Thomas H. Lutsey-Waseda Farms Scholarship Announces 2017 Recipients

Thomas H. Lutsey-Waseda Farms Scholarship surpasses $600,000 in gifts to high school graduates from Wisconsin who are committed to pursuing careers in agriculture. Since 1986, a total of 105 graduating high school students have benefited from more than $600,000 in scholarships gifted through the Thomas H. Lutsey-Waseda Farms Scholarship. Each scholarship recipient is given a $10,000 scholarship over four years.

Thomas H. Lutsey was a dairy farmer from Pulaski, Wis., who created Gold Bond Ice Cream (later rebranded as Good Humor-Breyers) and ice-cream novelties such as the Eskimo Pie. His son, Tom Lutsey, founded Waseda Farms, an organic farm in Baileys Harbor that also has two local markets and distributes food to several restaurants in the region.

Waseda Farms President Matt Lutsey, grandson of the late Thomas Lutsey, noted the significance of the 100th scholarship being given out this year.

“Knowing that so many people have been given an opportunity that they may have not had otherwise is really an amazing feeling,” he said. “I know that my grandfather would be proud to see how his little scholarship has grown over the years. This was near and dear to his heart.”

All of this year’s scholarship recipients are children of farmers and/or farm operators. They are:  Lillian Feider of New Holstein, Emma Gwidt of Pulaski, Jessica Mehre of Glenbeulah, Erik Ohman of Glenbeulah, Iris Schira of Mosinee, and Joseph Tomandl of Medford.

More information on the Thomas H. Lutsey-Waseda Farms Scholarship can be found at lutsey.org.