Young health carers honoured

By Tania Martin
THREE aspiring hills health professionals have won top honours at this year’s Ranges Community Health Service scholarship awards.
Mt Evelyn’s Caleb Knoll and Claire Jennings of Ferny Creek took out the top awards while Hannah Beimers, also of Mt Evelyn, received one of the encouragement prizes.
The major prize winners were awarded $3000 each and the encouragement prize was $1000.
The scholarships were made possible through cash raised by the Ranges Opportunity Shop and funds received from the closure of the Lilydale Health Service.
A strong field of budding health professionals vied for the awards, but there were to be just five winners with two major prizes and three encouragement honours.
Health service CEO Karyn McPeake said being able to redistribute the cash was a prime example of re-investing in the future.
Ms McPeake said it was not an easy decision to make.
Caleb Knoll, 19, is in his second year of a double degree in nursing and paramedicine.
He hopes to become either a paramedic or nurse.
Mr Knoll is also committed to helping young kids, having spent years working at kids camps in the region.
“I find that they (the camps) provide an amazing forum for seeing the positive changes in kids’ lives, especially those who come from less than ideal backgrounds,” Mr Knoll said.
He was thrilled to win the major scholarship award.
“It’s awesome. It will be a great help towards paying for my studies,” he said.
Acupuncturist and trainee midwife, Claire Jennings, 28, was also thrilled to take out the top prize.
“I was rapt with the win and grateful. I just couldn’t believe it,” she said.
“It takes so much pressure off, so I can just focus on my studies.”
The encouragement award came at just the right time for Hannah Beimers.
She started her first week of university last week and is studying nursing.
“It’s great – anything that helps is great,” Ms Beimers said.
“It’s so expensive – I think it will all go on text books.”