(Pictured above, L-R: Leah Walton, Nicolette Hines, Ella Commerford, Peyton Tyler, Bryce O’Linn and Luke Dooley)
There’s not much about Scholarship Night at Haddam-Killingworth High School that’s unusual. It’s held annually. It almost always occurs in early June. And it runs no more than an hour, with numerous seniors celebrated by a multitude of local organizations.
But this year was different. At least for the Killingworth Ambulance Association it was.
For only the second time in the past nine years, the KAA on Monday awarded a record six scholarships — with Bryce O’Linn, Luke Dooley, Peyton Tyler, Ella Commerford, Nicolette Hines and Leah Walton the recipients. Unlike the previous occasion (2019), however, all were from HKHS.
Five years ago, the group included one student from Mercy High.
But that’s not all. For only the second time in the past six years and the first since 2021, males were among the KAA honorees — a departure from 2019-23 when 14 of its previous 17 recipients were female. But O’Linn and Dooley broke the streak, with resumes that include EMR certifications and nearly 200 hours each of service with the Killingworth Volunteer Fire Company.
Dooley’s career goal is to become a firefighter and paramedic, which fits the parameters for KAA scholarship applicants. All are required to be Killingworth residents, pursue their education the following fall at a two-or-four-year school, major in the medical or emergency services (e.g., police, fire or allied fields), perform community service and maintain a 3.0 GPA.
All did. Moreover, they were as unanimous as they were enthusiastic about embracing the next step in their education.
“One of the most important values of mine,” said Commerford, “is to help others. One way that I know I will be able to do this is by continuing my education to strengthen the skills and knowledge I’ll need to assist others in the real world.”
One more contrast with this year’s event: Unlike previous Scholarship Nights, it didn’t last the usual hour. Instead, it stretched to an hour-and-a-half, with 44 organizations presenting scholarships – sometimes to multiple winners, as the KAA did with these six recipients:
BRYCE O’LINN
By his own admission, Bryce never envisioned going to college. But then he joined the Killingworth Volunteer Fire Company and amassed 170 hours of training. He’s an EMR, was captain of the boys’ basketball team, hopes to become an EMT and will gain his EMT, FF1 and ASE certification from CT State in the fall.
LUKE DOOLEY
Luke is another student with Killingworth Fire experience. He has 190 hours logged with the Fire Company and, as an EMR, has ridden with the KAA. Not only was he was one of the football team’s captains; he was the school mascot, too (presumably, not during football games). Luke will attend the University of New Haven and major in Fire Protection Engineering.
PEYTON TYLER
Ever since she can remember, Peyton wanted to be a nurse or a nurse-practitioner (like her Mom), especially after watching her father recover from open-heart surgery. So she will. Captain of the swim team, she will attend the University of St. Joseph this fall where she plans to major in nursing.
ELLA COMMERFORD
Captain of the girls’ basketball team, Ella initially wanted to pursue a career in Elementary Education. But that changed when she saw her grandmother respond to treatments for throat cancer. The “positive impact,” as she put it, that doctors had on her convinced Ella to rethink her major, which will now be Radiologic Sciences at Quinnipiac College.
NICOLETTE HINES
Nicky said she’s always enjoyed helping others, but it wasn’t until she lost a close friend in 2020 that she knew what she wanted to become as an adult – and that’s a mental-health counselor. So she will, going to the University of St. Joseph to study neuropsychology. Item of note: A member of the HKHS softball team, Nicky marked her final home game by catching the last out (a strikeout) of sophomore Emma Giaconne’s second perfect game of the season.
LEAH WALTON
Since she was young, Leah dreamed of getting involved in the study of criminal behavior and how to prevent it. And now … well, now that dream is about to become a reality. This fall she will attend the University of Delaware, where she plans to major in Criminology and minor in Cyber Security.
“The KAA’s primary mission,” said president Dan O’Sullivan, “is to provide emergency medical services to the community. But we have two other important elements to our mission: First, we want to improve community safety by educating residents on emergency services they can perform until we arrive, including first-aid, CPR and Stop the Bleed; and, second, we want to help provide for future healthcare workers by offering scholarships to Killingworth seniors entering the medical field. With that in mind, we’re especially thrilled to have six qualified candidates this year. Congratulations to all.”