Opportunities available within the Fully Charged Foundation

“Our scholarship selection committee is eager to review the applications and award our first annual scholarships, including the Wendy Sandsmark Memorial Scholarship and several Fully Charged Foundation Scholarships,” says Patrick Hackley, Fully Charged Foundation Executive Director.

The Fully Charged Foundation is a non-profit business entity fully permitted to conduct business in the state of Minnesota per officially filed paperwork dated 27 December 2018 with the Secretary of State’s office. 

In addition to Hackley serving as Executive Director, the CFO/Board Chair is Adrienne Hanson from Gonvick. Other board members are Stephanie Wilde from McIntosh, Nicole Hackley from Grygla, Kevin Smith from Bagley, and a student member, Richard Hale, from Gully. Hackley explained, “We chose a diverse board from out of town to eliminate the possibility of a “well, your dad/uncle/aunt is on the board” type of situation. We have also made it an internal rule that if a board member is related to an applicant in any way, they must recuse themselves from the selection process.”

The Fully Charged Foundation is gearing up to award two scholarships this year. The Wendy Sandsmark Memorial Scholarship will go to a student from either Grygla or Goodridge High School and the Fully Charged Scholarship (official name not yet determined) will go to an area student to be determined by the board.  

Interested scholarship applicants can email fullychargedfoundation@gmail.com for a copy of the application. The application spells out the guidelines for the scholarship. The scholarship committee is not basing this solely on academics, but on the student’s entire body of work as a student, athlete (if in sports), community volunteer and character based on letters of recommendation and answers to the essay questions on the scholarship application. Award amounts and number of scholarships are still to be determined based on the success of the Foundation’s fundraiser raffle and ability to secure more sponsorships. 

The board has also been issued a permit from the Minnesota Gambling Control Board, which has them in full compliance with state and local government rules and regulations to hold their raffle on June 7, 2019. 

Tickets are on sale now for the raffle of a 2019 Ford F-150 XLT Super Crew 4x4 or $40,000 cash. 3,000 tickets are being sold at $100/each and are available at the following businesses: Thief River Ford - Thief River Falls, Erl’s Market - Thief River Falls, Northern State Bank – Gonvick, Richard’s Publishing – Gonvick, Gully Tri-Coop – Gully, Grygla Coop Store – Grygla. The raffle is sponsored by Fully Charged Foundation and Thief River Ford.

As mentioned, the drawing will be held on June 7, 2019, at the Grygla Community Center. On that date, one lucky winner will have their choice of a brand new pickup or $40,000. There will also be smaller door prizes available from sponsors. Your $100 ticket not only gives you a chance at these prizes, but it also gives you admission to the event that includes a steak dinner, sponsored in part by the Minnesota State Cattlemens Association and the Minnesota Beef Council and all-inclusive beverages for the evening. Hackley added, “There is nowhere around here that will have a family atmosphere, a steak dinner, all-inclusive beverages, a concert by a marquee entertainer and a 1/3000 chance at a 2019 Ford F-150 XLT or $40,000.” The Fully Charged Foundation will be providing musical entertainment at the June 7th event. They will be announcing the opening act and headliner entertainment as soon as they get their signed contract back, which they anticipate to be this week.   

The board has set a minimum goal of $25,000 to award in scholarships after they pay for the vehicle or money, the entertainer and vendors, with the goal set higher if they can sell all 3,000 raffle tickets. 

“Nothing we do happens without the blessing of our CFO and board. We as a community have a real opportunity to make a difference for our kids and our future, and be positive role models for our youth. We can show our little slice of the world that we can disagree on certain things but agree on investing in our future leaders,” Hackley encouraged. In addition to being available at area businesses, tickets are also being sold through PayPal. You can make your donation at https://www.paypal.me/fullychargedMN. You must be 18 years old to purchase ticket or win eligible prizes; winner need not be present to win.