Gideon Baughman of Hesperia receives Heart Award scholarship by Inland Empire Health Plan.

Rene Ray De La Cruz, Victorville Daily Press
·2 min read

Gideon Baughman of Hesperia was among six students who received Heart Award scholarships provided by Inland Empire Health Plan.

The scholarship awards were presented to students during the San Bernardino County Children's Network's annual Shine a Light on Child Abuse Breakfast on April 4 in Ontario. The scholarships were awarded for the first time as part of the longtime collaboration between the health plan and the nonprofit.

Five of six IEHP Heart Award recipients during the San Bernardino County Children's Network's annual Shine a Light on Child Abuse Breakfast on April 4 in Ontario. Pictured from left to right: Gideon Baughman of Hesperia, Malia Logan of Rancho Cucamonga, Joey Zamora of San Bernardino, Grayson Ross of Rancho Cucamonga and Juan Torres of Taylor Mill, Kentucky. Kathleen Castellanos of San Bernardino was not included in the photo.

A total of 25 scholarships were given to high school and college-age foster youth, including the six individual $2,500 IEHP Heart Awards totaling $15,000.

The other students receiving scholarships included:

  • Kathleen Castellanos of San Bernardino

  • Malia Logan of Rancho Cucamonga

  • Grayson Ross of Rancho Cucamonga

  • Juan Torres formerly of Fontana

  • Joey Zamora of San Bernardino

"Students learning a trade or earning a college degree should be able to focus solely on their education instead of worrying about whether they can afford certain expenses," said Jarrod McNaughton, IEHP's chief executive officer. "IEHP sees these scholarships as an important investment in the future of our communities and we are grateful to Children's Fund for partnering with us to make them possible."

IEHP partnered with the Children's Fund to create the new Heart Award and scholarship, selecting students from varied backgrounds with impactful stories and aspirations.

Betty Chambers, director of programs at Children's Fund, said the scholarships were a complete surprise to each student selected.

"Our partnership with IEHP sees the value in allowing youth to reach their goal of something better for their future through education," Chambers said. "We are proud to collaborate with IEHP for this amazing scholarship opportunity."

Child Abuse Prevention Advocate Awards

Shine a Light Child Abuse Prevention Awards were also presented to nearly a dozen individuals and organizations, such as:

  • Lifetime Advocate: Helena Lopez, A Greater Hope

  • Community Based Provider: Annette Cedillo, Our Paths Foundation

  • Probation: Aliena Darling, San Bernardino County Probation Department

  • Education: Jonathon and Keynasia Buffong, IE Black Grad

  • Legal: Sarah Beth Rabin, San Bernardino County Public Defender's Office

  • Foster Parents: Robert and Linda Hodges

  • Behavioral Health: Paula Bailey, Victor Community Support Services

  • Community Based Provider: Dominique Matthews, Pacific Clinic

  • Education: Dr. Houn Hib, Warm Springs Elementary School

  • Community Based Provider: Amanda Vann-Orellana, Young Visionaries

  • Children and Family Services: Katie Netzel, San Bernardino County Children and Family Services

  • Volunteer: Pat Williams, Angels' Closet

IEHP and Children’s Fund

Since its founding in 1986, the Children's Fund has served more than 18 million children living in San Bernardino County, many of whom are IEHP members.

Both IEHP and Children's Fund work with their respective community partners to deliver services to residents not routinely available, from food and housing assistance to low or no-cost health insurance.

To learn more about Children's Fund, visit childrendsfund.org. More about IEHP may be found at iehp.org.

Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at RDeLaCruz@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DP_ReneDeLaCruz

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Gideon Baughman of Hesperia receives Heart Award scholarship