John Muth
I am forever grateful to you. I am an Arizona State University and Maricopa Community College alumni. I have a Bachelors of Fine Art degree and a post-bachelors, non-degree certificate, in the field of art education. I love teaching art and creating art. This means I work well with my hands, and I wanted to diversify my profession but I could still use that artistic craftsmanship to enhance my field of study. I chose welding as a future career because a welder is a recession proof job that can also be applied to my artistic endeavors. I am currently a stained-glass artist and mosaicist and believe that welding can help me create larger and more diverse glass sculptures and windows as well as earn the money to retire in 15 or so years. Thank you so much!
Timothy Coppage
Ms. Keller: This will be my second attempt to pen a letter to you regarding your generosity. Apparently, I hit the “wrong key” and I am unclear as to what happened to my first attempt! Regardless, I do need to let you know that your participation in assisting students to progress in their chosen fields is greatly appreciated. I am hoping that you received my first attempt but am NOT satisfied to just hope that you did indeed receive it. Therefore, I feel I must again communicate my appreciation to you for assisting me. I am 78 and have always worked with my hands since my youth. With your help I am able to continue my quest to be a competent welder. I have found that to be a welder is a long process and your help has allowed me to continue and improve my skills. In addition, I have developed a keen interest in welding sculpture and also do the welding at my volunteer organization (Liberty Wildlife) I enjoy helping them! This missive will hopefully convey my appreciation to you. THANK YOU!!
Conner Gossett
Thank you for awarding me with the Cade Keller Scholarship as it means the world to me. I love coming to class for welding and hopefully cert in vertical mig next week. I am hoping after I graduate this spring, I can land a job either fabricating or just a welding job, then I want to build up my own company on the side and eventually run it out of a shop behind my future house. This scholarship helps me and my family pay for school as my rent is kind of high and classes aren’t cheap either. I am proud how far I have come as a welder and a better man. The moment I walked on to campus I met some really good people and still talk or are pretty close with those people to this day. I want to thank you again for giving me this award as I am very proud to be a part of the Cade Keller Memorial Fund as I love the message you guys put out.
Tyler Horsley
Jobs and trades are rarely ever certain to hang around for long periods of time, but this is one trade I’ve seen around for a long time and I doubt it’ll evaporate anytime soon. My timeline or general plan is to focus my full effort and attention on my classes, and hopefully finish my degree before 2025. To that end I intend to take at least 12 credits of classes per semester and get through the requirements as quickly and thoroughly as possible. Having almost finished my second semester with a GPA of 3.5 or thereabouts, I feel at least a little confident I can succeed in my goals. Success to me would be the end of college with an Associate’s degree and a decent to good GPA that I can show off to my own pride or potential employers. I intend to succeed, and I’ll do it in spite of any difficulties I run into along the way. Thank you so much for your generosity in helping me reach my goals.
Lucy Lander
Thank you so much for this generous scholarship. I am attending the Mesa campus here with Maricopa Community Colleges. I am a welding major, and am very excited to start it. I am very hands on, have worked in my school’s technical theater program, and excited to work in a new and exciting medium. I am planning to go into the welding industry or the scenic building aspect of theater after I graduate. This scholarship will allow me to spend less time working, and spend more time focusing on my studies as well as being able to focus on what I would like to do after school. It would also allow me to take time and participate in things I am passionate about. I am luckily a part of the school’s honors program, and have been working on my grades. I have been a stage manager for my past school’s theater program and have helped run or build many of our shows in the last two years. I have participated in competitions and have learned valuable skills from those events. This scholarship means a lot to me. It allows me to focus on my studies into the welding industry, and art form. I hope to be able to achieve a lot and this helps with those aspirations.
Pablo Mejia II
Thank you for your investment in me. My goal is to become certified in my welding classes and hopefully get a job as a welder by the time a graduate. There are many different kinds of welders the one I had heard a lot about is underwater welding and pipeline welding. I chose to weld because many people I know are welders. It just feels like a good job to pursue with many opportunities in many states. If I’m able to get my certificates in my classes it would look more desirable on my resume to then get hired eventually. This summer I’m now going to take a welding class and then be a full-time student in my fall and spring semester 2023-2024; then take my last class in fall 2024. I’m still figuring out the specific welding classes I want to take but overall, my plans are the same. Maybe later on before I graduate, I would take another major to pursue. Thank you!
Owen Ort
I want to be a traveling welder. I want to learn how to weld under water. My parents are retired and it’s getting hard to pay for the classes with prices going up. But with your help I am able to pay for my classes. Thank you so very much!
Jerry Rich
Starting off I would like to express how grateful I am to be awarded with the amount I have received. I can’t say thank you enough. I was completely shocked to see I was getting help towards my education. The start of my lifelong career begins now. I have lived in Mesa, Arizona my entire life and never thought I would stay long enough to attend any colleges here. Mesa Community College grants great opportunities for people such as myself. Looking toward my future in welding and understanding the science behind it brings me joy. Welding is only one of the skills that I am passionate about in life. Most likely stems from spending time in my grandfather’s metal fabrication shop as a young child. I take pride in being the one my bosses, coworkers, and customers go to when any welding or simple fabrication needs to be done. My lifelong goal is to acquire the knowledge I need to open a custom fabrication shop in honor of my grandfather. Having this scholarship not only awards me with the financial support I need but also knowing there are people out there encouraging me to succeed, absolutely helps. I wish to eventually do the same for those around me. This is the start of something great for me. No matter where I go in life, I will always remember those who have helped bring me to where I stand.
Taylor Tracey
Hello I’m Taylor Tracey. I’m Navajo an Arizona Native American. I go to Mesa community college for welding technology to get my AAS. Last year 2022, was my first year and I’ve learned so many things in the welding department. I grew to love it so much that I would spend more and more time in the welding booth than the days I had class. I spent so much time in getting my cert for 3G 7018 SMAW. Can’t wait for school to start back up so I can weld again. What I want to do after school is join the union or work on the road. This scholarship has helped lift some weight off my shoulders to help for expenses for school. Thank you for the scholarship, it means a lot to me.
Jonathan Walley
Thank you for this award. I chose Mesa Community College for the opportunity to study welding with a large variety of classes. My future is limitless. I have achieved the President’s Honor List while attending MCC. I’ve studied hard while enjoying the teachers, and the friends I have made. College would not be possible for me without the help I have received. This makes such a big difference giving me the ability to focus on my classes and not worry on how to pay for them. This is greatly appreciated.
Julio C. Baltazar
I wanted to express my heartfelt gratitude for the Cade Keller Memorial Scholarship that I have been awarded. Receiving this scholarship has made a tremendous impact on my ability to pursue my educational goals. As I work towards achieving my associate degree in applied science-welding at Mesa Community College, I am honored to have the support that this scholarship provides. I specifically chose Mesa Community College for its outstanding welding program, which is regarded as the best in the state. With the help of this scholarship, I am able to attend school and fully immerse myself in this program. I am incredibly proud of the certifications that I have already earned, and I am determined to continue expanding my skills and knowledge in welding. This scholarship will enable me to do so with greater ease and focus. Once again, I want to extend my sincerest appreciation for the impact that the Cade Keller Memorial Scholarship will have on my education and future career in welding. Your support means the world to me, and I am eager to make the most of this opportunity.
Sterling Boels
Thank you so much for choosing me as a scholarship recipient. I truly did not expect to be selected, and words cannot express how grateful, humbled, and blessed I feel by your generosity. I am currently attending Mesa Community College, where I am pursuing an associate degree in welding. I recently completed my first semester of welding classes with great grades and discovered a true passion for the field. After graduation, I hope to TIG weld on spacecraft or aircraft and eventually start my own business using a variety of welding techniques. This scholarship means so much because it helps relieve the financial stress of tuition, supplies, tools, and welding gear. As a student living at home, I often worry about the cost of school and having to ask my parents for help. Your generosity has lifted much of that burden and allowed me to focus more fully on my education and goals. My journey into welding was unexpected. After leaving a cadet flight program with Southwest Airlines, I began exploring careers that would allow me to work with my hands and stay active. That search led me to MCC’s welding program. Although I initially felt out of place, I kept pushing forward, and now I am more excited than ever about my future. This scholarship has added even more fuel to my passion and determination to reach my goals. I hope to one day meet the donor or donors who invested in me and, in the future, give back to other students pursuing their own dreams. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for believing in me, supporting my education, and inspiring me through your kindness and generosity.
Marco Castillo
Thank you so much for selecting me. This scholarship relieves so much financial pressure from me so I will be able to focus on my schooling. I have had so much fun learning to weld and I hope to make a career out of it. I will not let your faith in my go unfounded.
Fiatau Palaita
Thank you very much for choosing me as a recipient for this scholarship. It is amazing to be able to receive The Cade Keller Scholarship. I have heard and listened to the story about Cade and I was able to learn about his love for welding and how he really enjoyed it. Welding opened my eyes to many opportunities. I also have the greatest pleasure in falling in love with welding and I am really enjoying it. Thank you again. Rest in peace Cade and my condolences to the parents.
Matthew Gracie
I thank you for this kind gesture of selecting me to receive The Cade Keller Memorial Scholarship. I have been a student at Mesa Community College in the Welding Department since late 2019. MCC has changed my life in a way I never thought was possible. I have always had a hard time learning at the same pace as others but since I was young, I knew I wanted to be in the trades in one way or another. When I found welding, I knew I found what I was meant to do. In December 2021 I received my first Certification of Completion in Welding. I got my first welding job in 2021 at a custom grill shop where I was mig welding aluminum. After almost a year the job fell through. I signed back up for classes at MCC and took a dual shield class. At the end of the semester, I finally got my first AWS Certification on 3G Dual Shield. I have been chasing that same bone for Tig welding aluminum ever since. My goal is to get it done this semester. I know none of my accomplishments would have been possible without the amazing instructors and friends I have made at the MCC Welding Department. I genuinely thank you for selecting me to receive this reward. This will make it far easier to focus on my studies.
Nathan Gray
Thank you for this generous award. I will work hard to make sure that the faith that you have placed in with such a generous reward is well founded and used to make myself better. I graduated a semester early from high school through dedication and working hard to get things done well in advance and maintain a high GPA. I will be attending college at Mesa Community College, and I will be pursuing a degree in welding. I intend to learn all that I can so I can set myself up for success in life. Your award will allow me to focus on school, learn and not be pressured by a need to work extra or take out loans to be able to continue my education. It is my intent to gain welding experience after graduation and push myself to get a high skill job related to welding, such as an aerospace welder. Once again, thank you for your generosity. Your generosity and trust will be met with hard work and dedication. I will not let you or myself down in this endeavor.
Keegan Heinrich
Thank you so much! This scholarship has helped me get new welding gear including an angle grinder and transportation to and from school. Thank you kindly!
Johnathan Lopez
Thank you! Receiving this scholarship has allowed me to participate and further develop my ability to gain knowledge in the career I hope to acquire in my life. It has allowed me to go to school and create so much more opportunities that I would have never been open to it if I didn’t attend school. Forever grateful!