Nine Solano County residents majoring in an agricultural field will share $26,000 toward their college educations, thanks to the Donnie and Tootie Huffman Scholarship Program of the Friends of the Dixon May Fair.
The scholarship program is named for the Vacaville couple who set up the program. It memorializes founding president Donnie Huffman (1940-2023), who died June 17, 2023 of cancer, and honors his wife, Claudia (Tootie), the founding treasurer, who continues as a scholarship committee judge.
Since 2000, the Friends of the Dixon May Fair has awarded a total of $274,750 to Solano County residents majoring in agriculture, announced Carrie Hamel of Dixon, the scholarship chair.
For the second consecutive year, Sam Esperson, a 2022 graduate of Rio Vista High School and a student at California Polytechnic University (Cal Poly), San Luis Obispo, won the $5000 Donnie Huffman Presidential Scholarship, the highest award the program offers. He is majoring in agricultural systems management.
Massimo Menicou of Vacaville, a 2024 graduate of Vacaville High School won the $4000 JoAn Giannoni Award, honoring a Dixon resident who is the founding secretary of the Friends. Menicou received an early acceptance to the University of Nevada. He plans to major in animal science (pre-veterinary medicine path).
Natalie Victorine, of Dixon, a 2021 graduate of Dixon High School and a student at Cal Poly, won the $3500 Ester Armstrong Memorial Award. The award memorializes a former director of the California Division of Fairs and Expositions, who died in May 2009 of cancer. Armstrong, a Rocklin resident served as interim chief executive officer of the Dixon May Fair from 2006 to 2009.
Elena Mendonsa of Vacaville, a 2024 graduate of Vacaville Christian High School, won the $3000 Joe Gates Memorial Scholarship, memorializing the longtime auctioneer of the Dixon May Fair Junior Livestock Auction. Gates, a Rio Vista resident, died of COVID in February 2021.
Others winning $3000 scholarships in the university category:
Megan Kett, a 2021 graduate of Dixon High School and a student at Oklahoma University; Bridget de Flores, a 2023 graduate of Rio Vista High School, and a student at Chico State University; Maya Ferris, a 2024 graduate of Vacaville High School with plans to attend Cal Poly; and Trevor de Rosier, a 2024 graduate of Angelo Rodriguez High School, Fairfield, enrolled at UC Davis.
In the community college category, Cole Jacobson, a 2024 graduate of Dixon High School and an incoming student at Woodland Community College, won the $1500 Jack Hopkins Memorial Scholarship. Hopkins (1922-2009), a life-long resident of Fairfield and Suisun and a fruit rancher, was a strong support of the Junior Livestock Auctions at the Dixon May Fair and Solano County Fair.
Capsule information about the recipients:
Sam Esperson. Esperson, interested in an agricultural engineering career, seeks expertise “in agricultural engineering, financial management, personnel administration and an overall agricultural systems management to uncover fresh opportunities within the industry,” he wrote in his application packet. His letters of support praised his leadership, professional development, work ethic, and collaborative spirit. He interned at Pacific Southwest Irrigation the summer of 2023 and was described as a “rising star” in the industry.
Massimo Menicou. Menicou wrote that his end goal is to “become a doctor of veterinary medicine… As of now, large and small animal medicine are of interest to me. I attended a summer youth camp for veterinary care at Texas A&M the summer of 2023 and loved the exposure to cattle and swine.” He was both an athlete and a scholar at Vaca High. A member of the Future Farmers of America Veterinary Science Career Development Team, Menicou captained his high school football team and the Solano-Yolo Rugby Club. “Massimo is the type of student every teacher dreams of having in their class,” a teacher wrote in her letter of recommendation.
Natalie Victorine. Victorine, majoring in agricultural communication, seeks a career in digital media management production. Her decision to major in ag communication was “spurred by my involvement in youth agricultural leadership organizations such as 4-H and FFA, combined with my strong familial roots in agriculture,” she wrote. Last November at the national FFA convention, she received her American FFA Degree, the highest award an FFA member can achieve. Her letters of recommendation praised her as a leader, and as “a hard-working, genuine and enthusiastic.”
Elena Mendonsa. Mendonsa wrote that she seeks an animal science degree at UC Davis and hopes to attend the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. She served as president of her school’s Environmental Club and won the top student award in anatomy and physiology and biomedical sciences. She interns at a local veterinary clinic and also with the Solano County SPCA. Her letters of support praised her academic excellence, leadership and social responsibility.
Megan Kett. Kett, who seeks a career as a veterinarian, is a first-generation college student majoring in animal science, with a concentration in pre-veterinary animal science. She worked as an animal caretaker for the Oklahoma State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Stillwater, Okla. At Dixon, she raised market swine in the 4-H and FFA programs and was a member of the water polo and swim teams all four years of high school. “I am currently pursuing a position in the undergraduate scholar’s program, with a focus on research with swine,” she wrote. Agriculture has always been a part of her life. She helped her father plant and grow a walnut orchard on the Kett family farm in Dixon.
Bridget de Flores. De de Flores is majoring in agricultural business at California State University, Chico. As a 10-year 4-H club member, she won a number of awards, including Supreme Grand Champion Turkey and Reserve Grand Champion Turkey. “My experience in 4-H has helped to better prepare me for my future career,” she wrote, adding that she plans career as a farm/ranch manager or as a farmer or rancher. Her letters of recommendation praised her as an outstanding leader and student, and “well-rounded.”
Maya Ferris. Ferris plans to attend Cal Poly with a career goal of becoming a veterinarian. “I’ve always had an affinity for animals,” she wrote in her application packet. “Since I was a little girl, I’ve always had the precarious habit of seeking out animals an trying to bring them home, much to my parents’ displeasure…Over the years I have had the chance to shadow my local large animal veterinarian, Jason Bravos.” Her letters of support praised her as an outstanding leader and scholar, and active in FFA. She won the title of Miss Teen California and is a recipient of a FFA State degree.
Trevor deRosier. He plans to major in wildlife biology at UC Davis. “I hope to learn as much as I can about wildlife biology and I would like to specialize in my primary interest, which is birds.” For his Eagle Scout project, he chose the California Raptor Center at UC Davis. “I led a group of Scouts in creating life-sized wooden cutouts of seven silhouettes of birds they have at the facility,” he wrote. “I displayed them on a wall at the Center to encourage more community members to visit the facility.” His letters of recommendation praise him for his diligence, leadership, and as a persistent hard worker.
Cole Jacobson. Cole plans to major in agricultural business at Woodland Community College. In his application packet, he related “With agribusiness, I can tap into this industry from a financial or entrepreneurial perspective, two things that I am very interested in.” He added that “learning how to drive a tractor…(was) a huge stepping stone in my life.” His letters of recommendation described him as “a thoughtful, kind and a strong leader in our school and FFA community” and that “he never shies away from challenges, and new opportunities for learning.”
The Friends, an all-volunteer, service-oriented organization, is the fundraising arm of the Dixon May Fair. Headed by president Gilbert “Gil” Molina of Vacaville, the organization raises funds through the sale of beverages at the four-day fair, and donates the proceeds for building and grounds improvements, college scholarships and exhibitor awards.
Applicants are scored on personal, civic and academic experience; academic standing; personal commitment and established goals; leadership potential; and civic accomplishments. Most applicants have experience in 4-H, FFA or Grange–criteria desired but not mandated.
Continuing scholarship winners may apply up to four times, Hamel said. Scholarship checks can be used only for tuition, fees, books, materials and supplies, housing, and meals purchased on campus.
The scholarship committee, chaired by Hamel, also includes Tootie Huffman, Kathy Keatley Garvey and Linda Molina, all of Vacaville, and Sue Miracle and Michelle Robinson of Dixon.
The deadline to apply for the annual scholarships is March 1. In the past, rules mandated that the applicants “be attending a college or university within California.” As of 2024, the rules expanded to “a college or university within the United States,” Hamel said.