted to purchase containers to secure the food items for 148 teachers in grades K through 5, and the rest of the grant will be allotted for snacks.

“By eliminating hunger as a barrier, we will improve student concentration, reduce behavioral incidents, and maximize instructional time,” Bridges said. “Hunger is one of the most significant yet easily addressable non-academic barriers to learning.”

The The Wildcat Foundation is grateful to welcome the support of Poached Restaurant with its “Wildcat Wednesdays” in downtown Mechanicsburg.

In March, restaurant owners Jason Minor and Doug Smeltzer and Manager Kealy Monighan (a 2011 MASH grad) set up a program to donate 10% of all sales from the downtown Mechanicsburg restaurant on Wednesdays to The Wildcat Foundation.

"We really just wanted to find a meaningful way to give back to the community," Monighan said. "Being a MASH graduate (Class of 2011), I’ve seen firsthand how much good The Wildcat Foundation does — not just for the school, but for the community as a whole. When we discussed the idea as a team, we all felt it was a great way to give back to the community that has welcomed us as a new small business. It just felt like the right fit."

Thank you Poached for the support of our MASD grant programs!

• Poached: 135 W Main St, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055
• Website: https://www.poachedonmain.com/
• Menu: static1.squarespace.com

Registration for golfers and sponsorship opportunities has opened for The Wildcat Foundation’s 17th Annual Golf Outing. The event will be held on July 31, 2026, at Carlisle Barracks Golf Course.

The golf outing serves as one of the foundation’s 3 main fundraisers in our annual mission to fund grants for programs in the Mechanicsburg Area School District. The foundation delivered more than $100,000 in grant funding for the 2025-26 school year and plans to exceed that number for the 2026-27 school year.

Only six foursome spots remain for the popular event which features lunch and registration at noon, a shotgun start at 1 p.m., and dinner following the golf event around 6 p.m.

CLICK HERE TO SEE SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Two key sponsorship levels remain open as well:

1. Silent Auction Sponsor - Includes 1 foursome; signage at live auction tables; your logo on the online auction homepage; 2 tee signs; logo and links on our website, emailed newsletters, and social media posts; recognition in program.

2. Food Sponsor - Includes 1 foursome; signage at food service tables for lunch & dinner; logo and links used on website, emailed newsletters, and social media posts; recognition in program; & 2 tee signs.

Recognize your Class of 2027 MASH senior (and help support The Wildcat Foundation)! Whether they play a sport, participate in orchestra, the musical, or other clubs, you can recognize your senior on a tee sign. The sign will displayed at the golf outing, then available for you to pick up and display in your yard.

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