SPRINGFIELD, Vt. – The Springfield Garden Club is pleased to announce the winners of the Springfield Garden Club Scholarship and the Sandy MacGillivray Scholarship for 2026.
Ian Bernier and Cooper Palmer are the recipients of the 2026 Springfield Garden Club Scholarships.
Bernier lives in Andover and is a graduate of Green Mountain Union High School. He will be attending the University of Vermont in Burlington, Vt., this fall, and majoring in wildlife and fisheries biology. “Throughout my life, I have forged a deep connection to the natural world. Being surrounded by conserved land gave me the freedom to spend countless hours exploring the woods around my home, where I learned to value healthy ecosystems and the importance of conserving them for future generations,” says Bernier.
Palmer lives in Springfield and is a graduate of Springfield High School. He will be attending Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. His studies will be in mechanical/environmental engineering. Palmer says, “My career goal is to become successful in the engineering field, where I can make a meaningful impact. I want to gain knowledge, skills, and real-world experiences that I can bring back to Springfield and use to help improve my community.”
The Springfield Garden Club Scholarship Committee will present Bernier’s and Palmer’s colleges with $1,000 for the first semester, and will follow that with an additional $1,000 for the second semester.
The winner of the 2026 Sandy MacGillivray Scholarship is Gabe Winther, a graduate of Bellows Falls Union High School and a student at River Valley Technical Center in Springfield. This scholarship of $1,000 is given to one River Valley Technical Center student each year in remembrance of former teacher, Springfield Garden Club member, and outstanding citizen of Springfield Sandy MacGillivray. MacGillivray taught business courses at the technical center and at Springfield High School for many years. She loved to work with students and to encourage and guide them in any way she could into living productive lives.
Winther plans to attend Champlain College in Burlington, Vt. He shared with the Garden Club members, “I chose Champlain College as their emphasis on cybersecurity and work experience are invaluable to me for what I wish to pursue.”
The Springfield Garden Club is delighted to award these scholarships to three outstanding young adults. “We look forward to seeing them achieve their dreams and we are happy to be able to support the efforts of Ian, Cooper, and Gabe,” says Barbara Riotte, Springfield Garden Club treasurer.
For more than 100 years, the purpose of the Springfield Garden Club has been to provide a social framework for education and community service in the areas of gardening, beautification, and conservation, and to coordinate the activities of the club with those of the Federated Garden Club of Vermont in order to advance our mutual aims. To learn more, visit www.springfieldgardenclub.org, or find the Springfield Garden Club of Vermont on Facebook.