First Lavonia Police Scholarship to be Awarded Tonight

Franklin County High School seniors graduate May 15th and tonight, Lavonia Police will be announcing the winner of the first annual Deputy Steven LaCruz Memorial Scholarship.

The announcement takes place tonight at Franklin County High School during the school’s annual Honors Night.

In January, Lavonia Police Chief Bruce Carlisle announced the formation of the scholarship.

Deputy Thomas, the son of Franklin County Sheriff Stevie Thomas, was killed in a wreck on I-85 last May while in pursuit of a traffic violator.

Carlisle said his department wanted to do something that would keep Deputy Cruz’ memory alive.

“I talked to Steve (Thomas) at length about this. We wanted to do something that would be able to take Cruz’ name and help someone else further their education beyond high school,” Carlisle said.

Lavonia Police partnered with Epic Computers, a local computer software business to raise money for the $5,000 scholarship.

Carlisle emphasized the scholarship is not just for students who are interested in a career in law enforcement, but is a general scholarship for all students in all career paths, including technical school.

A committee made up of educators and other community members went over the applications to determine the winner.