GTE Financial is awarding 36 local high school and undergraduate students with scholarships as part of its annual program to invest in education.

  • Scholarship program now in its fifth year
  • More than 500 applicants for scholarships
  • 2017 applications available in February

With more than 500 applicants, a panel of community leaders evaluated and selected students who demonstrated dedication, perseverance and a commitment to their education while also giving back to their communities.

"Those people that they choose are the ones that really rise to the top, those that have a servant's heart, those that believe in purpose and are looking for a purpose and are seeking to really give back to the community," said Jorge Polanco, Student Program Supervisor at GTE Financial.
 
One of this year's winners is Anna Swygert, 21, of Lakeland.
 
Swygert said ever since she was 2 years old, she has wanted to be a doctor like her father.
 
He passed away in 2013 while waiting on a lung transplant. At the time, Swygert was a freshman in college.
 
"You just feel like your world stops and then you can't really get through it," said Swygert. "You just feel a lot of things, you feel isolated, you feel scared, you have a lot of pain."
 
Rather than giving up, she turned her pain into motivation.
 
She stayed in school at the University of Florida and started volunteering at Shands, the same hospital where her father passed away.
 
Swygert works with children, teens and young adults who are dealing with life-threatening illnesses.
 
"I hope they feel supported, whether it's that I made them laugh or smile that day or it's that they trust me or I'm a good friend to them," she said.
 
Swygert said the $2,500 scholarship she is receiving will help her continue her education and go to medical school.
 
She said her father's death has motivated her even more.
 
"That was just one of the hardest things I could have ever imagined in my life but through it, I really found this passion for helping people who are sick," she said. "I think he would be very proud of me.".
 
The GTE Financial scholarship program is in its 5th year. The 2017 scholarship applications will be available in February.