Calusa Garden Club Awards Scholarships

Calusa Garden Club of Marco Island takes pleasure in awarding college scholarships to Marco Island resident students who show an interest in pursuing the fields of horticulture, biology, botany, environmental science, or environmental law or policy. The Club awarded two college scholarships of $1,175 each this year, one to Lely High School graduate Mia Witthoff and one to Marco Island Academy graduate Nicholas Vergo. The Club’s scholarship chairman, Marianne Foley, awarded the scholarship to Vergo at the MIA awards night and to Witthoff at a small Club ceremony at Marco Island Historical Society. 

Nicholas Vergo was selected due to his high academic standing and his plans to major in sciences at University of Central Florida in Orlando. After college, Vergo plans to go to medical school, hopefully the field of orthopedic surgery. Vergo was a member of National Honor Society and Science Honor Society and contributed to the Marco Island community with many volunteer hours. In addition to being the captain of the football and soccer teams at MIA, he was a finalist for the prestigious Winged Foot Scholar Athlete Award, which is based on scholastic and athletic achievements.

Mia Witthoff was selected based on her work in environmental issues during high school. She monitored sea turtles with Rookery Bay Estuarine Reserve and also performed an independent study on microplastics that pollute our environment, particularly our coastal community environment. Witthoff plans to attend Georgia Technical University (Georgia Tech) in Atlanta and major in civil engineering. She was a recipient of her high school’s nomination for the prestigious Winged Foot Scholar Athlete award based on being ranked second in her high school class and her outstanding record as a varsity swimmer. Witthoff was president of Lely High School’s student government and a member of the National Honor Society.