Excerpt from HWYL (Volume 17, Winter 2008) (Welsh National Gymanfa Ganu Association) Col. Alfred Reese Youth Scholarships for NAFOW, Chicago 2008! With the presence of so many young people in the CÔr Aelwyd CFl choir, the 2008 North American Festival of Wales is sure to have a youthful spirit this year. Steps are being taken, however, to encourage even more young people to participate and share in this celebration of our Welsh heritage and culture. The National Welsh-American Foundation (NWAF) is creating a scholarship this year to support the participation of youth (age 16 to 25) in the 2008 North American Festival of Wales, Chicago. Although the details were still in development at the time of printing, it is understood that scholarship funds will cover the expense of registration and events. For updates and an application, please contact the WNGGA headquarters at wngga@comcast.net or 810 632-7850. The scholarships are named in honor of Col. Alfred Reese, Jr. long-time leader and benefactor of the Welsh American community who passed away in 2007. With a military career spanning World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam, Col. Reese was a respected and well-decorated veteran. When he retired from the US Army in 1975, Col. Reese returned home to Pennsylvania and took up an active civic life. His primary concern was to foster his Welsh heritage. He provided outstanding service to the Welsh American community as a leader of local groups like the St. David’s societies in Schuylkill and Carbon counties, of regional groups like the Pennsylvania Welsh Federation and national organizations like the National Welsh-American Foundation and the Welsh National Gymanfa Ganu Association. He received many prestigious honors for his work as a Welsh American cultural leader. The new scholarship directed at youth participation in the North American Festival of Wales is indeed a fitting tribute to his memory.